In the 1970s, Americans consumed most meals at home. While that’s still generally true, Americans’ diets have changed over the past half-century, and rather starkly.
Consumers now get about a third of their calories from eating out, according to research from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Many of those calories come from fast food chains. In the late 1970s, Americans got about 6% of their calories from fast food. Now, it’s about 16%.
Generally, the USDA considers eating out worse for a diet than making food at home. The exceptions are school meals, which follow federal nutrition guidelines.
The pandemic dramatically slowed the trend of eating out, at least for a year. Once things opened up again, Americans started spending more money on restaurants than they did before.
In general, the cost of food — no matter where consumed — has gone up over the past couple of decades. In 2022, after accounting for inflation, Americans spent roughly 70% more on food than they did in the late 1990s.
