The fast-food industry is well-spread in the world but some countries tend to enjoy it a bit too much.
In today’s article, it’s time to talk specifics – we’re going to cover the fast-food consumption data and statistics by country. We’ll talk about some countries that are known as the biggest fast-food consumers, as well as those that are trying to avoid such food.
Keep reading and find out all the important numbers and data!
8 Top Fast Food Consumption Statistics By Country (Editor’s Pick)
- 270,000 people eat at McDonald’s in Switzerland every day.
- Austrian people eat 3,760 calories daily.
- 22 million fast-food meals are weekly eaten in the UK.
- French people eat on average 14 hamburgers a year per person.
- 37% of Americans eat fast food on a daily basis.
- Chinese fast food industry generated $162.2 billion in 2021.
- There is only one fast-food restaurant in Bermuda.
- 15.9 million Australians ate fast food in an average of four weeks.
28 Fast Food Consumption Statistics & Data By Country
1. In Sweden, 51% of the population is either overweight or obese due to fast food consumption.
Sweden is one of the countries which consume the most fast food. And that certainly has its consequences. More than half of the Swedish population has problems with obesity or being overweight due to high fast-food consumption.
Source: The Local
2. McDonald’s covers 28% of the market in Sweden.
According to the research made by Basic Planet, the biggest “problem” in Sweden when it comes to fast-food consumption is the popularity of McDonald’s. This fast-food brand is well-spread throughout the country and covers 28% of the Swedish market.
Source: Basic Planet
3. Each day, 270,000 people eat at one of 170 McDonald’s restaurants in Switzerland.
Switzerland’s obesity rate is dangerously increasing, same as the fast-food consumption. The Local’s study stated that every day 270,000 people eat at McDonald’s in Switzerland. The fast-food spending for Swiss people per capita is almost $100 and McDonald’s is the largest contributor – the company covers 45% of the market share in the country.
Source: The Local and Countries Now
4. One out of every three young German people eats fast food at least three times a week.
Germany is one of the countries with the highest fast-food consumption. And young people under 25 are those who almost regularly eat fast food. According to the research made by The Local, young German people eat junk food at least three times a week. They have a big choice of fast food too – the country has more than 1100 fast-food franchisees.
Source: The Local and Countries Now
5. Austrian people eat 3,760 calories daily.
When it comes to fast-food consumption in Austria, people there consume 3,760 calories daily. Austria is in second place with calories consumption, the first country is the USA. Due to such high-calorie intake, 40% of Austrians are considered overweight and 11% of them actually meet the definition of obesity.
Source: The Local
6. In Japan, 53% of people eat fast food less than once per week.
Fast food restaurants are popular around the world and that, of course, include Japan too. However, most people avoid eating such food on a weekly basis and they rather consume healthier meal options.
Source: Statista
7. The most popular fast-food store in Japan is 7-Eleven.
Despite the fact that 53% of people try to avoid eating fast food every week, 7-Eleven has quite high customer traffic every year. With 13,685 outlets, the company’s revenue for 2020 was more than 850 billion Japanese yen – which is more than $7.4 billion.
Source: Basic Planet
8. Male high school students in South Korea consume more fast food than females.
According to the study and data from Statista, 29.2% of male high school students consume fast food frequently or to be more specific, at least three times a week. A bit smaller number of 25.4% of female high school students eat junk food that often.
Source: Statista
9. The study showed that 22 million fast-food meals are weekly eaten in the UK.
The United Kingdom is a big fast-food consumer. Cancer Research UK made a study and found out that 22 million fast-food and takeaway meals are weekly eaten by adults. That is a huge amount of unhealthy food on a weekly basis. 16% of young people aged 18 to 24 eat at least once a week some type of junk food.
Source: Cancer Research UK and Statista
10. British eat fast-food 5 times a month.
To give more specific numbers, New Food Magazine conducted research about fast-food consumption in the United Kingdom and came to the conclusion that British eat fast-food around 5 times a month. Even that number is a bit too high to lead a healthy lifestyle.
Source: New Food Magazine
11. The revenue of the British fast-food industry has a steady annual growth.
The popularity of fast food in the UK is definitely growing for the last five years. According to the data collected by IBISWorld, for the last five years, the revenue of the British fast-food industry has had a steady annual growth of 1.3%. No doubt this growth is a bit bigger in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the convenience of ordering a fast-food meal.
Source: IBISWorld
12. Around 16% of Canadians eat out every day.
The Reviewlution study shows that 16% of Canadians have a tendency of eating out every day, including fast-food meals. They consume around 146 kcal per day from fast food. Canadians mostly choose to go to Tim Hortons which covers 25% of the market. McDonald’s and Subway have 11% and 6% shares.
Source: Reviewlution and TheRichest
13. There are more than 31,577 fast-food locations in Canada.
Besides the already mentioned Tim Hortons, McDonald’s, and Subway, Canadians have more than 31,577 fast-food locations to choose from in total. Canada has KFC, Domino’s, Wendy’s, and other popular fast-food franchises which have a massive number of customers on a daily basis.
