"Food Service Supply Chain Trends Development Report 2026" Released: The food service supply chain market size is expected to reach 3 trillion yuan in 2026.

How will AI technology change the management model of the catering supply chain?

On March 25th, the 2026 China Catering Industry Festival and the 35th HCC Global Catering Industry Expo, co-hosted by the World Chinese Catering Industry Association and Hongcan Network, was held at the Hangzhou International Exhibition Center. During the roundtable session of the “2026 China Catering AI Development Forum,” Senior Research Manager Liu Huahui from the Hongcan Industry Research Institute presented the “Catering Supply Chain Trend Development Report 2026” and provided a detailed interpretation.

△ Senior Research Manager Liu Huahui from the Hongcan Industry Research Institute

He stated that in recent years, the market size of China’s catering supply chain has shown a continuous growth trend. According to Hongcan big data, the catering supply chain market size is expected to be approximately 2.8 trillion yuan in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 8.5%. The Hongcan Industry Research Institute estimates that with the continued expansion of the catering market, the demand for supply chains from chain catering brands will continue to grow, and the catering supply chain market size is expected to reach 3 trillion yuan in 2026.

Under the influence of internal and external factors, the catering supply chain is undergoing a comprehensive transformation and upgrade. Liu Huahui shared several changes occurring in the catering supply chain.

In terms of ingredients, price fluctuations have become the norm, showing a trend of “structural differentiation,” which presents both challenges and opportunities for supply chain companies. Segmented tracks like fresh-cut beef hot pot and fresh-cut beef noodles have emerged due to the decline in beef prices, and relevant supply chain companies have seized the opportunity, experiencing high growth.

In terms of industrial chain integration, the trend of upstream and downstream integration is deepening, leading to a “cross-border wave” among supply chain companies. Companies may either engage in cross-border mergers and acquisitions or collaborations to compensate for their shortcomings in categories, channels, or technologies, consolidate competitiveness, or leverage existing advantages to enter high-growth or high-profit new fields, seeking a second growth curve.

In terms of product innovation, behind the brands launching popular products, supply chain companies are “testing and innovating” for them, exploring innovative possibilities in raw materials, flavors, ingredients, and functionalities.

Liu Huahui pointed out that the expansion of Chinese cuisine overseas requires the support of supply chain companies, which are actively laying out overseas markets and developing in the directions of localization, collaboration, and digitalization. This includes the establishment of overseas ingredient supply chains and processing plants, the design of seasonings tailored to local tastes, and standardized cooking robots that can be replicated.

Finally, looking ahead to the future trends of the catering supply chain, Liu Huahui also shared four major trends: supply chain companies are becoming more actively cross-border, channels are placing greater emphasis on dual-driven BC endpoints; AI+ will reconstruct the models of supply chain companies in product research and development, supply chain management, and AI cooking; rapid response to demand, small-batch multi-variety production, supply chain systems, and data-driven decision-making will be more flexible and customized; supply chain companies are more proactively researching consumer trends and market demands, accelerating product innovation, shortening R&D cycles, and leading innovation iterations.

Author: Hongcan Editorial Department