National Restaurant Association Expects Sales to Rise 12.4% in 2022 Despite Labor and Supply Issues

According to a newly released State of the Restaurant Industry reporrt from the National Restaurant Association, industry sales are expected to increase 12.4% in 2022, reaching $898 billion. The size of the workforce in the foodservice industry is also expected to grow in 2022, with an estimated addition of approximately 400,000 jobs.

“The restaurant and foodservice industry has adapted and is carrying on with absolute resilience, so we’re optimistic about the path toward recovery in the coming year,” said Marvin Irby, interim president and chief executive officer of the National Restaurant Association. “We still have work to do to ensure that those operators struggling the most can survive. The Association will continue to champion the necessary government support needed at the federal and local levels to help keep these businesses – the cornerstones of our communities – on a path to better days.”

Currently, restaurants around the country are struggling to find and retain staff, and supply chain challenges have made many essential products difficult to come by, an issue that is expected to continue well into 2022. Due to the ongoing labor and supply chain issues, costs remain high and more than half of restaurant operators said that they expect it to be at least another year before business conditions return to normal. 

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