F&B sector posts 1H revenue of $16 bln

The food and beverage (F&B) sector recorded a revenue of VND403.9 trillion ($16 billion) in the first half of the year, equivalent to nearly 70% of the total turnover of 2023, according to the latest report on the Vietnam Food and Beverage Industry published by the iPOS.vn platform, which specializes in researching the Vietnamese culinary market.

However, the first six months of the year witnessed at least 30,000 F&B stores cease operation, equivalent to 3.9% of the country's total,  the report said.

Ho Chi Minh City experienced the most significant impact with a 6% decrease in the number of F&B stores. Meanwhile, a slight increase of about 0.1% in number of F&B stores was recorded in Hanoi.

The revenue growth was attributed to promotion programs applied by stores to boost demand and changes in Vietnamese consumers' habit, according to the report. There has been an increase in number of people eating out daily, once or twice a week, or even three-four times a week, compared to the previous year.

The report was based on a survey of nearly 1,000 restaurants and coffee shops in Vietnam with 2,300 customers and 1,307 employees, together with other related data.