Fast-Food Breakfast Boom Rides Convenience Wave

The boom in fast-food breakfasting – up 4.8 percent from 2007 to 2012 -- has sparked some innovation in the sector, according to industry researchers. The innovation comes in the form of breakfast sandwiches, which are being tested in various forms by Taco Bell (Waffle Taco), Dunkin’ Donuts (Glazed Breakfast Sandwich), Carl’s Jr. (The Aporkalypse) and Sonic, which is rolling out the French Toaster to its 3,500 restaurants. Sandwiches are beating platters of bacon and eggs or pancakes because the watchword these days is convenience. That trend manifests itself in another statistic: breakfast sales growth slowed a little in 2014 to 3.5 percent, because restaurants are selling a lot of late morning snacks, according to Technomic.