How can I keep track of my restaurant inventory?

The right tools to keep track of your restaurant inventory involves point of sale systems, barcode scanners, and electronic records. An average food establishment is estimated to have a third of its budget allocated to food. To make profits from that budget, you want to make the most of the inventory that you’re bringing in. Keeping track of your stock starts with a reliable process, coupled with the right tools.

Where do I start with inventory management?

As with food, proper inventory management starts with a planned-out recipe. The first ingredient to keep track of inventory is to have an accurate baseline data set. Verify your current inventory and perform stock counts if needed. Equipped with this basic information, you can then incorporate tools to enhance your visibility on your stock.

What are the tools I can use for restaurant inventory?

Tracking your stock is a busy process. The good news is that there are tools available to take out some of the manual components. Some examples of technologies to automate the inventory tracking process are:

Point of sale systems

Restaurant managers install point of sale systems, also known as POS systems, at the check-out counter. This is usually where customers use cash or credit cards pay for the product. POS systems link to the actual inventory count, so that it updates the quantity with every purchase recorded.

Barcode scanners

Barcode scanners enable easier tracking of outgoing and incoming stock. These scanners are linked to an inventory management software, that is then part of a larger barcode system. In this system, each product has a specific barcode. Cashiers scan the barcode at checkout counters, which updates changes in actual stock count.

Electronic records

The technologies that make inventory tracking easier almost always link to a software system. These systems keep records for you in the background, as you go through a typical day. Software providers would have options available whenever you need to extract these electronic records for analytic and reporting purposes.

How much food goes to waste?

Inventory tracking in restaurants can help address food waste, a major concern in the industry. In a year, US restaurants are estimated to generate 22 to 33 billion pounds of food waste. This staggering number includes waste generated in the kitchen (pre-consumer) and waste after the food is served (post-consumer). Approximately 4 to 10% of food is wasted even before reaching the customer.

Common causes of pre-consumer food wastes are overproduction, trim waste and mishandling. An example that causes mishandled products is poor storage conditions, particularly perishable goods held at wrong temperatures.

What are other ways to reduce food waste?

As an added challenge to managing inventory, restaurants deal with products that require meticulous storage conditions. Aside from streamlining the ordering process when bringing in new stock, it is also important to make sure that current stock is stored properly. It helps to invest in making sure that storage facilities and food handling equipment are maintained regularly.

Sudden breakdowns in refrigeration equipment, for example, can cause serious impacts to food products that need to be kept at freezing temperatures. This not only causes increased wastes, but also endangers the safety of food products.