Gitnux/Report 2026

F&B Industry Statistics

45% of U.S. consumers increased functional beverage purchases in the past year for health benefits—see what’s driving F&B demand.
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November 11, 2026Updated
F&B Industry Statistics
Helena KowalczykWritten by Helena Kowalczyk·Edited by Gabrielle Fontaine·Fact-checked by Claire Beaumont
Published ·Updated
How this report is researched
01Editorial Scope

Gitnux editors write the brief first: the topic, the inclusion rules, and the frame for what belongs.

02Source Research

Agents search the published record and log every extracted figure back to the passage it came from.

Read our full methodology →

Search agents attach provenance to every extracted figure.

Next review: within 31 days

01 Industry overview

The f b industry at a glance

U.S. consumers spent $2.58 trillion on food in 2024 as the market stays resilient across food-at-home and food-away-from-home. Global food and beverage processing is projected to approach $10 trillion by 2030, with growth of approximately 7% annually from 2025 to 2030.

$2.58T[58]
U.S. food spending, 2024
7%[87]
Global processing CAGR, 2025–2030
130,000[88]
U.S. jobs added, 2024–2034
63.61%[89]
Food category share, 2026
Market size
U.S. consumers spent $2.58 trillion on food in 2024, up 4.0% from $2.48 trillion in 2023. Food-away-from-home spending reached $1.27 trillion, while food-at-home spending totaled $901 billion.[58]
Forecast & CAGR
Global food and beverage processing is projected to reach about $10 trillion by 2030, with growth of approximately 7% annually from 2025 to 2030. A separate 2026 market estimate puts food at 63.61% of the combined food and beverage market and forecasts beverage growth at 4.3% from 2027 to 2032.[87][89]
Market share & regions
The available 2026 market estimate identifies supermarkets and hypermarkets as the largest distribution channel, with a 50.9% share, while online retail is forecast to be the fastest-growing channel at a 5.5% CAGR through 2032. U.S. food-away-from-home spending was highest per capita in Washington, DC, at $9,287 in 2025, followed by Nevada at $6,008 and Hawaii at $5,572.[89][58]
Segmentation
U.S. food and beverage manufacturing employment in 2024 was concentrated in animal slaughtering and processing, which represented 26% of sector jobs, followed by bakeries and tortilla manufacturing at 17% and beverage manufacturing at 16%. Other food manufacturing accounted for 12%.[88]
Pricing
U.S. food prices were 2.5% higher in September 2026 than a year earlier; food-away-from-home prices rose 3.5% and food-at-home prices rose 1.8%. USDA forecasts average all-food prices to increase 2.8% in 2026, with restaurant prices rising 3.5% and grocery prices rising 2.3%.[58]
Trends, drivers & challenges
Demand for convenience is supporting growth in bakery, snack, beverage and prepared-food manufacturing; BLS projects food and beverage manufacturing to add 130,000 jobs from 2024 to 2034. At the same time, input-cost volatility remains a challenge: in September 2026, nonalcoholic beverage prices were 3.8% above the prior year and fresh vegetable prices were 2.8% higher.[88][58]
Consumer behavior & competition
U.S. consumers spent 9.7% of disposable personal income on food in 2025, including 4.8% on food at home and 4.9% on food away from home. In 2024, food represented 12.9% of total household expenditures, making it the third-largest spending category after housing and transportation.[58]
M&A
Food and beverage M&A remained active in 2026, with strategic buyers targeting differentiated brands, supply-chain synergies and higher-growth categories. Notable transactions included Mark Anthony Brands’ announced $325 million acquisition of The Long Drink Company and the proposed combination of McCormick and Unilever.[90][29]
Regulation
The FDA issued the 2026 Food Code on September 17, 2026, adding or revising provisions covering employee illness policies, retail cooling processes, allergen cross-contact and mobile food establishments. In October 2026, FDA also finalized a rule allowing salt substitutes in 139 standardized foods to support sodium reduction.[91]
Latest news
Recent industry developments include the FDA’s September 2026 release of the updated Food Code, an October 2026 rule allowing salt substitutes in standardized foods, and continued consolidation in branded food and beverage categories, including the proposed McCormick–Unilever combination.[91][29]

02 Ranking

Top 10 Companies in the F B Industry

The leading companies in the f b industry, ranked on market impact, performance, momentum, innovation and brand popularity.

Updated November 11, 2026 · Next review December 11, 2026

Verdict

Mars stands out thanks to its major snacking and pet nutrition brands including M&M'S, Pringles, Cheez-It and Ben's Original, whereas The Coca-Cola Company stands out for selling non-alcoholic beverages across more than 200 countries and territories.

Ranked by Overall score · How we score ↓

Editor's top 3 picks

Where to start, by need.

  1. #1 Overall · Leader in snacking & pet nutrition

    Mars

    US

    Ranked #1 · 9.3 · Snacking & pet nutrition

    Why we picked it: Its branded snacking lineup spans chocolate, chips, crackers, and food lines.

    See in ranking ↓Visit mars.com ↗

  2. Leader in non-alcoholic beverages

    The Coca-Cola Company

    US

    Ranked #2 · 9.1 · Non-alcoholic beverages

    Why we picked it: Its non-alcoholic beverage system covers a broad footprint tied to worldwide distribution.

    See in ranking ↓Visit coca-colacompany.com ↗

  3. Leader in food ingredients & proteins

    Cargill

    US

    Ranked #3 · 9.1 · Food ingredients & proteins

    Why we picked it: Its ingredient and protein supply connects upstream agriculture to multiple downstream food categories.

