TRENOS SiGINT: Emirates Reboots Vegan Catering with Back to Basics Approach

Analyst: Scott Mathias - January 2026

Signal

Emirates’ decision to eliminate fake meat from its revamped vegan meals signals a strategic shift toward whole, minimally processed plant foods in airline cuisine. After years of experimenting with plant-based alternatives, the Dubai-based carrier is doubling down on ingredients that are inherently plant-forward, drawing from globally inspired dishes that highlight natural flavours and nutrition.

This comes amid robust growth in vegan meal demand, passengers now pre-order vegan meals in high volumes year-round, with over half a million served in 2025 alone, prompting Emirates to expand and diversify its plant-based menu. While complete rollout of the new concept is slated for 2027, current menus remain extensive and reflect evolving consumer preferences toward authentic, wholesome plant cuisine.

Human Factor

For global travellers, the evolution of in-flight food isn’t just about dietary labels, it’s about comfort, nourishment, and cultural authenticity at 35,000 feet. Emirates’ move away from processed alternatives toward familiar, flavourful plant foods meets consumers where they are, which is seeking meals feeling real and satisfying on long journeys. Many non-vegans are now choosing vegan meals simply because they offer a lighter, fresher in-flight experience.

TRENOS Metrics Snapshot

Signal	Emirates vegan meal pivot
Data Point	>500,000 vegan meals served in 2025
Vegan Meal Growth	+∼100,000 YoY
Recipe Portfolio	488 vegan recipes globally
Routes with High Preorder Demand	London, Sydney, Bangkok, Melbourne, Frankfurt
Ingredient Focus	Legumes, grains, nuts, seeds, seasonal veg
Menu Style	Whole/plant-forward, culturally inspired
Passenger Segment	Vegans + flexitarians / health-minded travellers
Dining Innovation	Move away from plant-based meat substitutes
Implementation Timeline	Full rollout targeted early 2027
Trend Classification	Mainstream plant cuisine evolution
System Pressure Point	Processed vs whole plant foods
Momentum	Growing passenger demand & menu expansion
Sentiment	Positive for authenticity over substitutes
Where Signal Is Loudest	Major international long-haul routes
Related Links	Emirates

Long Play Analysis - Emirates Reboots Vegan Catering with Back to Basics Approach

Emirates’ shift away from plant-based meat substitutes isn’t a rejection of veganism, it’s a recalibration of what mainstream plant-based eating now looks like. In the confined, high-stress environment of airline catering, highly processed meat analogues struggle as texture degrades, flavours flatten, and digestion can feel heavy at altitude. Whole-food vegan meals such as grains, pulses, vegetables, sauces built on oil, acid and spice, perform better technically and emotionally. This isn’t ideology, it’s operational reality meeting consumer preference.

There’s also a broader consumer signal at play too. The post-hype phase of plant-based eating has arrived. Early excitement around “like-for-like” meat replacements helped normalise plant-based choices, but today’s flexitarian traveller is more interested in how food makes them feel than how closely it mimics meat. Lighter digestion, recognisable ingredients and cultural familiarity now matter more than novelty protein engineering, particularly on long-haul flights where comfort is king.

Strategically, Emirates’ timing is telling. By delaying a full rollout until 2027, the airline is buying space to observe where plant-based demand truly settles and to avoid locking itself into a protein technology cycle that’s still in flux. For the alternative-protein sector, the message is nuanced but clear, that growth won’t come from forcing substitutes into every context. The next phase belongs to “tame proteins” like legumes, grains and simple plant systems, used intelligently, authentically and at scale. At 35,000 feet, it turns out the future of vegan food looks reassuringly familiar.

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