Food away from home as a share of household food expenditures has risen steadily since 1970, reaching its highest level of 43.1 percent in 2012

A number of factors contributed to the trend of increased dining out, including a larger share of women employed outside the home, more two-earner households, higher incomes, more affordable and convenient fast food outlets, increased advertising and promotion by large foodservice chains, and the smaller size of U.S. households.

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