Technomic Releases New College Foodservice And Fast Casual Reports

Two new reports, one on consumer trends in college and university foodservice and another tracking the Top 150 fast-casual chain brands, are now available from Technomic Inc.

Student patronage levels have almost returned to pre-recession levels, according to the research firm’s updated “College & University Consumer Trend Report,” with 69% of students now purchasing food and beverages from on-campus facilities. Patronage dropped to a low of 62% in 2011 from 71% in 2009 as the recession took hold, Technomic data show.

“To keep the momentum going,” said Darren Tristano, Technomic exec. v.p., “campus dining operators will want to continually focus on improvements to menu variety, prices and atmosphere at on-campus dining venues. Menu variety in particular is key to retaining student patronage,” he added.

The report analyzes menus at 50 leading universities, provides in-depth consumer insights, looks at emerging concepts and menu trends and includes profiles of 15 leading university foodservice programs.

Technomic’s “Top 150 Fast-Casual Chain Restaurant Report” details the continuing rapid growth of the segment. While fast-casual chains make up only 14% of the $223 billion limited-service segment, their sales grew 13% in 2012, significantly outpacing other operators. The largest fast-casuals, those with sales exceeding $325 million, grew a remarkable 16%.

Technomic expects the trend to continue. While the firm forecasts compound annual growth of 4.5% 2012 through ’17 for all limited service restaurants, fast-casual operators are predicted to average 10% growth.

More information on the Technomic fast-casual report, as well as the report on college foodservice, can be found at technomic.com.  “””