Pushed by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, China’s catering industry have innovated their products and services to better meet consumers’ changing needs.

Mei Zhou Dong Po restaurant, which specializes in Sichuan cuisine, suffered a monthly loss of nearly 100 million yuan due to the outbreak. To change the situation, the company introduced dishes sold at cheaper prices, launched a WeChat mini-program to enable users to quickly place an order, mobilized its staff to promote dishes on live-streaming platforms, and sold dishes at supermarkets.

(Photo/Xinhua)

The restaurant was taken as an example of successful transformation in times of adversity in a report on the development of China’s catering industry in 2020.

The catering industry is becoming a popular one for college graduates who wish to start their own business, said Yu Ganqian, executive editor of the report.

The industry has a demand for 2 trillion yuan worth of foodstuff and a consumption market of more than 4 trillion yuan, which means it could provide vast job opportunities for impoverished laborers from the countryside, the report pointed out.

The report estimated that nearly 7 million people were involved in the catering industry in 2019, and more than 30 million people in the industry and related industries as a whole.

The craze for online shopping has accelerated the emergence of new business models in the retail and service industries, according to the report.

Restaurants that were still able to operate under the epidemic saw 60 to 70 percent of their income generated by takeaway services, which was five to six times of that prior to the epidemic, statistics released by online catering platform Eleme indicated.

The revenue of the catering industry in the first quarter of 2020 was 602.6 billion yuan, falling 44.3 percent year-on-year, according to the report, projecting that the growth of the industry will further slide to its lowest level in history.

In addition, Chinese consumers have developed new eating habits in terms of the dining environment, quality of dishes and delivery services, the report said. To meet the demands of consumers, the catering enterprises have introduced new products and services, including mini canteens, small-plate dishes, and booths for only one diner.