    See in ranking ↓Visit cargill.com ↗

Pick 1 is the #1 company overall. Picks 2 and 3 are the highest-ranked companies in the top 5 that add a new segment.

Full ranking

Sort by
Top 10 companies in the f b industry, 2026 – Gitnux ranking
#CompanyOverall ↓Company snapshot
1

Mars

Snacking & pet nutrition · US

9.3
2

The Coca-Cola Company

Non-alcoholic beverages · US

9.1
3

Cargill

Food ingredients & proteins · US

9.1
4

JBS

Meat & protein products · BR

9.0
5

Carlsberg Group

Beer & beverages · DK

8.7
6

Danone

Dairy, plant-based, water and nutrition · FR

8.7
7

Ferrero

Chocolate and confectionery worldwide · IT

8.7
8

Tyson Foods

Meat, poultry and prepared foods · US

8.6
9

Arla Foods

Dairy products and ingredients worldwide · DK

8.3
10

ADM

Food ingredients, nutrition and processing · US

7.5

How we score

  • Impact (30%): scale and weight in the market (revenue, market share, employees, market position).
  • Performance (20%): recent revenue growth and operating margin; an analyst assessment where a company does not publish them.
  • Momentum (20%): growth trajectory and future potential.
  • Innovation (15%): R&D intensity and how technologically advanced the company is.

Popularity (brand search demand, 15%) counts toward Overall but is not published as a column. Overall leaves out what is not known.

Scale Scores are shown on a 7–10 scale with one decimal; bars start at 7.0.

Cadence Recalculated when new figures are published; next review December 11, 2026.

Independence. Rankings are editorially independent. Scores, ranks, picks and the verdict follow the method above; no company can pay to change them.

Cite this ranking

APA

Helena Kowalczyk. (2026, February 13). Top 10 companies in the f b industry. In F&B Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/f-b-industry-statistics/#top-companies

report visual · Projection

Food and beverage services establishments (Hong Kong)

Food and beverage services establishments grew from 17K in 2020 to 18K in 2024.

16.8K count
Start
+1.22%
CAGR · 4y
17.7K count
Projected
20202024
source-verifiedcenstatd.gov.hk2024

04 Statistics

Technology & Innovation

Adoption is widespread: 47% of food retailers and 93% of food suppliers used artificial intelligence in 2024. Execution is also moving toward automation and technology-led data use.

AI in the f b industry

  • 47% of food retailers and 93% of food suppliers used artificial intelligence in 2024.[1]
  • 97% of food and beverage businesses were at least investigating AI in 2024, while more than one-third were already using it.[2]
  • 10.4% was the predicted 2025 profit growth for food and beverage companies already using AI, compared with 8.4% for companies investigating AI or with no plans.[2]
  • 73% of agri-food businesses that had adopted AI did so within the previous two years, according to a European industry survey.[3]
  • 16% of food and beverage leaders reported in 2025 that more than half of their AI projects had reached scale across all sites.[4]
  • 45% of agri-food businesses used AI systems through external service providers in 2024.[3]

Automation in the f b industry

  • 60% of North American food and beverage processors, manufacturers and distributors were using technology to automate more tasks in 2023.[2]
  • 40% was the maximum efficiency increase that Aptean associated with automation in food and beverage operations in 2024.[2]
  • 56% of North American food and beverage companies planned to invest in technology to overcome supply-chain disruption in 2024.[2]
  • 48% of North American food and beverage companies still relied partly or completely on manual processes to trace products in 2023.[2]
  • 54% of North American food and beverage companies planned to use manufacturing execution systems within the following 12 to 24 months.[2]
  • 34% of North American food and beverage companies planned to increase automation in 2024.[2]

Digital Transformation in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 82% of food and beverage leaders said technology adoption was a strategic priority, while 6% reported fully integrated digital systems, in a 2025 survey.[5]
  • 40% of 423 food and beverage professionals worldwide identified disconnected systems and data as their organization’s biggest operational barrier in 2026.[5]
  • 28% of food, beverage, and ingredient professionals reported positive effects from digital transformation technologies on food-safety preventive controls in 2024.[6]
  • 34% of food, beverage, and ingredient professionals said manufacturing process or assembly had been positively affected by digital transformation technologies in 2024.[6]

Technology Adoption in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 31% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in robotics or robotic process automation in 2025.[6]
  • 22% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in machine-learning software in 2025.[6]
  • 50% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in artificial intelligence as part of their 2025 digital-transformation strategies.[6]
  • 23% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in mobile-app technologies in 2025.[6]

Cloud Computing in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 39.5% of EU enterprises in accommodation and food-service activities used paid cloud-computing services in 2025.[7]
  • 52% of food processors and manufacturers were considering cloud technology, while 45% reported no cloud use, in a 2023 industry survey.[8]
  • 30% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in cloud computing or enterprise resource-planning software and systems in 2025.[6]
  • 18% of food manufacturers were already using cloud-based manufacturing-execution systems, while 51% planned implementation, according to a 2025 industry survey.[9]

Big Data in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 47% of food, beverage, and ingredient professionals identified gathering, analyzing, and leveraging data for data-driven decisions as a digital-transformation investment driver in 2024.[6]
  • 24% of food-manufacturing respondents were very familiar with advanced analytics, while 34% were moderately familiar, in CRB’s 2025 survey.[10]
  • 13% of food manufacturers were already using advanced-analytics or big-data platforms, while 44% planned implementation, in a 2025 industry survey.[9]
  • 35% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in big data and real-time analytics in 2025.[6]

IoT in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 26% of food manufacturers were already using IoT sensors or equipment monitoring, while 37% planned implementation, in a 2025 industry survey.[9]
  • 16% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in Internet-of-Things devices or sensors in 2025.[6]

05 Statistics

Data & Analytics

Data systems are a practical bottleneck, with 22% of consumer-products companies reporting a lack of trust in data quality and validity in 2024. Teams also prioritize data infrastructure and governance.