Source: Reviewlution and ScrapeHero
14. In France, 16% of people eat fast food regularly.
French people really enjoy eating at fast-food restaurants. 41% of people like to eat it, however, they eat it quite rarely. Only 16% of people eat such food regularly, stated the study by Statista in 2019.
Source: Statista
15. The sale of fast food increased by 14% in France.
Over the last couple of years, we can definitely see the growth of the fast-food industry. The same goes for the growth in France. In the last few years, there is a 14% increase in sales of sandwiches, burgers, pizza, and other types of fast food.
Source: Countries Now
16. The most consumed fast food in France is a hamburger.
The study by market research firm NPD stated that French people eat on average 14 hamburgers a year per person. 70% of those eaten hamburgers are prepared as fast food. The other 30% of hamburger sales and consumption come from French restaurants which serve burgers à la carte. There are 85% of such restaurants in France.
Source: NPD and The Guardian
17. Half of the French adults are overweight.
Due to the high fast-food consumption, French adults are fighting overweight problems – half of them are overweight! One in six of the adults in France is obese. These are serious health problems caused by a too high rate of junk food consumption.
Source: The Local
18. In the USA, fast-food consumption increases by 2.2% every year.
The US fast-food industry is the biggest one in the world so it isn’t surprising that the consumption of junk food increases by 2.2% every year. The Americans have the biggest calorie intake too and on a daily basis, they eat up to 3,770 calories.
Source: The Barbecue Lab
19. There are 37% of Americans who regularly eat fast food.
According to the study made by the National Center for Health Statistics, 37% of Americans eat fast food on a daily basis. That is a high number of 84.8 million of them. This is a terrifying number of fast-food consumers which leads to serious health problems – 36% of American adults are obese.
Source: National Center for Health Statistics and CDC
20. Around 34% of American children eat fast food on any given day.
The fast-food industry mostly targets kids. They are the easiest to influence, as well as the most vulnerable group. Due to an unhealthy diet, 17% of American youth are having obesity problems.
Source: The Barbecue Lab
21. In China, 41% of people eat at fast-food restaurants at least once a week.
In mainland China, fast-food restaurants are quite a popular meal destination and a high percentage of people who eat there is the best evidence of that popularity. If we’re talking about specific towns, Hong Kong definitely stands out. 61% of the residents visit fast-food places frequently on a weekly basis.
Source: ACNielsen Corp.
22. Chinese fast food industry generated $162.2 billion in 2021.
The fast-food restaurants’ industry in China is very big. The industry made approximately $162.2 billion in 2021 and its revenue is expected to rise by 2.4% over the next couple of years. The growth can be seen over the past decade too.
Source: IBISWorld
23. There is only one fast-food restaurant in Bermuda.
Bermuda is one of the countries that is trying to maintain its residents’ health by limiting their fast food options. This country is one of the handfuls of countries where you won’t find a McDonald’s restaurant. However, there is one KFC location established in 1970. Due to that, people in Bermuda are amongst those who consume minimal fast-food meals.
Source: TheRecipe
24. Young Icelanders spend around $200 on fast food per month.
Icelanders between the ages of 16 and 25 really love eating fast food. They consume it about 18 days a month or roughly every other day. The fast-food consumption in Iceland steadily declines with age. People over the age of 66 eat such food only around 5 times a month.
Source: The Reykjavík Grapevine Magazine
25. Domino’s is the most popular fast-food place in Iceland.
People in Iceland choose Domino’s for fast-food consumption 81% of the time. Subways and KFC are a bit less popular, while the least popular is a local hot dog stand Bæjarins beztu which visits just over 10,000 Icelanders per month.
Source: The Reykjavík Grapevine Magazine
26. Icelanders aged 26 to 35 spend the most money on fast food.
Even though younger Icelanders eat the most fast food, those aged 26 to 35 have a tendency to spend a bit more money on junk food. They spend around $230 per month, unlike younger Icelanders who spend around $30 less.
Source: The Reykjavík Grapevine Magazine
27. In 2020, 15.9 million Australians ate take-out food from fast food outlets.
In an average of four weeks, millions of Australians aged 14+ ordered take-out food from popular fast food outlets such as KFC, McDonald’s, Domino’s, Hungry Jack’s, or some other local pizza shop or fish and chips shop. This shows a big increase from 2019 when there were 13.3 million customers of fast food outlets.
Source: Roy Morgan
28. McDonald’s had more than 8 million customers in Australia.
According to the study made by Roy Morgan, the most popular fast-food outlet in 2020 was McDonald’s. In second place was KFC with 6,8 million customers, while in third place was Hungry Jack’s with 4.2 million customers. In 10th place was Pizza Hut with a bit more than 1 million consumers.
Source: Roy Morgan
To Wrap It Up
Some countries enjoy consuming more fast food while others understand the health problems which come hand-in-hand with junk food. We covered many countries in order to bring you all the important data and statistics on fast-food consumption. There is no doubt that some of them nurture the habit of unhealthy lifestyle, however, there are still some countries that do consume more healthy and nutritious food.
