China's catering industry posted a record high of 4.27 trillion yuan (about 628 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue in 2018, coupled with encouraging trends.

The figure marked a rise of 9.5 percent from the previous year, accounting for 11.2 percent of the country's total retail sales of consumer goods, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Driven by consumption upgrade, the industry was heading into "a new era of innovation and high-quality development with supply-side reform as its mainstay," said Han Ming, director of China Hospitality Association.

Green catering

Eco-friendly catering, or green catering, was a highlight of China's catering industry development in 2018.

In June 2018, Chinese government issued a guideline on advancing green catering, seeking to open 5,000 green restaurants and cut kitchen waste and energy consumption per 10,000 yuan of revenue by at least 20 percent by 2022.

The guideline called for a higher threshold for industry access, an evaluation system for eco-friendliness along the industry chain and less use of plastic packaging.

Provinces and cities in China have taken actions in line with the guideline.

The Catering Industry Association of Jiangsu Province in east China published a set of detailed green catering standards on Jan. 15, including requirements on safety, waste reduction and environmental protection. Nanchang, the capital city of the central China province of Jiangxi, is encouraging restaurants to use more recyclable appliances.

New retail business

Stimulated by the rapid development of e-commerce and cold chain logistics, Chinese restaurants are quick in staking out the territories of e-commerce and making business innovation to combine on-line and brick-and-mortar business together, according to reports released by China Hospitality Association.

China's largest seafood hot pot chain Haidilao launched in recent years a series of instant self-heating hot pots, with each pack containing the brand's trademark dishes. The product, sold at around 30 yuan each pack, is voted 99 percent in favor on the e-commerce platform JD.com.

Enriching customers' dining experiences is another industry trend. Restaurants are exploring social media-friendly interior decor, cuisine design and interactive programs to cater to the young generations, said Han.

Smart technology

Restaurants in China are becoming smarter, capable to launch targeted marketing based on consumer portraits made through big data. They also use big data to select sites for new stores, update dishes seasonally, optimize supply chain and operational management and enhance business efficiency.

Assisted by big data analysis, self-service restaurants are turning from a business concept into reality.

The latest installment of China's smart restaurants opened Monday at Qingdao North Railway Station in Shandong Province to better serve the Spring Festival travel rush, which began 15 days ahead of the Spring Festival that falls on Feb. 5 this year.

The restaurant, believed to be first of its kind in China's railway system, can provide customers with a full meal within 26 seconds, according to reports by Science and Technology Daily.

Passengers can order by tapping on the screen of eight machines in the restaurant and pay by scanning a QR code. Meals will come out, microwave heated by the machines, in no more than one minute.

A number of over 2,000 vacuum-packed meals can be stored in the eight machines, which will be replenished by staff when out of stock.

A smart management system is also equipped in the restaurant, with which big data analysis will be carried out on passengers' preferences to better suit their tastes.

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