BBC NEWS | Business | Profile: Gate Gourmet

BBC NEWS | Business | Profile: Gate Gourmet: "Although enjoying a turnover of 2.4bn Swiss francs (�1.05bn; $1.9bn) in 2004, the company has not actually made a profit since 2000.
The whole of the airline supply chain has come under pressure

Graham Dunn, Air Transport Intelligence
Revenues have fallen 35% since then as the airlines have continued to tighten their belts post 11 September 2001.
Several of Gate Gourmet's main customers - including Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Swiss International Air Lines - have been in severe financial difficulties in the past couple of years, putting severe pressure on their suppliers.
In a effort to save costs, many airlines have opted to scrap free meals on shorter flights or offer them on a pay-as-you-go basis.
Off the menu?
According to industry estimates, the in-flight catering market has shrunk in size by about 30% in the past four years.
The US - one of Gate Gourmet's biggest markets - has been worst affected with volumes down about 40%.
'The whole of the airline supply chain has come under pressure as carriers have strived to cut their costs in the face of a string of global challenges since 2001,' says Graham Dunn, European editor of aviation news service Air Transport Intelligence.
GATE GOURMET'S MAIN CLIENTS
British Airways
American Airlines
Continental Airlines
Iberia Airlines
Qantas Airlines
SAS
Thai Airways
United Airlines
An already-difficult situation has been made worse by soaring oil prices - which have pushed up airlines' fuel costs by 20% - and by fierce competition among suppliers.
Gate Gourmet lost a valuable contract with Virgin Atlantic earlier this year after the airline reorganised its in-flight services - including catering - and handed them to a single "