** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** FOOD-AWAY-FROM-HOME (FAFH) CONSTITUTES AN INTEGRAL PART OF OUR FOOD SYSTEM, WITH ALMOST 53% OF ALL HOUSEHOLD FOOD EXPENDITURES IN THE U.S. BEING ATTRIBUTABLE TO IT IN 2021 (USDA ERS 2022). THIS MEANS THAT CONSUMERS SPEND MORE THAN HALF OF THEIR FOOD DOLLARS AT PLACES LIKE CAFETERIAS, HOTELS, AND RESTAURANTS. THIS ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE BECAME PARTICULARLY PERTINENT DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC WHEN, FROM FEBRUARY TO APRIL 2020, FAFH SPENDING FELL 47% AND 5,996,000 PEOPLE LOST THEIR JOBS IN FOOD SERVICES (US BLS, 2022). THE MAGNITUDE OF THE DROP BECOMES EVEN MORE CLEAR WHEN CONSIDERING THE RESULTS BY BECKMAN AND COUNTRYMAN (2021) THAT THE LOSS IN FAFH EXPENDITURES HAD THE BIGGEST IMPACT ON GDP CHANGES ATTRIBUTABLE TO SHOCKS TO AGRICULTURAL MARKETS. WHILE FAFH CONSUMPTION HAS SINCE RECOVERED TO PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS, ONE IMPORTANT TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS SHOCK IS THAT MANY DIMENSIONS OF FAFH ARE NOT YET UNDERSTOOD, WHICH INHIBITS POLICYMAKERS AND PRIVATE STAKEHOLDERS FROM DEVELOPING EVIDENCE-BASED STRATEGIES TO INCREASE RESILIENCE IN THE SECTOR AGAINST NEW CHALLENGES SUCH AS NATURAL DISASTERS AND FOOD PRICE INFLATION.