Students to spend £2.36b on food in 2017
The YouGov survey of more than 1,000 students also revealed that 22% identified as 'committed healthy eaters', 14% said they are specifically vegetarian and 3% vegan.
At breakfast, 72% of students eat at home, but they ventured out at lunch to purchase hot sandwiches, jacket potatoes, pasta and soup dishes. The average spend is £6.90, according to the survey.
Evening meals see 88% of students eating where they live, but when they do eat out, pizzas and pasta are the favourites - the average spend is £7.74.
Brakes public sector marketing manager Cathy Amos said it's important for wholesalers to identify trends for caterers in order to offer a range of ideas and suggestions to help them.
Amos said: "Gone are the days when university caterers were focused solely on Freshers' Week and Graduation Day. Nowadays, a university's food offer has a key part to play in its overall proposition, so Open Days and other occasions where they are catering for the general public are becoming increasingly important. Our job is to ensure that university caterers have the products, support and service to maximise this opportunity."
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