Food services and drinking places

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Sales for the food services and drinking places industry declined 1.0% from March to almost $4.1 billion in current dollars in April. During the same period, the price of food purchased in restaurants rose 0.1%, as measured by the Consumer Price Index.

In April, three of the industry's four sectors posted lower sales. The largest decline occurred in the special food services sector (-2.4%), which includes food service contractors, caterers and mobile food services.

Similarly, sales decreased by 1.7% at full-service restaurants, the largest of the industry's four sectors. Sales declined by 1.4% in drinking places.

Limited-service restaurants, where patrons order and pay for their meals at the counter, registered a 0.2% sales increase.

Provincially, 7 out of 10 provinces recorded lower sales, with the largest decline in Alberta (-2.6%). Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Ontario were the only provinces to post sales increases.

Note: All data in this release are seasonally adjusted and expressed in current dollars.

Seasonally adjusted data are revised for the three previous months. Data are also revised annually. Revisions to improve data quality and coherence are based on information not available at the time of initial data. Caution should be exercised when comparing recent data that have not yet undergone an annual revision with older data (prior to April 2009) that have been revised.

Available on CANSIM: table 355-0006.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2419.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Marc Racette (613-951-2924; fax: 613-951-6696; marc.racette@statcan.gc.ca) or Pierre Felx (613-951-0075; fax: 613-951-6696; pierre.felx@statcan.gc.ca), Service Industries Division.