Waste costs money. Every Monday you want to know if you're throwing away more or less than last week. A 2% increase might seem small, but it can cost you thousands of euros per year.
Why check waste costs every week?
Waste doesn't appear suddenly. It creeps in. A bit more spillage here, some overproduction there. Before you know it, you're throwing away 15% of your purchases instead of 10%.
💡 Example:
Restaurant with €8,000 weekly purchases:
- Week 1: €800 waste (10%)
- Week 2: €960 waste (12%)
Difference: €160 per week = €8,320 per year
What counts as waste?
Not just what goes in the trash. Also:
- Overproduction: Too much soup made that you throw away
- Spoilage: Vegetables that go bad
- Returns: Dishes that come back from the dining room
- Mise en place: Sauces and garnishes that are left over
- Trim loss: More than normal due to poor quality
Making the week comparison
Always compare the same weeks. Week 2 of this year with week 2 last year. Or this week with last week, but then pay attention to seasons and special days.
⚠️ Watch out:
Never compare a regular week with a holiday week. Your waste percentage will seem artificially low or high.
Calculating waste percentage
The formula is simple:
Waste percentage = (Waste costs / Total purchases) × 100
💡 Example calculation:
This week:
- Total purchases: €6,500
- Waste: €780
- Percentage: (€780 / €6,500) × 100 = 12%
Last week:
- Total purchases: €6,200
- Waste: €620
- Percentage: (€620 / €6,200) × 100 = 10%
Increase: 2 percentage points
Signals to watch for
Certain patterns point to specific problems - a pattern we see repeatedly in restaurant financials:
- Increase on Monday: Weekend overproduction
- Lots of vegetable waste: Purchases too early or too much
- Meat/fish waste: Portion size or supplier quality
- Bread/side dishes: Mise en place too generous
Benchmarks and targets
Common waste percentages by type of establishment:
- Fine dining: 8-12% (more fresh products)
- Bistro/brasserie: 6-10%
- Casual dining: 5-8%
- Fast casual: 3-6% (fewer fresh products)
💡 Example impact:
Bistro with €400,000 annual revenue and 30% food cost:
- Annual purchases: €120,000
- At 8% waste: €9,600/year
- At 12% waste: €14,400/year
Difference: €4,800 per year
Taking action when waste increases
If your waste percentage rises, check these points in order:
- Supplier quality: Have products gotten worse?
- Portion size: Is the kitchen giving too generous portions?
- Purchase timing: Are you buying too early for the weekend?
- Storage conditions: Are cooling and freezing stable?
- FIFO rotation: Is rotation being done properly?
How do you calculate weekly waste costs? (step by step)
Add up all waste
Note every day what you throw away: spoilage, overproduction, returns, mise en place leftovers. Estimate the purchase value, not the menu price. A steak that comes back costs you €8 in purchases, not €32 menu price.
Calculate your total weekly purchases
Add up all supplier invoices from that week. Pay attention: count by the week you received it, not when you ordered it. If you receive fish on Tuesday that you ordered Monday, count it in the week of Tuesday.
Calculate the percentage and compare
Divide waste costs by total purchases and multiply by 100. Compare with last week and the same time last year. An increase of more than 1 percentage point deserves attention.
✨ Pro tip
Track waste costs every Monday at 10 AM for 8 consecutive weeks to establish your baseline pattern. This creates reliable data and helps you spot trends before they cost you thousands.
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 count trim loss as waste?
Only abnormal trim loss. If salmon normally has 45% loss but this week it's 55%, then count that extra 10%. Normal trim loss is part of the product.
How do I count overproduction that I use the next day?
Don't count as waste. But do count if you throw it away after 2 days or the quality deteriorates. Soup from Monday that you throw away Wednesday is waste.
What if my waste percentage is different every week?
That's normal. Look at the average of 4 weeks. Large fluctuations (5% to 15%) point to structural problems in purchasing or kitchen processes.
Should I count coffee grounds and tea leaves?
No, that's usage waste, not spillage. Do count: milk that goes sour, rolls that get hard, fruit that rots. Anything you could have sold.
📚 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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