page_title: Fast food
section_title: Globalization
hierarchical_section_title: Fast food / Globalization
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Un MacDonald's, un KFC et un Pizza Hut aux Émirats arabes unis
context_page_description: Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale and with a strong priority placed on "speed of service" versus other relevant factors involved in culinary science. Fast food was originally created as a commercial strategy to accommodate the larger numbers of busy commuters, travelers and wage workers who often did not have the time to sit down at a public house or diner and wait for their meal. By making speed of service the priority, this ensured that customers with strictly limited time were not inconvenienced by waiting for their food to be cooked on-the-spot. For those with no time to spare, fast food became a multibillion-dollar industry. In 2018, the fast food industry was worth an estimated $570 billion globally.
  The fastest form of "fast food" consists of pre-cooked meals kept in readiness for a customer's arrival, with waiting time reduced to mere seconds. Other fast food outlets, primarily the hamburger outlets use mass-produced pre-prepared ingredients but take great pains to point out to the customer that the "meat and potatoes" are always cooked fresh and assembled "to order".
context_section_description: In 2006, the global fast-food market grew by 4.8% and reached a value of £102.4 billion and a volume of 80.3 billion transactions. McDonald's alone, has outlets in 126 countries on 6 continents and operates over 31,000 restaurants worldwide.
  One example of McDonald's expansion on a global scale was its introduction to the Russian market. In order for the American business to succeed it would have to be accepted and integrated into the daily lives of natives in Moscow. Thus, the restaurant was strategically implemented so that its offerings would align with the distinct and established eating habits, also known as the customs around food, eating and cooking, of Muscovites. One significant characteristic of Russian food culture is the emphasis on knowing about the locality of goods that are consumed. Essentially, in order to successfully launch this American brand in a foreign country, McDonald's interpreted the local interests of consumers in Moscow by promoting the origins of the produce used in the restaurant. On January 31, 1990 McDonald's opened a restaurant in Moscow and broke opening-day records for customers served. The Moscow restaurant is the busiest in the world.
  The largest McDonald's in the world, with 25,000 feet of play tubes, an arcade and play center, is located in Orlando, Florida, United States
  There are numerous other fast food restaurants located all over the world. Burger King has more than 11,100 restaurants in more than 65 countries. KFC is located in 25 countries. Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world with approximately 39,129 restaurants in 90 countries as of May 2009, the first non-US location opening in December 1984 in Bahrain. Wienerwald has spread from Germany into Asia and Africa. Pizza Hut is located in 97 countries, with 100 locations in China. Taco Bell has 278 restaurants located in 14 countries besides the United States.
caption: McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Pizza Hut fast food restaurants in the United Arab Emirates
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon PowerShot G3", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "180", "Image YResolution": "180", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image DateTime": "2004:12:21 11:25:57", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "196", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "180", "Thumbnail YResolution": "180", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "2036", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6910", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/60", "EXIF FNumber": "2", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2004:12:21 11:25:57", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2004:12:21 11:25:57", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "5", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "189/32", "EXIF ApertureValue": "2", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "2", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash fired, auto mode, red-eye reduction mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "115/16", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2272", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1704", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "2272", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "1704", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "1572", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "56800/7", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "56800/7", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}