Managing Inventory Control and Procurement
Read this chapter. It uses the food service industry as a case study because of the different types of raw material inventory food establishments need to consider. As you read the section on Three Ways to Increase Your Value, can you recommend a fourth or even a fifth to help these businesses?
BASIC INVENTORY PROCEDURES
Production Control Chart
To calculate the quantities of food items to be ordered for any size banquet, a portion control chart must be consulted first. Most establishments will have a portion control chart similar to the one shown in Table 10.8. The chart indicates the portions to be used per person for any given menu item.
| Food Item | Menu Item | Portion Size |
|---|---|---|
| Shrimp | Shrimp cocktail | 80 g (2.82 oz.) |
| Lemon | Shrimp cocktail | 1 wedge (6/lemon) |
| Cocktail sauce | Shrimp cocktail | 60 mL (2.11 oz.) |
| Head lettuce | Tossed salad | 1/4 head |
| Tomato | Tossed salad | 1/2 each |
| Dressing | Tossed salad | 60 mL (2.11 oz.) |
| Prime rib, raw, trimmed ready | Prime rib | 500 g (17.6 oz.) |
| Potato | Baked potato | 1 each (100 count) |
| Green beans | Green beans | 80 g (2.82 oz.) |
| Carrots | Carrots | 80 g (2.82 oz.) |
| Strawberries | Fresh strawberries | 100 g (3.52 oz.) |
| Whipping cream | Berries and cream | 60 mL (2.11 oz.) |
| Coffee | Coffee | 500 g (17.6 oz.) for 75 people |
| Coffee creamCoffee60 mL (2.11 oz.) |
Table 10.8 Portion Control Chart. The table displays a food item, a menu item containing that food, and the portion size of the food item.
One use for a portion control chart is to estimate the quantity of major ingredients and supplies needed to produce a predicted number of menu servings.
Example
You need to prepare shrimp cocktails and prime rib for a 100-person banquet. Using the portion control chart in Figure 5, you can quickly determine what amounts of major ingredients (Figure 6).
| Required Servings | Amount to Order |
|---|---|
| 100 x 80 g shrimp | 8000 g or 8 kg (17.6 lbs.) shrimp |
| 100 x 1 wedge of lemon | 100 wedges = 17 lemons (6 wedges per lemon) |
| 100 x 1/4 head of lettuce | 25 heads lettuce |
| 100 x 500 g prime rib raw oven ready | 50 kg (110 lbs.) prime rib |
Table 10.9 Calculating Purchase Amounts. The table displays how one would calculate the cost of shrimp cocktails for a one hundred person banquet.