Chongqing or Chengdu hotpots feature fiery chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns fried up with other spices in plenty of rendered beef fat. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The revenue of China's catering industry is expected to exceed 3.9 trillion yuan (about $603.6 billion) for 2017, up 10.7 percent compared to 2016, according to the latest statistics from the Chinese Cuisine Association.

The association's 2017 annual food consumption report shows that in 2017, Chinese-style meals still dominate, accounting for 57 percent of the total.

The report also shows that younger customers are the driving force among food and beverage consumers, accounting for around half of all food and beverage consumption.

The value of China's takeaway food app market is expected to exceed 200 billion yuan in 2017, according to the report. This is a substantial increase on the 166 billion yuan recorded in 2016. The average price of each takeaway order on popular Chinese food ordering app Ele.me exceeded 40 yuan last year.

An earlier report released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed that from January to October 2017, the income from national food and beverage sales was 3.2 trillion yuan, up 11 percent from the same period in 2016.

[Photo provided to China Daily]