Richard AgamaFood costs are a big-ticket item in a business budget. Proper management is do-or-die for modern restaurants and foodservice eateries, especially in current circumstances. Consider everything that controlling food costs entails—buying food, storing food, changing ingredients up with specific recipes, and selling menu items to customers. How can you maintain quality standards, ensure maximum profitability, and streamline your expenses?
Never fear—we’ve compiled a list of tactics to help you stay competitive and bring in a healthier profit. Explore these tips to reduce your food business expenses.
Be Consistent With Inventory Calculations
Do you know exactly where your food is going? Businesses surely require a certain inventory quantity to operate functionally, but many tend to overbuy or stockpile. Take the time to regularly evaluate your inventory levels and determine the average amount you will actually use before the next delivery. Remember, your usage rate also ties into menu item costs along your profit line.
Seize Food Supply Opportunities
Consider how you can maximize opportunities from local suppliers or supplier partnerships. You can go straight to the source for fresh products—without dealing with middlemen vendors. Seasonal foods are another prime opportunity to take to keep your costs in check. These items are less expensive due to their plentitude during their harvesting season.
Don’t forget about the importance of bulk purchasing to cut operating expenses. Seeking out fresh quotes or competitive agreements is another of the top tips to reduce your food business expenses. If you can’t work out a solid deal with your supplier, joining a group purchasing organization is another way to buy in bulk.
Tighten Processes To Reduce Waste
Food waste does nothing to help the burden of operational costs. Ensure you use and sell as much food as you can without a loss of expenditure. Test out your control methods and processes to check for any weak links. How can you do better in purchasing, receiving, handling, production, service, or sales? For example, the First In, First Out (FIFO) method is one clear-cut strategy to prevent instances of waste.
Do the Math for Your Menu Items
You may need to make menu changes and tweak underperforming items that take up a portion of your food costs. Determining correct menu pricing is one of the main steps to kickstart a food business, but actively reviewing your menu items is key for profit. Choose to capitalize on what’s available, revamp dishes, or update items that could become top sellers.
Careful consideration of all costs involved in bringing a specific item to the table is tedious but well worth it. Reducing food costs and controlling your expenses is possible with a bit of strategy and creativity.