Business intelligence in the f b industry

  • 69% of food suppliers used artificial intelligence in 2023, according to FMI’s food-industry technology research.[1]
  • 6.5% was the food-industry out-of-stock rate reported for 2023, down from 10.7% in the previous year.[1]
  • 1.9% of food suppliers’ total sales was allocated to technology investment in 2023.[1]
  • 85% of food retailers used data analytics in 2023, according to FMI’s food-industry technology research.[1]
  • 0.9% of food retailers’ total sales was allocated to technology budgets in 2023.[1]
  • 41% of surveyed food and beverage companies planned to invest in business-intelligence tools over the following year in 2024.[11]

Data analytics in the f b industry

  • 33% of food-manufacturing survey respondents said analytics provided the most value in identifying production bottlenecks in 2025.[9]
  • 23% of food-manufacturing survey respondents said analytics provided the most value in quality-defect detection and root-cause analysis in 2025.[9]
  • 21% of food-manufacturing survey respondents said analytics provided the most value in equipment-failure prediction and prevention in 2025.[9]
  • 19% of food-manufacturing survey respondents said analytics provided the most value in batch-quality-deviation analysis in 2025.[9]
  • 31% of food-manufacturing survey respondents said analytics provided the most value in real-time production-line performance tracking in 2025.[9]
  • 25% of food-manufacturing survey respondents said analytics provided the most value in energy-consumption pattern analysis and peak-usage alerts in 2025.[9]

Data Quality in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 77% of retail and consumer-products companies identified improving data quality as a priority in 2023.[12]
  • 7.0 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data completeness as important in 2018.[13]
  • 6.6 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data consistency as important in 2018.[13]
  • 6.4 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data accuracy as important in 2018.[13]
  • 6.4 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data timeliness as important in 2018.[13]
  • 22% of consumer-products companies reported that businesses lacked trust in data quality and validity in 2024.[14]

Data Governance in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 22% of consumer-products companies planned to increase investment in data infrastructure and governance over the following 12 months in 2024.[14]
  • 61% of supply-management organizations had a dedicated data-governance function in 2024.[15]
  • 81% of supply-management organizations found their data-governance program useful in 2024.[15]
  • 47% of supply-management data-governance functions were housed in a center of excellence in 2024.[15]
  • 43% of consumer-products companies reported struggling to establish the right level of data governance in 2024.[14]
  • 90% of supply-management organizations agreed or strongly agreed that data governance was necessary in 2024.[15]

KPIs in the f b industry

  • 73 was the 2024 U.S. food-delivery customer-satisfaction KPI score on ACSI’s 100-point scale.[16]
  • 48% of U.S. diners belonged to a restaurant loyalty program in 2024.[17]
  • 6.5% was the food-industry out-of-stock KPI reported for 2023.[1]
  • 84 was the 2025 U.S. restaurant mobile-app reliability KPI score on ACSI’s 100-point scale.[16]
  • 47% of U.S. diners engaged with restaurant loyalty programs weekly or more often in 2024.[17]
  • 82 was the 2025 U.S. customer-satisfaction KPI score for full-service restaurants on ACSI’s 100-point scale.[16]

06 Statistics

Strategy & Growth

Growth focuses on categories and channels while deal activity stays active in 2026, with $149.9 billion reported for 2024 food and beverage M&A deal value. Output momentum varies by region.

Growth in the f b industry

  • 5.6% was the estimated global food and beverage industry growth rate from 2023 to 2024.[18]
  • 2% to 4% was Circana’s forecast for 2025 food and beverage dollar-sales growth.[19]
  • Nearly $45 billion in annual system-wide sales were generated by Restaurant Brands International in 2024.[20]
  • 2.2% was projected 2025 output growth for South America’s food and beverage industry.[21]
  • 5.7% was projected 2024 output growth for Asia-Pacific’s food and beverage industry.[21]
  • 1.4% was projected 2024 output growth for Europe’s food and beverage industry.[21]

Differentiation in the f b industry

  • 7.4% was tonnage growth for products stating that they contain electrolytes in NIQ’s cited analysis.[22]
  • $24.6 million was generated by products stating that they contain electrolytes in NIQ’s cited product-innovation analysis.[22]
  • 73% of new food and beverage items analyzed by NIQ were close-in line extensions.[22]
  • $8.4 billion in first-year sales was generated by Circana’s 2024 food, beverage and nonfood New Product Pacesetters.[23]
  • 6.1% was dollar growth for products stating that they contain electrolytes in NIQ’s cited analysis.[22]
  • 1% of total tracked retail dollars came from Circana’s 2024 New Product Pacesetters.[23]

Mergers and acquisitions in the f b industry

  • $40.8 billion was the combined value of U.S. food and beverage deals closed in the second half of 2024.[24]
  • 412 food and beverage transactions were recorded in the fourth quarter of 2024 by Focus Investment Bankers.[25]
  • 351 food and beverage deals closed in the fourth quarter of 2024.[26]
  • $149.9 billion was the reported 2024 food and beverage M&A deal value, compared with $83.1 billion in 2023.[26]
  • 67% of U.S. food and beverage M&A deals in the second half of 2024 involved food-products companies.[24]
  • $36 billion was the value of Mars’ acquisition of Kellanova announced in August 2024.[24]

