Despite a sluggish economy, the U.S. restaurant industry is projected to expand in 2012, according to the National Restaurant Association’s (NRA) 2012 Restaurant Industry Forecast.
Total restaurant industry sales are expected to reach a record high of USD 632 billion in 2012 — a 3.5 percent increase over last year. That’s much-welcomed news for seafood, roughly two-thirds of which is consumed away from home in the United States.
In addition, overall restaurant industry employment will reach 12.9 million, accounting for 10 percent of the total U.S. workforce. This would be the 13th straight year that restaurant job growth would outpace the overall economy. The NRA expects the restaurant industry to add jobs at a 2.3 percent rate, a full percentage above the projected 1.3 percent gain in total U.S. employment.
However, restaurants are still citing the economy as one of its top challenges. Food costs and building and maintaining sales volumes were also listed.
“Because about one-third of sales in a restaurant go to food and beverage purchases, food prices are a crucial component for operators, said Hudeson Riehle, senior VP of the NRA research and knowledge group. “Last year, we saw wholesale food pries post their strongest annual increase in more than three decades. In 2012, we will see continued increases in the cost of come commodities, while price pressures will ease for others.”
