Over 70% of restaurant owners underestimate their true food costs by ignoring packaging expenses. Boxes, sauce containers and cutlery might seem insignificant, but they can add 8-20% to your total cost price. Here's how to calculate the complete cost of every takeaway dish.
Why include packaging costs?
Most restaurant owners focus solely on ingredient costs and overlook packaging expenses. Sure, a cardboard box costs just 30 cents. But serve 100 orders daily? That's €3,000 annually on boxes alone.
⚠️ Heads up:
Packaging costs typically represent 8-15% of your total cost price. Delivery orders can push this to 20% due to extra protection and multiple containers.
All packaging costs listed
Every complete takeaway order requires multiple packaging elements:
- Primary container: Cardboard box, plastic container or aluminum tray
- Sauce containers: Small cups for dressings, mayo, ketchup
- Cutlery set: Plastic or wooden fork, knife, spoon
- Napkin: Paper napkin or wet wipe
- Carrier bag: Plastic or paper bag (usually shared between items)
- Sealing materials: Stickers or labels for closure and allergen info
💡 Example packaging breakdown:
Carbonara pasta takeaway:
- Cardboard box: €0.35
- Plastic fork: €0.08
- Parmesan sauce container: €0.12
- Napkin: €0.03
- Sealing sticker: €0.02
Total packaging costs: €0.60
Calculation per dish
Your complete cost formula becomes straightforward:
Total cost price = Ingredient costs + Packaging costs
And your food cost percentage:
Food cost % = (Total cost price / Selling price excl. VAT) × 100
💡 Complete example:
Chicken salad takeaway - menu price €14.50 incl. 9% VAT:
- Ingredients: €4.20
- Packaging costs: €0.55
- Total cost price: €4.75
- Selling price excl. VAT: €13.30
Food cost: (€4.75 / €13.30) × 100 = 35.7%
Dividing carrier bag costs
Carrier bags cost €0.15-0.25 each but typically hold 2-3 items. Split these costs proportionally across all items:
- €0.20 carrier bag ÷ 2 dishes = €0.10 per dish
- €0.20 carrier bag ÷ 3 dishes = €0.07 per dish
Impact on your margin
Ignoring packaging costs directly erodes your profitability. And this is a pattern we see repeatedly in restaurant financials - owners think they're hitting 30% food costs but they're actually at 38%.
💡 Impact example:
100 takeaway orders daily, average €0.60 packaging costs:
- Daily loss: €60 unaccounted costs
- Monthly loss: €1,800 unaccounted costs
- Annual loss: €21,600 unaccounted costs
These hidden costs vanish from your profit if you don't price them in.
Digital registration
Tracking packaging costs manually for every dish becomes time-consuming quickly. Digital tools like KitchenNmbrs streamline this process by:
- Recording packaging costs per individual dish
- Automatically calculating complete cost prices
- Displaying real-time food costs including all packaging
You'll know exactly which dishes stay profitable for takeaway and delivery services.
How do you calculate the total cost price including packaging?
List all packaging materials
Make a list of everything you need: box/container, sauce containers, cutlery, napkin, carrier bag and stickers. Note the purchase price per unit of each item.
Calculate costs per dish
Add up all packaging costs. Divide shared costs like carrier bags by the number of items that go in it. This gives you total packaging costs per dish.
Add to ingredient costs
Total cost price = ingredient costs + packaging costs. Calculate your new food cost percentage: (total cost price / selling price excl. VAT) × 100.
✨ Pro tip
Calculate packaging costs for your top 3 takeaway dishes within the next 48 hours. These likely represent 60% of your takeaway revenue, so getting their true costs right protects most of your profit margin.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
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Frequently asked questions
Should I include VAT in packaging costs?
No, calculate packaging costs excluding VAT, just like ingredients. You can offset the VAT paid to packaging suppliers against your tax obligations.
How often should I update packaging prices?
Review packaging prices quarterly. Material costs for cardboard and plastic fluctuate significantly due to raw material price changes. Regular updates prevent cost creep from eroding your margins.
What if I use different boxes for different dishes?
Calculate packaging costs individually for each dish type. A salad requires different containers than pizza or soup. Record this information per recipe to maintain accuracy across your menu.
What is a normal packaging cost percentage?
For standard takeaway orders, 8-12% of total cost price is typical. Delivery orders often reach 15-20% due to additional protective packaging and multiple container requirements.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
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