The sun seems to have shined on the global foodservice market this past summer. Foodservice spending and visits grew in the summer quarter of 2015 in several countries tracked by The NPD Group, a leading global information company. Snacks and morning meals were the broad foodservice market drivers, according to NPD’s ongoing global foodservice market research, CREST, which continually tracks consumer use of foodservice outlets in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Russia, Spain, and the U.S.

Of the 11 countries NPD’s CREST tracks Australia, China, Germany, Great Britain, and the U.S. posted traffic and average eater check gains. Foodservice spending and visits were flat to slightly declining in France and Japan. Canada, which weathered the global economic crisis better than any country but China, is having a tough run with its second quarter of traffic decline. The relatively young Russian foodservice market continues to suffer with high inflation and dropping demand.

Although the nascent rebound of the lunch daypart experienced in recent quarters appears to have slowed down, snacks and morning meals were the broad market drivers. This is good news, but restaurants and foodservice outlets would benefit more from a strong lunch daypart, which tends to be the engine for many of the foodservice markets tracked by NPD.

Visits to quick-service outlets were up or flat in most countries and were down in Japan, the only country where quick-service traffic does not dominate. Full-service restaurant visits were up in dropped in Australia, Canada, China, and the U.S.  

“Optimism, although cautious, abounds throughout the global foodservice market after a mostly growing or stable summer quarter,” says Bob O’Brien, senior vice president, global foodservice at The NPD Group. “There are still some shaky economies but, overall, consumers around the world appear ready and willing to dine out again.”