The takeaway business has boomed across the UK during the pandemic – with anti-obesity campaigners warning the expansion is “deeply concerning”. There were around 43,235 takeaways and mobile food stands across the country in 2021, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates.
That was a 5.6% increase from 40,930 the previous year, which was the steepest annual rise since 2015 – the earliest year with comparable figures – when there were 36,855. Use our interactive tool to see how the takeaway trade has grown in your area compared to others:
That is likely to be at least partly driven by the pandemic, as people forced indoors during successive lockdowns turned to their favourite takeaway foods for comfort. It means there were 64.5 takeaways per 100,000 people in the UK – although that varied massively between areas.
