The retail foodservice segment, from grocery stores to convenience stores, is projected to grow by 3% through 2017, according to new data unveiled by Technomic. Its 2016/2017 U.S. Food Industry Universe report provides an overarching look at the entire $1.74 trillion foodservice industry, revealing trends, opportunities and growth projections across restaurant and retail food channels.
While restaurants are expected to outpace retail foodservice, with a growth rate of 4.8% through 2017, Technomic analysts still forecast the strong, ongoing progression of the retail food segment, beyond the expansion of foodservice within conventional supermarkets or “supercenters.” Key findings released by Technomic pointed to the elevation of “nontraditional” food channels, which represent the five fastest-growing segments in the overall food industry:
- Online food services are expected to grow by 19.8% in 2017.
- Fresh-format markets reveal projected growth of 9.1% in the next year.
- Supermarket fresh prepared foods are estimated to grow by about 9%.
- Limited-assortment stores are expected to grow by 6%.
- Independent restaurants/small chains are projected to achieve about 6% growth.
Together, Technomic predicts that these five segments will contribute 43% of the total industry growth through 2017.
As for c-stores, Technomic is anticipating 4.2% nominal growth in 2016 and 4.0% growth in 2017. A perennial c-store competitor, drug chains, is expected to see 6.4% gains this year, and 5.0% growth in 2017.
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