Food services and drinking places, January 2020
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Released: 2020-04-02
$6.3 billion
January 2020
-0.3% 
(monthly change)
$68.2 million
January 2020
-7.1%
(monthly change)
$25.0 million
January 2020
-2.3%
(monthly change)
$143.4 million
January 2020
-1.2%
(monthly change)
$105.6 million
January 2020
0.2% 
(monthly change)
$1,235.1 million
January 2020
-0.1%
(monthly change)
$2,513.1 million
January 2020
0.6%
(monthly change)
$181.0 million
January 2020
0.4%
(monthly change)
$161.6 million
January 2020
-0.1%
(monthly change)
$796.2 million
January 2020
-0.5%
(monthly change)
$1,036.8 million
January 2020
-2.1%
(monthly change)
$7.0 million
January 2020
3.1%
(monthly change)
$6.3 million
January 2020
1.1%
(monthly change)
$1.5 million
January 2020
2.2%
(monthly change)
On a seasonally adjusted basis, sales in the food services and drinking places subsector decreased 0.3% to $6.3 billion in January. The impacts of the novel coronavirus (also known as COVID-19) on the sector will be more noticeable in subsequent months.
Lower sales were reported at full-service restaurants (-0.6%), limited-service restaurants (-0.1%) and drinking places (-1.5%). Sales increased in special food services (+0.6%)
In January, seven provinces reported lower sales, with the greatest contributor to the decrease being British Columbia (-2.1%). Newfoundland and Labrador (-7.1%) had a large decline following a record-breaking snowstorm. Higher receipts were reported in Ontario (+0.6%).
Chart 1
Sales in food services and drinking places
Further information can be found in the dashboard "Food Services and Drinking Places Sales." This web application provides access to data on sales in food services and drinking places for Canada, and by province and territory. This dynamic application allows users to compare provincial and territorial data through interactive maps and charts.
Year-over-year sales in the food services and drinking places subsector increase
The figures in this section are based on unadjusted (that is, not seasonally adjusted) estimates.
Unadjusted sales for January were up 3.0% in the food services and drinking places subsector compared with January 2019. Sales increased in each of the following industry groups: full-service restaurants (+3.5%), limited-service restaurants (+2.7%) and special food services (+4.7%). Sales at drinking places declined 3.6%.
Year-over-year sales increased in eight provinces, with Quebec (+7.9%) and Ontario (+3.2%) contributing to most of the total national increase. Newfoundland and Labrador (-7.6%) posted the largest decline this January compared with last year, attributable to inclement weather.
Prices for food purchased from restaurants were up 2.1% in January compared with January 2019 and prices for alcoholic beverages served in licensed establishments were up 1.9% in the same period.
Note to readers
All data in this release are seasonally adjusted and are expressed in current dollars, unless otherwise noted. For information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.
For information on trend-cycle data, see the StatCan Blog and Trend-cycle estimates – Frequently asked questions.
Data for the current reference month are preliminary. Usually, unadjusted data are revised for the previous two months, and seasonally adjusted data are revised for the previous three months.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; STATCAN.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.STATCAN@canada.ca).
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