The foodservice (US English) or catering (British English)

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

includes the businesses, institutions, and companies which prepare meals outside the home. It includes restaurants, school and hospital cafeterias,

catering Catering is the business of providing food service at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, hospital, pub, aircraft, cruise ship, park, festival, filming location or film studio. History of catering The earliest account of major services be ...

operations, and many other formats. Suppliers to foodservice operators are

foodservice distributor A food service distributor is a company that provides food and non-food products to restaurants, cafeterias, industrial caterers, hospitals, schools/colleges/universities, nursing homes, and anywhere food is served away from the home. Description ...

s, who provide small wares (kitchen utensils) and foods. Some companies manufacture products in both

consumer A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or uses purchased goods, products, or services primarily for personal, social, family, household and similar needs, who is not directly related to entrepreneurial or business activities. ...

and food service versions. The consumer version usually comes in individual-sized packages with elaborate label design for

retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and ...

sale. The foodservice version is packaged in a much larger industrial size and often lacks the colorful label designs of the consumer version.

Statistics

The food system, including food service and food retailing supplied $1.24 trillion worth of food in 2010 in the US, $594 billion of which was supplied by food service facilities, defined by the

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

as any place which prepares food for immediate consumption on site, including locations that are not primarily engaged in dispensing meals such as recreational facilities and retail stores. Full-service and

fast food restaurant A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service. The food served in fast-food restaurants is typically ...

s account for 77% of all foodservice sales, with full-service restaurants accounting for just slightly more than fast food in 2010. The shifts in the market shares between fast food and full-service restaurants to market demand changes the offerings of both foods and services of both types of restaurants. According to the

National Restaurant Association The National Restaurant Association is a restaurant industry business association in the United States, representing more than 380,000 restaurant locations. It also operates the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. The associa ...

a growing trend among US consumers for the foodservice industry is global cuisine with 66% of US consumers eating more widely in 2015 than in 2010, 80% of consumers eating 'ethnic' cuisines at least once a month, and 29% trying a new 'ethnic' cuisine within the last year. The

Foodservice distributor A food service distributor is a company that provides food and non-food products to restaurants, cafeterias, industrial caterers, hospitals, schools/colleges/universities, nursing homes, and anywhere food is served away from the home. Description ...

market size is as of 2015 $231 billion in the US; the national broadline market is controlled by

US Foods US Foods (formerly known as U.S. Foodservice) is an American foodservice distributor. With approximately $24 billion in annual revenue, US Foods was the 10th largest private company in America until its IPO. It was founded in August 1989. Many ...

and

Sysco Sysco Corporation (short for Systems and Services Company) is an American multinational corporation involved in marketing and distributing food products, smallwares, kitchen equipment and tabletop items to restaurants, healthcare and education ...

which combined have 60-70% share of the market and were blocked from merging by the FTC for reasons of market power.

Health concerns

Foodservice foods tends to be, on average, higher in calories and lower in key nutrients than foods prepared at home. Many restaurants, including fast food, have added more salads and fruit offerings and either by choice or in response to local legislation provided nutrition labeling. In the US, the

FDA The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...

is moving towards establishing uniform guidelines for fast food and restaurant labeling, proposed rules were published in 2011 and final regulations published on 1 December 2014 which supersede State and local menu-labeling provisions, going into effect 1 December 2015. Research has shown that the new labels may influence consumer choices, but primarily if it provides unexpected information and that health-conscious consumers are resistant to changing behaviors based on menu labeling Fast food restaurants are expected by the ERS to do better under the new menu labeling than full-service restaurants as full-service restaurants tend to offer much more calorie-dense foods, with 50% of fast food meals being between 400 and 800 calories and less than 20% above 1000 calories, in contrast, full-service restaurants 20% of meals are above 1,400 calories. When consumers are aware of the calorie counts at full-service restaurants 20% choose lower calorie options and consumers also reduce their calorie intake over the rest of the day. Eating one meal away from home each week translates to 2 extra pounds each year or a daily increase of 134 calories and a decrease in diet quality by 2 points on the

Healthy Eating Index The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, created on December 1, 1994, to improve the health and well-being of Americans by establishing national dietary guidelines based on the best s ...

. In addition; the likelihood of contracting a

food-borne illness Foodborne illness (also foodborne disease and food poisoning) is any illness resulting from the spoilage of contaminated food by pathogenic bacteria, viruses, or parasites that contaminate food, as well as prions (the agents of mad cow disease ...

(such as

typhoid Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several d ...

and

hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the '' Hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. ...

, or diseases caused by E. coli,

H. pylori ''Helicobacter pylori'', previously known as ''Campylobacter pylori'', is a gram-negative, microaerophilic, spiral (helical) bacterium usually found in the stomach. Its helical shape (from which the genus name, helicobacter, derives) is thoug ...

Listeria ''Listeria'' is a genus of bacteria that acts as an intracellular parasite in mammals. Until 1992, 17 species were known, each containing two subspecies. By 2020, 21 species had been identified. The genus is named in honour of the British pio ...

, Salmonella, and

Norovirus Norovirus, sometimes referred to as the winter vomiting disease, is the most common cause of gastroenteritis. Infection is characterized by non-bloody diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pain. Fever or headaches may also occur. Symptoms usually devel ...

) is greatly increased due to food not being kept below or cooked to a temperature of higher than , not washing hands for at least 20 seconds for food handlers or not washing contaminated cutting boards and other kitchen tools in hot water.

Types of service

Counter service is food ordered by the customer at the counter and either picked up at the counter by the customer or delivered to the table by restaurant staff. It is common in

s in the United States, and in

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

s and bars in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

(see:

Table meal A substantial meal or table meal is a legal term of art regarding the application of alcohol licensing laws in England and Wales. It was also used in reference to the closure in England of pubs, restaurants and cafés due to the COVID-19 pandem ...

). Table service is food ordered by the customer at the table and served to the customer's table by waiters and waitresses, also known as "servers". Table service is common in most restaurants. With table service, the customer generally pays at the end of meal. Various methods of table service can be provided, such as

silver service Silver service (in British English) is a method of foodservice at the table, with waiter transferring food from a serving dish to the guest's plate, always from the left. It is performed by a waiter by using service forks and spoons from the din ...

Food safety

The provision of safe food for foodservice specifies the requirements for the design, implementation, and maintenance of prerequisite programmes (PRPs) to assist in controlling food safety hazards in

. A

technical specification A specification often refers to a set of documented requirements to be satisfied by a material, design, product, or service. A specification is often a type of technical standard. There are different types of technical or engineering specificati ...

is provided as an international standard, ISO/TS 22002-2:2013 Prerequisite programmes on food safety — Part 2: Catering. This

is part of the

ISO 22000 ISO 22000 is a Food safety management system which is outcome focused, providing requirements for any organization in the food industry with objective to help to improve overall performance in food safety. These standards are intended to ensure ...

family of standards. The scope includes

, air catering, railway catering, banquets, among others, in central and satellite units, school and industry dining rooms, hospitals and healthcare facilities, hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, food services, and food stores.

References

External links