Strategic partnerships in the f b industry

  • More than 100 countries were served by McDonald’s through franchised and company-operated restaurants in 2024.[27]
  • 107 international franchisees operated 1,294 of Wendy’s 1,307 international restaurants at December 29, 2024.[28]
  • 3 percentage points was the increase in co-licensed products’ share of food and beverage sales among New Product Pacesetters from 2024 to 2025.[19]
  • 56 independent owners operated TGI Fridays franchises across 41 countries in 2024.[29]
  • 1.2 billion servings represented the scale of Coca-Cola’s global FIFA partnership activation in 2022, according to the company’s reported campaign reach.[30]
  • $120 million was invested by PepsiCo and Walmart in a joint farmer-support initiative for U.S. and Canadian agriculture.[8]

07 Statistics

People & Workforce

Workforce pressure remains a recurring constraint: BLS projects food and beverage manufacturing to add 130,000 jobs from 2024 to 2034. Many firms are changing training and staffing patterns.

Hiring in the f b industry

  • 247,792 food-service-manager jobs and 113,075 separations were projected for the United States in 2025.[31]
  • 47% of U.S. food and beverage managers cited recruitment, retention and training as primary challenges in 2023.[32]
  • 79% of U.S. restaurant operators reported in 2022 that they already had job openings that were difficult to fill.[29]
  • 82% of U.S. restaurant and foodservice businesses were actively hiring in a 2023 industry survey.[32]
  • 15.7 million people worked in U.S. restaurants and foodservice in 2024, representing 10% of the national workforce.[31]

Employee retention in the f b industry

  • Fewer than 4% of employees in the U.S. restaurants-and-accommodations sector quit each month in late 2024.[33]
  • 74% was the approximate annual U.S. restaurant-industry employee-turnover rate during the decade before the pandemic.[34]
  • 393,000 dollars was the illustrative annual turnover cost for a limited-service restaurant with 50 employees and a 135% turnover rate.[34]
  • 135% was the illustrative annual turnover rate for a limited-service restaurant used in Deloitte’s retention-cost example.[34]
  • 80% was the approximate annual employee-turnover rate in the U.S. restaurant industry in January 2024.[34]

Remote Work in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across U.S. food and beverage businesses, 26% let employees choose to work in-person or remotely in 2025, while 73% require in-person work.[35]
  • Among food-sector career starters globally, 36% were fully site-based during their first two years of work, according to a 2024 survey.[36]
  • U.S. accommodation and food-services firms averaged 0.1 work-from-home days per week from November 2024 through January 2025.[37]
  • In U.S. accommodation and food services, 1.7% of employees were able to work fully remotely in 2024.[38]

Hybrid Work in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • In U.S. restaurant and bar businesses, 12% offered employees a choice between in-person and remote work in 2025.[35]
  • Across U.S. food and beverage businesses, 26% offered employees the option to work in-person or remotely in 2025.[35]
  • Among food-sector career starters globally, 27% worked in a hybrid arrangement during their first two years, according to a 2024 survey.[36]
  • In 2025, 80% of hospitality and food-services employers said they were still struggling to get the balance right with hybrid working.[39]

Upskilling in the f b industry

  • 54.94% of U.S. restaurant operators used shoulder-to-shoulder training as their dominant training approach in 2026.[40]
  • 71% of surveyed North American food and beverage companies had upskilled existing employees to reduce recruitment pressure in 2023.[8]
  • 40% of surveyed frontline workers said more purposeful learning and development would make them stay at their job another year in 2026.[41]
  • 23% of surveyed frontline workers chose perks such as free food or sponsored social events as a reason to stay another year in 2026.[41]
  • 59% of surveyed North American food and beverage companies had restructured working patterns to retain more staff in 2023.[8]

Employee Engagement in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among U.S. and Canadian frontline employees surveyed in 2024, 52% worked in foodservice, in a sample of 46,250 employees used to assess workplace engagement.[42]
  • Food-service employees recorded 72.6% engagement in 2026, up 9.1 percentage points from the prior measurement.[43]
  • Globally, 21% of employees were engaged in 2025, providing an economy-wide benchmark relevant where food-and-beverage-specific engagement data are limited.[44]
  • Food-and-beverage organizations scored 7.91 out of 10 for employee engagement in the latest 2026 benchmark dataset.[45]

DEI in the f b industry

  • 44% of Darden’s restaurant and support-center leadership were women as of fiscal 2026.[46]
  • 68% of Chipotle’s U.S.-based employee population was composed of racial and ethnic minorities at the end of 2021.[20]
  • 56% of Darden’s hourly team members were members of racial or ethnic minority groups as of fiscal 2026.[46]

08 Statistics

Customer & Sales

Customer experience in the f b industry

  • 85 points was the 2024 full-service restaurant score for mobile-app quality in the United States.[16]
  • 90 points was the 2024 full-service restaurant score for waitstaff courtesy and helpfulness in the United States.[16]
  • 79 points was the 2024 customer-satisfaction score for U.S. fast-food restaurants on the ACSI 0–100 scale.[16]
  • 87 points was the 2024 full-service restaurant score for website satisfaction in the United States.[16]
  • 73 points was the 2024 customer-satisfaction score for U.S. food-delivery services on the ACSI 0–100 scale.[16]

