The NPD Group market research company recently released its Fall 2010 ReCount report, an annual examination of commercial restaurant locations throughout the country, and the news according to NPD is that the total number of U.S. restaurants went down 1% in 2010. In the tough economic climate of the last three years, several thousand independent restaurants have gone out of business across the country and the data shows that last year the independent restaurants were once again the segment that was hit the hardest.

The NPD Group is a leading research company that provides data on consumer and retail markets for a wide range of industries to help its clients understand and profit from consumer and retail trends. The much-anticipated annual ReCount report showed that last year was a rough period for the independent restaurant segment that did not have the financial resources to compete with chain restaurants and lost 2% of the marketplace while the chains remained flat and somewhat stable in the same period.

Overall, it was a tough year for all restaurant segments, as the number of total U.S. restaurants dropped by 1 %, equaling a loss of over 5,000 restaurants for the year. In fact, most segments of the restaurant industry lost 1% too. Full-service restaurants, including the casual, middle and fine dining segments, also declined by 1%, accounting for 3,429 of the total number lost. The fast-food and quick-service segment also dropped by 1 percent, representing 2,122 closed restaurants.

The NPG Group also tracks consumer traffic and usage of both commercial and non-commercial foodservice outlets, and data showed that although domestic restaurant traffic in the U.S. was down overall by 1% for the year, there is hope the economy is improving and the recent numbers are much better than the 3% decline in traffic the industry experienced leading into 2009.