October 9, 2025 — U.S. restaurant operators who have faced various economic pressures all year long are now dealing with complications arising from the U.S. government shutdown.
An extended government shutdown creates “needless economic uncertainty for millions of working families, which impacts how much they can support local small businesses,” National Restaurant Association (NRA) President and CEO Michelle Korsmo told SeafoodSource.
July 10, 2025 — The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, an omnibus piece of U.S. legislation that President Donald Trump signed into law on 4 July, includes tax policies that will strengthen the U.S. foodservice industry, according to the National Restaurant Association (NRA).
“The pro-growth tax policy in this bill will make it easier to start a restaurant and to continue to improve and modernize as the business grows. It lays the groundwork for long-term innovation, job creation, and economic growth, ensuring restaurants can continue to meet evolving consumer needs and power the U.S. economy,” NRA President and CEO Michelle Korsmo said.
April 3, 2025 — U.S. retail and restaurant operators said they are concerned about the impact U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports from several countries will have on food prices, consumers, and businesses.
The U.S restaurant industry, which is already struggling financially with multiple bankruptcies, restaurant closures, and higher food prices, will now have to navigate the fallout of tariffs in order to keep their doors open, National Restaurant Association (NRA) President and CEO Michelle Korsmo said.
March 1, 2023 — Year-over-year sales totals at U.S. restaurants rose significantly in January, but foodservice operators continue to remain plagued by sky-high food, labor, and energy prices.
Sales at U.S. eateries soared 24 percent in January to USD 95.5 billion (EUR 90 billion) on a seasonally adjusted basis in January, according to preliminary data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The figure is also up over both November and December 2022, which each saw roughly USD 89 billion (EUR 84 billion) in sales, according to the National Restaurant Association.
February 18, 2022 — Three of America’s largest foodservice distributors reported higher earnings in most recently quarterly financial results, but expressed concern about major headwinds facing the industry.
They said the COVID-19 omicron variant, inflation, and continued labor and supply chain issues lead the list of challenges in 2022.
Read the full story at SeafoodSource
February 7, 2022 — A new report from the National Restaurant Association is predicting the U.S. foodservice industry will grow 6 percent to reach USD 898 billion (EUR 786 billion) in sales in 2022.
But the NRA’s 2022 State of the Restaurant Industry Report found it faces numerous existential threats, including rising business costs, an extremely shallow labor pool, and supply chain disruptions. More than half of operators believe it will take more than a year for business conditions to return to normal, the study found.
Read the full story at SeafoodSource
January 21, 2022 — Restaurant operators face significant challenges – especially finding enough employees – but have pent-up dining demand in their favor, according to B. Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the National Restaurant Association Research and Knowledge Group.
Restaurants’ labor costs are running at the highest rate in more than 40 years, Riehle said at the National Fisheries Institute’s Global Seafood Market Conference (GSMC) in Orlando, Florida, U.S.A., on Wednesday, 19 January.
October 1, 2021 — Most U.S. restaurants are paying more for food, labor, and rent, according to a new survey, and a trade group representing the industry is concerned that the sector’s recovery will be pushed well into 2022.
The new National Restaurant Assocation survey found 91 percent of restaurant operators are paying more for food, 84 percent report higher labor costs, and 63 percent are paying higher occupancy costs. Additionally, 95 percent of restaurant operators said their restaurant experienced supply delays or shortages of key food or beverage items in the past three months. At the same time, restaurants’ profitability is down as 85 percent of operators reported smaller margins than before the pandemic.
Read the full story at SeafoodSource
June 10, 2021 — U.S. foodservice industry organizations praised the introduction of federal legislation on 10 June that would provide USD 60 billion (EUR 49 billion) in additional funding to restaurants that ran into financial distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment Act, introduced in both the U.S. House and Senate, would effectively replenish the USD 60 billion (EUR 49 billion) Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF).
March 11, 2021 — U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday, 11 March, signed the USD 1.9 trillion (EUR 1.59 trillion) American Rescue Plan Act into law, opening the door for billions in aid to go to businesses – including nearly USD 29 billion (EUR 24.2 billion) for a restaurant industry that’s been battered by closures and other restrictions over the past year due to COVID-19.
On Thursday, the National Restaurant Association lauded the bill’s Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which association president and CEO Tom Bene said will help save jobs across the country.