Customer retention in the f b industry

  • 56% of U.S. restaurants with loyalty programs sent personalized offers based on diner preferences in 2025.[47]
  • 88% of U.S. full-service restaurants with loyalty programs sent personalized offers in 2025.[47]
  • 77% of U.S. multi-unit restaurants reported offering a loyalty program in 2023.[17]
  • 85% of U.S. bistros and cafés reported offering a loyalty program in 2023.[17]
  • 67% of U.S. restaurants reported offering a loyalty program in 2023, using it as a customer-retention strategy.[17]

Customer acquisition in the f b industry

  • 59% of U.S. social-media users surveyed by Toast said Facebook was their most-used channel for discovering new restaurants in 2024.[48]
  • 40% of U.S. social-media users surveyed said an influencer review affected their decision to dine at a restaurant in 2024.[48]
  • 65% of surveyed consumers followed food and lifestyle topics on social media in Deloitte Digital’s restaurant research.[49]
  • 45% of reservations observed on Toast Tables in Q3 2024 were made on the day of the reservation, creating a same-day acquisition opportunity.[48]
  • 42% of U.S. social-media users surveyed by Toast preferred social media to search engines for discovering restaurants in 2024.[48]

Customer loyalty in the f b industry

  • 47% of U.S. restaurant loyalty-program members dined out weekly or more often in 2024.[17]
  • 78% of U.S. restaurant customers said they were more likely to visit a restaurant where they could earn points in 2024.[50]
  • 52% of U.S. full-service restaurant operators planned to invest more in loyalty programs and rewards systems in 2024.[50]
  • 52% of U.S. restaurant, coffee-shop, snack-place and deli customers said they participated in a loyalty or rewards program in 2024.[50]
  • 61% of U.S. limited-service restaurant operators planned to invest more in loyalty programs and rewards systems in 2024.[50]

Lead generation in the f b industry

  • 19% of surveyed diners said Google was their best way to learn about new restaurants in 2024.[51]
  • 24% of surveyed diners said word of mouth was their best way to learn about new restaurants in 2024.[51]
  • 46% of surveyed diners checked Google reviews when evaluating restaurant ratings online in 2024.[51]
  • 15% of surveyed diners said social media was their best way to learn about new restaurants in 2024.[51]
  • 17% of surveyed diners said foot traffic was their best way to learn about new restaurants in 2024.[51]

09 Statistics

Marketing & Brand

Marketing performance measurement remains difficult, with 19% of U.S. restaurant operators citing that as their biggest challenge in 2023. Operators also invest in digital or location-based marketing.

Marketing in the f b industry

  • 19% of U.S. restaurant operators cited difficulty measuring campaign performance as their biggest marketing challenge in 2023.[17]
  • 22% of U.S. restaurant operators cited difficulty targeting the right diners with the right message as their biggest marketing challenge in 2023.[17]
  • 34% of surveyed U.S. food businesses planned to increase advertising spend in 2024.[51]
  • 62% of U.S. limited-service restaurant operators identified digital or location-based marketing as an investment focus in 2024.[50]
  • 9% of surveyed U.S. food businesses planned to decrease advertising spend in 2024.[51]

Digital marketing in the f b industry

  • 64% of beverage-industry leaders planned to use personalized email in 2024.[52]
  • 48% of beverage-industry leaders planned to use loyalty programs to engage shoppers in 2024.[52]
  • 63% of U.S. restaurant operators planned to devote resources to digital or location-based marketing in 2024.[50]
  • 44% of beverage-industry leaders planned to use mobile-app digitalization of the shopper experience in 2024.[52]
  • 68% of beverage-industry leaders planned to use personalized in-app messages in 2024.[52]

Branding in the f b industry

  • 84% of U.S. social-media users surveyed preferred seeing food and drink photos on restaurant social-media pages in 2024.[48]
  • 62% of U.S. social-media users surveyed sometimes checked a restaurant’s social media before deciding to dine there in 2024.[48]
  • 83% of beverage-industry leaders believed the shopper experience and role of retail locations would change significantly within three years or sooner.[52]
  • 50% of U.S. social-media users surveyed followed more restaurant accounts than influencers in 2024.[48]
  • 9.9% was the average increase in restaurant business-to-consumer revenue directly attributed to social-media strategies in Deloitte Digital’s 2024 research.[49]

Social media in the f b industry

  • 40% of surveyed U.S. social-media users based a dining decision on an influencer’s restaurant review in 2024.[48]
  • 50% of surveyed U.S. social-media users followed more restaurant accounts than influencers in 2024.[48]
  • 31% of surveyed U.S. social-media users followed a restaurant after visiting and liking it in 2024.[48]
  • 59% of surveyed U.S. social-media users used Facebook most to discover new restaurants in 2024.[48]
  • 84% of surveyed U.S. social-media users preferred photos of food and drinks on restaurant social pages in 2024.[48]

Influencer Marketing in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 63% of U.S. food and beverage shoppers said they purchased a prepackaged product based on an online influencer’s recommendation in the previous year, according to a June 2025 survey.[53]
  • 33% of U.S. food and beverage shoppers said they purchased a product from an influencer-founded or influencer-led brand such as Prime or Feastables in the previous year, in 2025.[53]
  • 82% of U.S. Gen Z food and beverage shoppers said they purchased a prepackaged product based on an online influencer’s recommendation in the previous year, according to a June 2025 survey.[53]
  • 69.3% of TikTok videos featuring branded food or beverage products had no brand-relationship disclosure, based on an analysis of 648 videos published in 2025.[54]
  • 47.6% of TikTok videos featuring food products from top influencers included a branded product, based on an analysis of 1,360 videos published in 2025.[54]

10 Statistics

Operations & Execution

Automation coverage is uneven, with 20% of food and beverage companies having fully automated warehouse management in 2025. Recall incidence attribution highlights risk areas like allergens at 28%.

