How Do You Vet an Inflight Catering Vendor Before Signing a Program Agreement?

Signing a catering program agreement commits your flight department to a vendor for months or years of orders. Getting it wrong costs money, creates operational risk, and is harder to undo than it looks. Here's the complete due diligence framework for vetting an inflight catering vendor before any commitment is made.

Stage 1: Document Verification

Request these documents before any conversation about pricing or service terms:

• Commercial kitchen license: State-issued, current, for a specific physical address. Look up the address independently — a Google Maps check of the kitchen address is a 30-second test that eliminates fake kitchens.
• FDA facility registration number: Publicly verifiable in 30 seconds at FDA.gov. If they can't provide one, they're not a licensed food facility.
• HACCP plan cover page: A real kitchen has a HACCP plan. Ask to see the cover page — not the full document. A vendor who can't produce this doesn't have a plan.
• Business insurance certificate: Should include commercial liability coverage and coverage for airside delivery operations. A vendor without airside insurance is personally liable — and under-capitalized for any serious claim.
• Health inspection history: Most states make recent health inspection records public. Look it up for the specific kitchen address. Recurring "critical violations" are a red flag.

Stage 2: Operational Questioning

In a structured conversation or RFP response, ask:

• "Who specifically prepares my order, and which kitchen location produces it?"
• "How do you verify temperature during transit, and can you provide a sample temperature log?"
• "What is your specific allergen management protocol for a severe nut allergy?"
• "What is your minimum lead time for standard service at [your primary airports]?"
• "What is your AOG/emergency response protocol, and what is your average response time?"
• "Who do I call at 3 AM if there's a problem with a delivery?" — ask for the specific name and number, not a general line

Vague, generic answers to any of these questions indicate a broker operation or an under-prepared vendor.

Stage 3: Reference Check

Request 2–3 references from corporate flight departments with similar profiles to yours — similar fleet, similar trip volume, similar geographic footprint. Ask references:

• "How has the vendor performed on time sensitivity?"
• "Have you had allergen management issues?"
• "How does the vendor respond when something goes wrong?"
• "Would you renew the program agreement?"

Stage 4: The Test Order

Before signing any agreement, place a test order for a real flight — ideally a routine corporate leg. Evaluate:

• Communication clarity throughout the process
• Delivery timing vs. committed window
• Order accuracy vs. manifest
• Temperature at delivery (ask to verify or observe)
• Packaging quality and labeling
• Food quality at service

One test order isn't a complete picture, but it eliminates the vendors who can't pass a single real-world evaluation.

DFK welcomes this process. We'll provide every document, answer every question, give you references, and invite you to do a test order before any commitment. Start the vetting process with DFK.