Brits cutting back on eating out, only 8% planning to celebrate King's Coronation in pubs and bars: Brits are cutting back on eating out, and only 8% are planning to celebrate the King's Coronation in pubs and bars in May, according to the latest Barclays consumer spending index. It also said Generation Z consumers are spending more of their income on discretionary purchases compared with older age groups, including spending twice as much on takeaways, with the category seeing year-on-year growth of 9.2%. The Barclays report combines hundreds of millions of customer transactions with consumer research to provide an in-depth view of UK spending. Consumer card spending grew just 4.0% year-on-year in March as Brits made further cutbacks to cope with the cost-of-living crunch. As rising household bills continue to bite, more than half (54%) of consumers said they are cutting down on discretionary spending, especially eating out at restaurants (62%), which saw a noticeable drop in spend of 5.6% year-on-year. Increasing costs are also having a wider impact on hospitality spending, with more than a third (36%) now cooking more at home instead of eating out, while a fifth (21%) are avoiding social plans that involve eating out so they can save money. Looking ahead, just a third of Brits (35%) will spend on activities over the King's Coronation bank holiday weekend in May, with only 8% planning to spend money on drinks out at bars and pubs. Spending in pubs and bars during March was up 3.2% year-on-year. Esme Harwood, director at Barclays, said: “Hospitality and leisure businesses will be hoping that the busy bank holiday period provides a boost to counteract consumers' everyday cost-savings. While predictions for the Coronation weekend are lacklustre, the results from Mother's Day are more encouraging, demonstrating that Brits are still taking advantage of one-off moments to go out and celebrate.”

Near 60% increase in pubs closing in first quarter of 2023: More than 150 pubs have disappeared for good from English and Welsh communities over the first three months of 2023, according to new figures. The Press Association reported the rate of pubs being demolished or redeveloped for other purposes has increased by almost 60% at the start of the year as high energy bills have hammered the sector. Analysis of official government data by real estate adviser Altus Group showed the overall number of pubs in England and Wales, including those vacant and being offered to let, dropped to 39,634 at the end of the first quarter. It showed 153 pubs vanished for good with there having been 39,787 pubs recorded in England and Wales at the end of 2022. The data showed that 51 pubs were lost each month, accelerating from a reduction of 32 pubs a month during the whole of 2022. Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said: “Energy bills are decimating our sector with extortionate costs wiping out profits and closing pubs at a faster rate than the pandemic. Pubs that were profitable and thriving before the energy crisis are being left with no option but to shut up shop. We have been raising the alarm for months that energy costs are posing an existential threat to pubs across the country and these figures are evidence of that. It is essential the government intervenes to ensure energy suppliers are offering the option of renegotiation to pubs locked into unmanageably high energy contracts. Make no mistake, the longer this goes on the more pubs will be lost forever in communities across the country, something must be done immediately to save them.”

Greggs reports significant progress on 2025 sustainability goals: Food-to-go retailer Greggs has reported “significant progress” towards its 2025 sustainability targets as it launches the third edition of its annual sustainability report. First launched in 2021, The Greggs Pledge sets out ten focuses to help make the “world a better place”, with the aim of developing these over the years to come. These commitments, aligned with the ambitions of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, are based on three key areas that Greggs said it is best placed to make the most difference, including: building stronger, healthier communities – the pledge to provide free breakfasts to schoolchildren, give surplus food to those most in need and play a part in improving the nation's diet by helping to tackle obesity; making the planet safer – the pledge to become a carbon-neutral, zero waste business; and becoming a better business – the pledge to increase the diversity of the workforce and to use purchasing power responsibly, with the aim of making things better in the supply chain. Greggs said it has now reached the following key milestones, including: opening 789 breakfast clubs, feeding more than 49,000 children every school day; reduced manufacturing food waste by 10% (as a percentage of sales) and increased food redistribution of unsold food in shops by a further 10%. The business also opened its first eco-shop and brought in the sustainability initiatives from the eco-shop into more than 250 of all shops while 32% of its range is now “healthier choice” products. Roisin Currie, chief executive at Greggs, said: “By giving good food a second chance and redistributing it to those in need and reducing food waste, to implementing initiatives that directly tackle climate change, like continuing to switch to renewable energy, and ensuring we are committed to workplace diversity and inclusivity, we are driving initiatives to make the world a better place.”