Process optimization in the f b industry

  • 20% of food and beverage companies had fully automated warehouse management in 2025, and 51% used partially automated systems.[9]
  • 22% of food and beverage companies had fully automated inventory management in 2025, with another 48% using partially automated systems.[9]
  • 35% of Canadian food and beverage processors used measurement, tracking, process optimization or waste assessments to manage food loss in 2024.[55]
  • 21% of food and beverage companies had fully automated production scheduling in 2025, while 48% used partially automated scheduling.[9]
  • 14% of food and beverage companies had fully automated recipe or batch management in 2025, while 55% used partial automation.[9]

Operational efficiency in the f b industry

  • 60% of North American food and beverage processors, manufacturers and distributors were using technology to automate more tasks in 2023, according to research conducted for 2024 planning.[2]
  • 26% of surveyed North American food and beverage companies cited improving product quality, accuracy and consistency as an automation objective in 2023.[2]
  • 34% of North American food and beverage processors, manufacturers and distributors planned to increase automation in 2024.[2]
  • 27% of surveyed North American food and beverage companies cited reducing operational costs as an automation objective in 2023.[2]
  • 29% of surveyed North American food and beverage companies identified improved scalability as an automation objective in 2023.[2]

Quality management in the f b industry

  • 48% of U.S. food and beverage recall incidents from 2020 through 2023 were attributed to biological contamination.[56]
  • 3% of U.S. food and beverage recall incidents from 2020 through 2023 were attributed to current good manufacturing practice issues.[56]
  • 2% of U.S. food and beverage recall incidents from 2020 through 2023 were attributed to mislabeled or misbranded products.[56]
  • 2% of U.S. food and beverage recall incidents from 2020 through 2023 were attributed to refrigeration issues.[56]
  • 28% of U.S. food and beverage recall incidents from 2020 through 2023 were attributed to allergens.[56]

Supply chain in the f b industry

  • 51% of food and beverage companies used partially automated warehouse management in 2025.[9]
  • $1.5 trillion was the annual sales value of the U.S. food industry in 2024, spanning production, processing, distribution, retail and consumption.[57]
  • 22% of food and beverage companies had fully automated inventory management in 2025, supporting supply-chain execution.[9]
  • 36% of North American food and beverage companies identified supply-chain visibility as a priority goal for technology investment in 2023.[2]
  • $836.8 billion was added by the U.S. food-services industry to the domestic agri-food supply chain in 2024.[58]

Outsourcing / Offshoring in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among United States and European food-services and facility-management buyers, 91% expected outsourcing budgets to increase over the five years following 2024.[59]
  • Across food and beverage CPG companies globally, 52% planned to expand their international footprint in 2023, including North America, EMEA and APAC expansion.[32]
  • Among food and beverage CPG companies globally, 36% used co-manufacturers for finished-product manufacturing in 2023.[60]
  • Among food and beverage CPG companies globally, 47% worked with up to 10 co-manufacturers in 2023.[60]
  • Across food and beverage CPG companies globally, 55% outsourced more manufacturing in 2023 than three years earlier, according to a survey of 287 industry leaders.[60]

11 Statistics

Finance & Pricing

Pricing pressure shows up in year-over-year inflation, with U.S. food prices 2.5% higher in September 2026 than a year earlier. Firms also adjust menu pricing to offset wage increases in 2025.

Pricing strategy in the f b industry

  • 38% of U.S. restaurant operators that raised prices reported that consumers spent less overall afterward in 2024.[17]
  • 33% of U.S. restaurant operators that raised prices reported that customers ordered less alcohol in 2024.[17]
  • 46% of New York and New Jersey food and beverage manufacturers that raised prices in 2024 increased them by 3% to 6%.[61]
  • 62% of surveyed food and beverage businesses raised menu prices to offset wage increases in 2025.[62]
  • 36% of U.S. restaurant operators that raised prices reported smaller tips in 2024.[17]

Cost reduction in the f b industry

  • 27% of surveyed North American food and beverage companies cited operational-cost reduction as an automation objective in 2023.[2]
  • 15% of Canadian food and beverage processors developed new food products or ingredients to manage food loss in 2024.[55]
  • 15% of Canadian food and beverage processors used enhanced employee training as a food-loss reduction practice in 2024.[55]
  • 3% of Canadian food and beverage processors reported optimizing the supply chain to reduce transportation time in 2024.[55]
  • 12% was the potential reduction in operational costs associated with automation in Aptean’s food and beverage research.[2]

Profitability in the f b industry

  • -46.4% was the 2023 year-over-year change in the gross-margin index for Canadian fruit and vegetable preserving and specialty food manufacturing.[2]
  • 70% of New York and New Jersey food and beverage manufacturers reported profit increases of at least 10% in 2024.[61]
  • 10.4% was the 2024 year-over-year increase in cold-dispensed beverage gross-profit dollars at U.S. convenience retailers.[63]
  • 32.4% was the median food and non-alcohol beverage cost as a share of sales for U.S. limited-service restaurants in 2024.[50]
  • 85.8% was the 2024 year-over-year increase in the gross-margin index for Canadian fruit and vegetable preserving and specialty food manufacturing.[2]

Financial planning in the f b industry

  • 5.2% was the capital-expenditure-to-sales ratio for Canadian food and beverage manufacturing in 2022.[2]
  • 5.3% was the decline in Canadian food and beverage manufacturing capital expenditures in 2025.[2]
  • 3.4% was the capital-expenditure-to-sales ratio for Canadian food and beverage manufacturing in 2023.[2]
  • 5.7% was the capital-expenditure-to-sales ratio for Canadian food and beverage manufacturing in 2020.[2]
  • 3.6% was the capital-expenditure-to-sales ratio for Canadian food and beverage manufacturing in 2024.[2]

12 Statistics

Product & Service

New product activity continues, with 42,523 new food and beverage products launched in the United States in 2024. Many manufacturers work in-house on concept ideation, ingredient selection, and recipe formulation.

