For many years, the collective meals market sustained its growth based on three pillars: operational scale, long-term contracts, and predictability. Today, none of these pillars remains intact.
The sector has changed. The consumer has changed. The worker has changed. And corporate clients have changed as well.
We are experiencing a structural transformation, not just a difficult phase in the market.
Corporate food service is no longer seen merely as an operational cost. It has begun to occupy a strategic space within companies, connecting productivity, employee experience, health, and talent retention.
At the same time, operating companies are facing perhaps the most challenging environment in recent history: intense price pressure, compressed margins, high turnover, new nutritional demands, indirect competition, and accelerated digitalization.
The question that remains is:
Who will be able to survive in a market that insists on selling meals as a commodity while consumers demand experience?
- Labor shortage: the problem is no longer operational, it has become structural
The collective food service sector is currently facing a dangerous combination:
• low salary floor
• unattractive working hours
• high operational demands
• low perception of career growth
• a shift in mindset among new generations
New generations are not looking only for compensation. They are looking for purpose, quality of life, flexibility, and growth. And many operational models in the sector were still designed for an industrial logic from the 1990s.
The result is visible:
• difficulty hiring
• growing absenteeism
• high turnover
• loss of productivity
• decline in operational quality
Several food service sectors already recognize labor shortage as a structural problem. Some companies have begun to respond with smarter initiatives:
• hiring professionals aged 50+
• internal training paths
• operational leadership programs
• more flexible schedules
• automation of repetitive processes
• strengthening organizational culture
And here there is an important point:
The future of the sector will not be decided only by the ability to sell contracts, but by the ability to attract and retain people.
- The silent crisis of leadership
There is a reality that is rarely discussed in the segment:
Many operational managers were promoted because of their technical excellence, but were never prepared to lead people.
The result appears in emotionally worn-out operations, disengaged teams, and high-tension environments.
Today, leading a food service unit requires very different skills from those required a few years ago:
• emotional intelligence
• multigenerational management
• communication
• fast decision-making
• indicator analysis
• retention capacity
• strategic understanding of the client
It is no longer enough to simply “make the operation work.”
It is necessary to develop leaders capable of sustaining culture, experience, and results simultaneously.
The companies that are standing out are investing heavily in:
• corporate universities
• continuous training
• indicator-based management
• climate monitoring
• development of soft skills
Because in the current scenario, leadership has become a competitive advantage.
- The commoditization of the sector
Perhaps this is the greatest paradox in the market.
While costs are increasing — food, energy, labor, logistics, and sanitary requirements — many contracts continue to be negotiated exclusively based on the lowest price.
The problem is that this logic destroys value for everyone:
• compresses margins
• reduces innovation capacity
• weakens quality
• increases turnover
• limits investment in technology
• compromises the end-user experience
The sector needs to decide whether it will continue selling “trays” or whether it will begin selling:
• well-being
• productivity
• experience
• health
• employer branding
• operational intelligence
The most innovative companies have already understood this and have begun to move away from a purely commercial war through:
• gastronomic experiences
• personalized menus
• health-oriented offerings
• convenience
• internal retail
• honest markets
• journey technology
• nutritional curation
• consumption data
Differentiation is no longer only in the kitchen: It is in the complete experience.
- The corporate client has never been so demanding
Clients have changed profoundly. Today, they want:
• cost reduction
• premium experience
• indicators
• ESG
• health-oriented offerings
• food safety
• technology
• personalization
• contractual flexibility
• real-time data
And all of this, often, while paying less. In addition, food has begun to directly impact:
• employer brand
• internal satisfaction
• talent retention
• perception of the company’s care for its employees
The meal is no longer just a benefit.
It has become a tool for organizational culture.
- Competition is no longer only among operators
This may be one of the most underestimated movements in the market. Collective food service operators no longer compete only with one another.
Today, they compete for space with:
• benefit cards
• convenience platforms
• delivery
• autonomous markets
• foodtechs
• hybrid models
• decentralized food solutions
The corporate client has begun to compare completely different models with one another, and this changes the entire competitive dynamic: benefit companies offer flexibility, foodtechs offer technology, autonomous markets offer convenience, delivery offers variety.
If the traditional sector continues operating only with an industrial logic, it will lose relevance.
- Declining loyalty: shorter contracts and more fragile relationships
In the past, contracts lasted for years. Today, many do not reach 12 months.
The market has become more aggressive, more opportunistic, and less relationship-driven.
Changing suppliers has become faster because:
• the difference among companies has become small
• price criteria prevail
• the client is under greater pressure
• there is a lower technological barrier
• experience is still underexplored as a differentiator
This requires a radical change: It is not enough to win contracts; it is necessary to continuously build perceived value. Those who do not generate experience, intelligence, and proximity easily become replaceable.
- Health, well-being, and the impact of “weight-loss pens”
The rise of GLP-1 medications and the growing search for health and well-being are beginning to directly impact eating behavior.
Today’s consumer:
• eats less
• seeks lighter foods
• pays more attention to ingredients
• values protein, functionality, and balance
• rejects excess
• wants practicality without giving up health
This completely changes the design of corporate menus.
The future tends to favor:
• functional food
• personalized menus
• balanced meals
• intelligent portioning
• traceability
• nutritional experience
The corporate restaurant will need to act almost like a well-being platform.
- Technology is no longer a differentiator — it has become survival
Digital transformation has finally reached industrial kitchens, and we are not talking only about ERP.
We are talking about:
• demand intelligence
• automation
• AI applied to consumption
• waste forecasting
• real-time management
• operational monitoring
• digital user experience
• data integration
• analytics
• self-service
• invisible payments
The most prepared companies are using technology to:
• reduce waste
• gain efficiency
• improve experience
• personalize consumption
• optimize purchasing
• increase operational predictability
Efficiency, predictability, and control have become absolute priorities for the sector. The future of the sector will be defined by repositioning, not only by operation. The collective meals market still moves billions and remains extremely relevant.
But there is a difficult truth to ignore: Traditional models are becoming obsolete.
The companies that will survive in the coming years will probably have some characteristics in common:
• strategic vision
• consultative positioning
• intensive use of technology
• focus on experience
• strong culture
• professional management
• data intelligence
• capacity for innovation
• valuing people
Because the future of corporate food service will not be decided only by those who serve meals.
It will be decided by those who manage to transform food into perceived value.
– Kely Bonin is Commercial and Marketing Director at Ondina Alimentação e Serviços.
