Multi-channel commerce, promotional deals and social media shape 2025 foodservice trends

GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers its view on five key trends/themes that are set to shape the foodservice sector in 2025:

Multi-channel commercial approaches

Some foodservice operators are leaning into a multi-channel approach by incorporating retail offerings to boost brand salience, increase footfall and turn their stores into more of a destination. UK-based Pasta Evangelists provides an interesting example of this trend. As well as functioning as a restaurant specialising in pasta dishes, the company also sells pasta-making kits so that consumers can learn to make their own pasta at home using ingredients and equipment provided by the company. Approaches such as this give consumers more reasons to enter their outlets or log onto the website, benefiting all aspects of the business.

Bundle, mix-and-match and group deals

Across much of the world, quick service restaurant (QSR) chains tend to have some kind of “saver” menu – a side menu featuring cheaper “value” products aimed at enticing consumers on a budget. Major players such as McDonald’s, KFC and Burger King all have some version of this concept.

Economic challenges resulted in an expansion and reimagination of value concepts in 2023 and 2024, with more bundle deals appearing in foodservice outlets across the US and Europe. As QSR players learn more about how best to effectively deploy bundle deals, mix-and-match deals and other similar promotions, this trend could accelerate in 2025.

Vegan alternatives’ impact to be long-lasting

The plant-based meat alternatives industry has enjoyed a period of rapid growth in recent years, moving from a niche category to a maturing, salient food trend, with brands such as Impossible and Beyond Meat reaping the rewards of big brand collaborations in foodservice. In 2022, Burger King opened a vegan-only store in London as part of a campaign to encourage the shift from meat to meat alternatives, even stating they planned to get their menu to 50% vegan by 2025. However, it became apparent not long afterwards that the growth potential of plant-based meat alternatives may have been overestimated.

Beyond Meat’s Q2 2023 Financial Highlights Report revealed that net revenues were $102.1 million, down 30.5% compared to the previous year, prompting fears in some quarters of a bubble about to burst. However, the vegan surge of recent years should not be seen as a fad, as its presence is still significant and its impact long-lasting. Although at one point, brands such as McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC were planning to significantly expand their vegan ranges, those plans have now been scaled back, but core vegan options remain on menus and are likely to be an important part of QSR brands’ value offering throughout 2025.

Foodservice settings are highly ‘Instagrammable’ and being active on social media is therefore essential for contemporary foodservice brands. Many people enjoy taking pictures of their meals, or the restaurant setting they are in, and sharing the photos online. This gives brands opportunities to be tagged in such photos, to reply to them and to go viral. The “menu hack” – where people share their favourite menu customisations – is one example of the growing symbiosis between young foodservice patrons and brands. In 2023 a popular hack for Chipotle was an order of the steak quesadilla with extra cheese and fajita veggies. Fans of this order claimed it tasted like Philly cheesesteak. Chipotle responded by adding this item to its official menu.

This kind of consumer-driven marketing is ultimately seen as more authentic and interesting than traditional advertising. In 2025, expect foodservice brands to continue to up their online activity and be highly responsive to social media trends.

Supply chain transparency

Big brands are experiencing more scrutiny than ever when it comes to their value chains. Consumers are increasingly interested in concepts such as sustainable sourcing, supply-chain transparency and what brands “give back” to the people and places from which they source their ingredients.

Consumers play a role in driving this trend, with 74% of consumers worldwide stating that “sustainable/environmentally-friendly” is an “essential” or “nice to have” feature when deciding to make a purchase, according to GlobalData’s Consumer Survey, Q3 2024.

Governments and regulatory bodies are also driving disclosure policies aimed at making restaurant supply chains more transparent and less of a mystery. More effort is likely to be made by large foodservice brands in 2025 to promote the measures they are taking to source ingredients ethically and sustainably.

Fred Diamond, senior food and foodservice analyst at GlobalData, commented: “This year, the key trends shaping the foodservice market will revolve around establishing strong and more dynamic relationships with consumers. Multi-channel approaches will do this by turning the consumer into both a retail and foodservice customer. Social media innovations will do this by striving to build a more responsive dialogue between brands and the wider consumer base. Developments in supply chain transparency will build the relationship by acknowledging the ethical and moral questions held by consumers, and the continued relevance of plant-based alternatives will seek to cement the bond between brands and consumers with more specific dietary requests, as well as generate wider curiosity.”

GlobalData Consumer Custom Solutions offers sector-level expertise in the Consumer Packaged Goods, Food, Beverages, Foodservice, Retail, Apparel, Packaging, Agribusiness, and Automotive industries. We use our unique data, insights and analytics to answer your bespoke questions with a tailored approach and deliverables.​ To learn more about this press release or have a chat, please drop us an email consulting@globaldata.com or contact us here and we’ll get in touch!

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