Product development in the f b industry

  • Over 70% of surveyed food and beverage manufacturers handled concept ideation, ingredient selection and recipe formulation in-house in 2024.[5]
  • 83% of surveyed food and beverage companies increased new-product-development investment in 2025.[5]
  • 33% of Canadian food-manufacturing businesses introduced a product innovation during fiscal years 2021–2023.[64]
  • 67.7% of Canadian food-manufacturing businesses introduced at least one innovation during fiscal years 2021–2023.[64]
  • 51% of surveyed food and beverage brands cited remaining competitive as a reason to increase new-product-development spending in 2024.[5]

Product lifecycle in the f b industry

  • 15.7% was the innovation rate for U.S. energy and sports drinks in the cited SPINS category analysis.[65]
  • 29% of U.S. consumer-packaged-goods launches were genuinely new products during the first five months of 2024.[66]
  • 65% of global consumer-packaged-goods launches were renovations rather than genuinely new products during the first five months of 2024.[66]
  • 42,523 new food and beverage products were launched in the United States in 2024.[67]
  • U.S. food and beverage product launches declined 0.68% in 2024 compared with 2022.[67]

After-sales in the f b industry

  • Food delivery received a U.S. customer-satisfaction score of 73 on ACSI’s 100-point scale in 2024.[16]
  • 82 was the 2025 U.S. customer-satisfaction score for full-service restaurants on ACSI’s 100-point scale.[16]
  • Full-service restaurants received a U.S. customer-satisfaction score of 84 on ACSI’s 100-point scale in 2024.[16]
  • 84 was the 2025 U.S. score for restaurant mobile-app reliability on ACSI’s 100-point scale.[16]
  • Fast-food restaurants received a U.S. customer-satisfaction score of 79 on ACSI’s 100-point scale in 2024.[16]

Value proposition in the f b industry

  • 20% of U.S. restaurant customers selected ingredient quality as a reason for choosing a restaurant in November 2024.[68]
  • 18% of U.S. restaurant customers selected a loyalty rewards program as a reason for choosing a restaurant in November 2024.[68]
  • 28% of U.S. restaurant customers selected low prices as a reason for choosing a restaurant in November 2024.[68]
  • 77% of restaurant consumers were more likely to start spending with a brand after enrolling in its loyalty program.[34]
  • 35% of U.S. restaurant customers selected convenient location as a reason for choosing a restaurant in November 2024.[68]

13 Statistics

Sustainability & Ethics

Sustainability expectations are moving toward targets, with more than half of surveyed global food and beverage manufacturers expecting carbon-neutral or net-zero manufacturing within five years in 2024. Packaging emissions are also material in pathways.

Sustainability in the f b industry

  • The EU food and drink industry ranked fifth among manufacturing sectors for greenhouse-gas emissions in 2023.[69]
  • More than half of surveyed global food and beverage manufacturers expected carbon-neutral or net-zero manufacturing within five years in 2024.[10]
  • 75% of surveyed global food and beverage manufacturers used tax credits to support ESG implementation in 2024.[10]
  • 19% of EU food waste occurred at the food and drink industry stage in 2023.[69]
  • More than 50% of surveyed global food and beverage manufacturers had linked ESG policies to concrete KPIs in 2024.[10]

ESG in the f b industry

  • 46% of surveyed food and beverage brands prioritized ESG performance when selecting sourcing partners and ingredients in 2023.[5]
  • 42% of surveyed food and beverage brands identified confusion about sustainable-food labeling as an issue in 2023.[5]
  • 42% of surveyed food and beverage brands planned to use more sustainable ingredients within six to twelve months in 2023.[5]
  • 49% of surveyed food and beverage brands wanted supply-chain visibility beyond Tier 1 suppliers in 2023.[5]
  • 64% of surveyed food and beverage brands acknowledged ESG as significant in 2023.[5]

Ethics in the f b industry

  • 2,874 messages were received through Nestlé’s Speak Up system in 2023.[70]
  • 104 Nestlé Speak Up messages concerned sexual harassment in 2023.[70]
  • 135 Nestlé Speak Up messages concerned third-party compliance in 2023.[70]
  • 172 Nestlé Speak Up messages concerned violence and discrimination in 2023.[70]
  • 8 Nestlé Speak Up messages concerned environmental impact in 2023.[70]

CSR in the f b industry

  • 51.5% of sampled foodservice companies reported brand-trust activities in their CSR communications.[71]
  • 39.4% of sampled foodservice companies reported food-safety CSR activity.[71]
  • 60.6% of sampled foodservice companies reported CSR activity concerning ingredients and materials.[71]
  • 27.3% of sampled foodservice companies reported having a code of conduct.[71]
  • 36.4% of sampled foodservice companies reported self-regulation activities.[71]

