CHICAGO, October 9, 2025 — As the shutdown of the federal government enters its second week, the food-away-from-home industry is facing the severe erosion of a key source of business: travel.
A running tally kept by the U.S. Travel Association (USTA) shows the money spent on domestic travel dropped by $1 billion during roughly Week 1 of the shutdown. It projects that the dollars spent at hotels, airport concessions, theme parks, and other travel-dependent businesses will continue to fall at a rate of about $1 billion every seven days.
Even businesses that may not have an obvious dependence on travel are likely to feel the impact. Normally, about every third dollar collected by a restaurant comes from someone who is on a business or personal trip, according to the National Restaurant Association’s 2024 State of the Restaurant Industry report.
Earlier installments of the annual business snapshot indicate that travelers can account for as much as 41% of fine-dining revenues. Even limited-service restaurants are dependent on road warriors, with 25% of their sales coming from people who are enroute.
“This shutdown is doing real, irreversible damage,” Geoff Freeman, CEO of the USTA, said in a statement. “The longer this drags on, the worse the cascade of damage will be—for local communities, for small businesses and for the country. Congress needs to act now and reopen the government.”
The shutdown began as several areas of the country are poised for their busiest tourism periods. The fall foliage season, for instance, is a huge traffic-generator for businesses in the Northeast.
The USTA estimates the total economic contribution of travel in the U.S. at about $1.3 trillion.
As Managing Editor for IFMA The Food Away from Home Association, Romeo is responsible for generating the group's news and feature content. He brings more than 40 years of experience in covering restaurants to the position.