Food Management’s 2023 Top 50 Contract Management Companies tabulates the 50 largest firms by 2022 revenue operating dining, catering and other food-related services for clients in fields ranging from schools, colleges, hospitals and senior living facilities to business and industry, sports and entertainment, corrections and parks/recreation. Each company is ranked by top-line North American revenues for fiscal or calendar year 2022, in millions of dollars. All figures are self-reported, unless noted with an (e), which connotes an FM estimate. Estimated numbers are derived from research and analysis, including published reports, previously submitted company data when available and how the markets in which they operate have fared generally in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2023 Top 50 reflects an industry recovering impressively from the shock of the COVID pandemic that bludgeoned 2020 results, when most firms posted revenue declines. The results for 2021 were much more optimistic, with a record 10 firms posting revenue increases of at least 20% over 2020 and those for 2022 topped that, with three firms growing over 100% and 20 growing at least 20% from among those for which definite figures are available for both years.
While strong recovery seems to be the case for most firms, those operating in markets that had seen the steepest pandemic-related declines, such as sports/entertainment concessions and airport foodservice, tended to see the biggest year-over-year gains.
Companies operating in markets like healthcare tended to see smaller—but still tangible—gains while college and K-12 providers benefited from the general resumption of in-person instruction, though K-12 was hampered in the fall by the expiration of federal universal free meals. Meanwhile, corporate dining contractors were slowly beginning to adapt to a changed workplace amenity environment that is generally seeing fewer customers overall but regards dining as one of the factors that can draw employees back to offices.