Circular economy in the f b industry

  • 130 kilograms of food waste per EU inhabitant were recorded in 2023 across the food system.[69]
  • 62.53 million tonnes of EU food and drink emissions came from packaging in the reported net-zero pathway.[69]
  • 43% of surveyed food and beverage brands identified carbon-footprint and greenhouse-gas reduction as a leading investment driver.[5]
  • 42% of surveyed food and beverage brands planned to adopt more sustainable ingredients within six to twelve months.[5]
  • 5.74 million tonnes of EU food and drink emissions came from waste management in the reported net-zero pathway.[69]

Carbon footprint in the f b industry

  • 88% of total EU food and drink industry greenhouse-gas emissions were Scope 3 emissions in the reported 2025 pathway.[69]
  • 5.74 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions came from waste management for the EU food and drink sector in the reported 2025 pathway.[69]
  • 73% of EU food and drink industry emissions came from primary agricultural production in the reported 2025 pathway.[69]
  • 62.53 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions came from packaging for the EU food and drink sector in the reported 2025 pathway.[69]
  • 36.04 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions came from distribution for the EU food and drink sector in the reported 2025 pathway.[69]

15 Statistics

Globalization & Expansion

Cross-border networks shape category dynamics, with 85.0% of food and beverage export value added from North America originating within the region in 2022. Online transactions also contribute to U.S. and global growth.

Globalization in the f b industry

  • 85.0% of food and beverage export value added from North America originated within the region in 2022.[83]
  • 57.1% of the Netherlands’ food and beverage exports consisted of foreign value-added content in 2022.[83]
  • More than 32,000 restaurants operated in over 120 countries and territories for Restaurant Brands International in 2024.[20]
  • 75.8% of food and beverage export value added from Asia originated within the region in 2022.[83]
  • 29.3% of food and beverage gross-export value added came from the agro-industry globally in 2022.[83]

Cultural adaptation in the f b industry

  • 33% of niche food and beverage brand buyers chose products because they felt the brand understood them in 2025.[22]
  • 65% of surveyed consumers were willing to engage with or co-create new food and beverage products on social platforms in 2025.[22]
  • 51% of surveyed consumers preferred premium or high-end food and beverage brands in 2025.[22]
  • $8.7 billion was generated by Europe-Italy-positioned food and beverage products in tracked international channels in 2024.[84]
  • 82% of food and beverage category growth was captured by globally positioned brands in SPINS-tracked channels in 2024.[84]

Supplier management in the f b industry

  • Two-thirds of surveyed food and beverage suppliers reported problems associated with outdated processes in 2024.[85]
  • 48% of surveyed food and beverage companies planned to spread orders across more suppliers in 2024.[2]
  • 65% of surveyed food and beverage companies increased their supplier base during the twelve months before the 2024 outlook survey.[2]
  • 30% of surveyed food and beverage companies planned to add more suppliers in 2024.[2]
  • More than 450 food and beverage suppliers worldwide participated in a 2024 survey on supply-chain modernization.[85]

Stakeholder management in the f b industry

  • Approximately 14,500 company employees were reported by Wendy’s for fiscal 2024.[28]
  • Companies with at least 10 employees were more likely than smaller Canadian food and beverage companies to implement employee-retention policies in 2023–2024.[86]
  • 1.5% was Wendy’s global same-restaurant sales growth in fiscal 2024.[28]
  • Companies with at least 10 employees were more likely than smaller Canadian food and beverage companies to implement traceability systems in 2023–2024.[86]
  • 63% of Canadian beverage companies had implemented water-conservation measures in the 2023–2024 survey.[86]

Distribution channels in the f b industry

  • 95% of Restaurant Brands International’s system-wide restaurants were franchised at December 31, 2024.[20]
  • 51.51% of tracked CPG e-commerce sales came through Shopify in 2024.[66]
  • 7.04% of tracked CPG e-commerce sales came through PayPal in 2024.[66]
  • 35% of global food and beverage dollar-sales growth was driven by online transactions in 2024, despite online holding a 10% market share.[19]
  • 3.64% of tracked CPG sales came through Walmart stores in 2024.[66]

Key questions about the f b industry

What is the market size for U.S. food demand in the latest year reported?
U.S. consumers spent $2.58 trillion on food in 2024.
How fast is global food and beverage processing growing into 2030?
Global food and beverage processing is projected to reach about $10 trillion by 2030, growing at approximately 7% annually from 2025 to 2030.
Which companies lead the f b industry?
Mars stands out thanks to its major snacking and pet nutrition brands including M&M'S, Pringles, Cheez-It and Ben's Original, whereas The Coca-Cola Company stands out for selling non-alcoholic beverages across more than 200 countries and territories.
What technology shifts are most visible in food and beverage operations?
In 2024, 47% of food retailers and 93% of food suppliers used artificial intelligence, and 60% of North American processors, manufacturers, and distributors were using technology to automate more tasks in 2023.
What does channel mix look like for 2026 distribution?
In 2026, supermarkets and hypermarkets hold a 50.9% share, while online retail is forecast to be the fastest-growing channel at a 5.5% CAGR through 2032.
How does food-safety compliance show up as a data requirement?
Food-safety compliance becomes more data intensive, with digital traceability expanding supply-chain accountability and 28% of U.S. recall incidents from 2020 through 2023 attributed to allergens.
Reference

Cite This Report

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APA
Helena Kowalczyk. (2026, February 13). F&B Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/f-b-industry-statistics
MLA
Helena Kowalczyk. "F&B Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/f-b-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Helena Kowalczyk. 2026. "F&B Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/f-b-industry-statistics.

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