Lufthansa Group Airlines is using artificial intelligence to pave a unique new way to reduce passenger food waste.
The technology in question has been named the ‘tray tracker’. The technology, powered by AI, aims to reduce food waste from onboard meals.
The tray tracker has been in use at Lufthansa’s location in Frankfurt for over a year, and has recently been introduced to Munich, as the airline aims to expand this technology across multiple locations.
The tray tracker uses mobile technology to scan used meal trays after they have been collected by crew, as they make their way down the dishwashing line.
Artificial intelligence systems then scan the plate to analyse whether each meal has been finished, partially eaten or not eaten at all.
The system analyses each plate whilst taking into account various factors, including the flight route, travel class, and composition of the meal itself.
The information gathered by the tray tracker is then put towards future decision-making regarding the makeup of meals and their portion size.
Amending the amount of food that is brought onboard the aircraft not only reduces overall food waste, but contributes to a reduction of CO2 emissions, as the total weight of the aircraft will potentially be lowered.
Stepping Towards a Sustainable Future
The initiative is taking place against a backdrop of sustainability solutions being implemented by the Lufthansa group.
Passengers onboard short and medium-haul flights operated by Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines and SWISS are able to purchase products at a reduced priced during the last flight of each day, in an effort to lower food waste.
The airline has also been slowly phasing out single-use plastic and aluminium for reusable alternatives, replacing a third of these materials with more eco-friendly alternatives since 2022.
Furthermore, the airlines’ introduction of the Pre-Select feature encourages customers to choose their meal ahead of time, increasing the likelihood that they complete their meal, therefore reducing food waste.
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