Food delivery was on an upward incline at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. But have things remained the same since the effects of the pandemic have waned slightly?
As it turns out, food delivery has continued to soar and rise and in fact, all the signs indicate that in 2023, it will continue to remain an entrenched part of Malaysians’ daily lives.
In fact, data from Grab’s South-East Asia Food & Grocery Trends 2022 report shows that even after lockdown restrictions were lifted, demand for deliveries never petered out.
From 2021 to 2022, total Grab delivery sales volume grew by 24% and seven in 10 respondents now say that deliveries are a permanent part of their lives today, which indicates that figures will continue to rise this year too.
The report also highlighted that spending power has increased too, with average basket size for food deliveries growing by 18% from 2019 to 2022. This increase has largely been powered by young families.
In Malaysia, 62% of heavy delivery users are married with kids and order from food delivery services for various reasons, most notably because they are too busy to cook and want to treat their families.
The top meals ordered? Fried chicken, fried rice, burgers, roti canai and nasi lemak.
Moving forward, trends that are likely to dominate in the food delivery segment include a shift towards healthier eating, with Grab data showing that Malaysia has the second highest reception towards healthy eating after Singapore.
Entertaining at home is also likely to be a continued trend this year, with two out of five consumers across the region preferring to order in as opposed to eating out for social gatherings.
Perhaps the biggest trend to emerge in 2023 will be the rise of food delivery subscriptions, as data shows that one in three food delivery users today already subscribe to a plan.
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