1. Did you get what you paid for?
The first and most obvious tip is to check that you get everything you paid for. Often this is as simple as doing a quick count and checking items off against the delivery note or invoice.
While this seems obvious, take a look at your practices and you will be amazed at how often stock is received without checking it’s all there. Paying for stock you didn’t receive directly impacts your food margin.
2. Do a Quality Check
Make sure the stock you receive meets your expectations. Quality assessment can be made by visually inspection, feeling, smelling and/or tasting ingredients. Inspecting packaging for damages and checking “use-by” dates also ensure you get what you pay for.
Stock that is poor quality will impact the quality of the end product you present to your customer. Poor quality goods may also spoil faster, generating waste and eroding your profitability.
3. Reject Goods that don’t Measure-up
Rejecting stock that doesn’t measure-up communicates your quality expectations to your suppliers, setting the base-line for future transactions.
4. Minimize the time goods spend on the Loading Dock
Ensuring stock is put away promptly increases the life of perishables and reduces the likelihood of theft.
5. Did you get everything you ordered?
Often you need to know ASAP if an ingredient that was ordered didn’t arrive so that you can make alternative arrangements.
Paul Clarke (@foodmargin)
