The NPD Group report that customer transactions at QSRs were down nine percent for the week ending August 16th compared to the corresponding week in 2019.  The NPD survey represents 53 percent of establishments in the U.S. including QSRs, fast casual and mid-scale restaurants.

QSRs were least affected by COVID-19, posting an eight percent reduction for the week compared to corresponding period in 2019.  In contrast, full-service chain restaurants recorded a 19 percent decline in transactions compared to 2019.

David Portalatin of NPD stated, "although transactions have fallen and moved into single-digits it is a positive sign for the U.S. restaurant industry".  He added " we are stuck in neutral for now but I firmly believe there is still a lot of upside recovery for restaurants". 

An increase in traffic is a key indicator of recovery of the food service sector, critical to restoring the pre-COVID balance between the egg-breaking and shell-egg sectors of the industry.