Sales of commercial foodservices in Canada 2008-2015, by province
Foodservices in Canada - additional information
Commercial foodservice establishments are for-profit businesses and include quick service restaurants, full service restaurants, contract and social caterers and drinking places. Noncommercial foodservices, on the other hand, are often classed as non-profit, although they often make a profit for the institution which houses them, and include accommodation foodservices, institutional foodservices and retail foodservices. Commercial foodservices contribute more than 80 percent of the restaurant industry sales in Canada, generating around 57 billion Canadian dollars in 2014. By province, commercial foodservices in Ontario made the most sales, followed by Quebec.
Sales of the Canadian foodservice industry have more than doubled in size between 1990 and 2014, rising from just 31 billion Canadian dollars to 71 billion. Quick service restaurants have shown the most growth in this industry. Quick service restaurants are establishments in which consumers can order, pay for and collect their meal from a counter, with no table service. In 2015, quick service restaurants in Canada were expected to generate more than 26 billion Canadian dollars in sales.
In the growing Canadian foodservice industry, restaurant CEOs have recognized many opportunities for further expansion, including menu innovation, improvement of ingredient quality and wider differentiation between restaurant concepts. As with many other foodservice markets, Canadian restaurant operators must promote expansion while tackling the common challenges of operating costs and growth in competition.