According to a Euromonitor International report (April 2016), consumer foodservice sales grew 5.7 percent globally in 2015, improving on the previous year’s growth rate of 5.3 percent. Fast casual dining was the strongest growth segment across the industry at 10.4%, increasing US$3.4 billion from 2014 to 2015.

By 2016, sales values of food service contractors in the United States for example, are projected to reach approximately US$42 billion according to Statistica 2016.

Figure 1 below shows the sales and forecast value of food service in the United States from 2008 up to 2020.

Convenience is one of the most important factors for customers deciding where to order their food. With increasingly fast-paced lifestyles, the frequency of cooking at home, especially in an urban household is expected to decline. Time poor consumers will likely spend less time preparing their own meals, instead opting for the convenience provided by the growing multitude of options provided by the hospitality sector.

Britain for example, will spend almost Stg£8 billion per annum on fast food takeaways by the end of the decade. This will be driven by a surge in smartphone usage with time-pressed households cooking fewer meals. Spend on pizza, curry and Chinese food is expected to grow by 28% during this decade to £7.6 billion a year according to figures from Euromonitor International.

The convergence of food service and retail is expected to continue and will serve to drive divergence of tastes and experiences.

More restaurants will also offer meals to take away and there will be branded opportunities for leading restaurants to integrate with retail outlets. One driver of these changes will be a desire for more nutritional food ‘on-the-go’. Dashboard dining is on the rise (25% of US drivers eat breakfast in the car) and car companies are including food and drink consumption considerations in their design process.

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