2021 U.S. food-away-from-home spending 10 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels

An area chart showing annual food-at-home and food-away-from-home expenditures in the United States for 1961 to 2021

In 2021, food spending by U.S. consumers, businesses, and government entities totaled $2.12 trillion, recovering from a sharp decline in 2020 in which the food market was disrupted by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the recession in which food spending totaled $1.81 trillion. Food-at-home spending increased from $888.2 billion in 2020 to $955.6 billion in 2021 and food-away-from-home spending increased from $922.2 billion in 2020 to $1.17 trillion in 2021. Food-away-from-home spending accounted for 55 percent of total food expenditures in 2021, returning to pre-COVID-19 pandemic share levels.


Download larger size chart (2048 pixels by 1640, 96 dpi)