According to internal industry estimates, 617,300 food and beverage vending machines are operated in Germany. Around 15 % of these are for the sale of snacks and food. Over 80 % of all vending machines are installed in companies to provide employees with snacks, cold and hot drinks.

Vending machine solutions have become increasingly important in communal catering concepts: In times of staff shortages and new working habits (e.g. Tue-Wed-Thu), they are an ideal addition to the traditional company restaurant.

New generation of vending machines and ordering processes

New generations of food vending machines contribute to this: By pre-ordering via app, they can be stocked with fresh products as required. Healthy and balanced nutrition is also possible in the vending sector.
Pre-ordering has a decisive advantage for the caterer: they know the demand for certain dishes in advance and can stock the vending machines accordingly. This minimizes the risk of food remaining in the vending machine for too long, not being collected and ultimately spoiling. Of course, there is still room to stock the vending machine with additional products for spontaneous purchases.

Serving, heating, returning - the smallest canteen in the world

The days of soggy bread rolls that sit in vending machines for far too long are long gone. In combination with microwave modules and vending machines, "mini canteens" can be set up in a small space:
Employees order their desired meal from the vending machine. The food is heated on the microwave module right next to it (the perfect cooking time can be programmed in advance using QR codes and only a short QR scan is required) and, if the food is served in reusable dishes, these can then be returned to the reverse vending machine.
Such vending machine lines are increasingly being used in companies for which it is not profitable to have their own company restaurant, but which still want to offer their employees a fully catered meal.

Smartfridges: the alternative to vending machines?

In addition to vending machines, many communal caterers are increasingly discovering smart fridges: the fridges help to expand the range of food on offer. The way they work is very simple: users authorize themselves via payment portal or credit card, the door is unlocked and the desired goods can be removed. Sensors register what has been removed and when the door is closed, the booking is automatically made using the stored payment method.
Smartfridges are therefore a more cost-effective alternative to vending machines.

Conclusion: Expanding the range thanks to vending machine technology

Vending machines and smart fridges are on the rise in the communal catering sector. With over 600,000 vending machines in Germany, they are becoming increasingly important in companies. While vending machine combinations replace small canteens or make them possible in the first place, Smartfridges are a cost-effective alternative. Both solutions expand the catering offer.