(Yicai Global) Dec. 18 -- The expansion of China's online food takeout market looks to have slowed for a second year in a row in 2019.

Consumers are expected to have ordered 30.8 percent more food online this year than last, pushing the market's worth to CNY603.5 billion (USD86.2 billion), as home-cooked meals die a death in China, according to leading online takeout platform Meituan Dianping.

That growth is still slower than the previous three years which saw rates of 32.9 percent, 65.7 percent and 55.4 percent respectively, the Beijing-based firm said, citing a report released yesterday by internet data monitoring platform Trustdata.

Online food deliveries have evolved from a sales channel to a new business format, the report said. Some 400 million hungry people bought CNY442 billion (USD63.2 billion) worth of takeouts in the first three quarters. Those aged between 20 and 29 placed 61.5 percent of the orders.

Meituan's takeout business revenue jumped 39.4 percent in the third quarter to CNY15.6 billion (USD2.2 billion) from a year earlier, while income at e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding's food delivery arm Ele.me gained 36 percent to CNY6.8 billion. Both are higher than the industry average.

With the steady growth of the e-commerce sector and improved logistics, food delivery services have evolved to also include supermarket goods, fresh fruits and vegetables as well as flowers and plants.

Orders placed in the first-tier cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen make up 17.7 percent of the total. Orders in 15 new first-tier cities, as defined by the Yicai Global city tier criteria, which includes Chengdu and Hangzhou, make up 25.8 percent, while those in 30 second-tier cities such as Wuxi and Xiamen account for 21.6 percent.