Most restaurant owners think waste only happens from spoiled food or kitchen mistakes. But there's a hidden cost eating into your margins every single day: shrinkage. This natural weight loss during storage can quietly drain EUR 200-400 monthly from the average restaurant's profits.
What exactly is shrinkage?
Shrinkage describes the natural weight loss of food during storage. This happens through dehydration, evaporation, and other natural processes. The key difference from normal waste? Shrinkage is inevitable - you can reduce it, but never completely prevent it.
💡 Example:
You buy 10 kg of steak for €180. After 3 days in the cooler it weighs 9.6 kg:
- Weight loss: 0.4 kg (4% shrinkage)
- Purchase price: €18/kg
- Actual price after shrinkage: €18 / 0.96 = €18.75/kg
Extra costs from shrinkage: €0.75 per kg
Shrinkage vs. normal waste
You need to distinguish shrinkage from other forms of waste:
- Shrinkage: Natural weight loss, product remains usable
- Trim loss: Unusable parts (bones, peels, fat)
- Spoiled food: Stored too long, wrong temperature
- Kitchen waste: Incorrectly prepped, overcooked
- Plate waste: What guests leave behind
Shrinkage is the only form you must factor into your food cost, because it always happens and the product is still sellable. I've seen this mistake cost restaurants EUR 200-400 per month - they calculate their food costs without accounting for this invisible weight loss.
⚠️ Watch out:
Many entrepreneurs ignore shrinkage in their food cost calculations. This makes their food cost appear lower than it actually is. With products that have high shrinkage, this can make a difference of several percentage points.
Typical shrinkage percentages
Different products lose weight at different rates. Here are common values:
- Meat (beef, pork): 2-5% per week
- Poultry: 1-3% per week
- Fish: 3-6% per week
- Vegetables (carrot, onion): 2-4% per week
- Leafy greens: 5-10% per week
- Cheese (hard): 1-2% per week
- Bread: 3-8% per day
💡 Example calculation:
Restaurant with €8,000 meat purchases per month at 3% shrinkage:
- Shrinkage costs: €8,000 × 0.03 = €240/month
- Per year: €240 × 12 = €2,880
- You need to factor this into your selling prices
Forget to include shrinkage? Then you're missing €2,880 in costs.
How to factor shrinkage into food cost
The formula for shrinkage is similar to trim loss, but for weight loss during storage:
Actual purchase price = Nominal price / (1 - Shrinkage%)
💡 Practical example:
Steak at €22/kg with 4% shrinkage:
- Actual price: €22 / (1 - 0.04) = €22 / 0.96 = €22.92/kg
- Extra costs: €0.92 per kg
- Per 200g portion: €0.18 extra per plate
On 100 steaks per week: €18 extra costs from shrinkage
Reducing shrinkage
You can't prevent shrinkage, but you can limit it:
- Correct temperature: Cooler at 2-4°C, not colder or warmer
- Good packaging: Vacuum or airtight sealed where possible
- FIFO principle: First In, First Out - use oldest products first
- Smaller deliveries: Order more frequently, store less long
- Correct humidity: Especially important for vegetables
With proper storage, you can often cut shrinkage in half, which directly impacts your food cost.
How do you calculate shrinkage in your food cost?
Measure weight loss
Weigh products when they arrive and after a few days of storage. Calculate the difference as a percentage of the original weight. Do this for different products to determine averages.
Calculate the actual purchase price
Use the formula: Actual price = Nominal price / (1 - Shrinkage%). At 3% shrinkage and €20/kg this becomes €20 / 0.97 = €20.62/kg.
Adjust your recipes
Use the actual purchase price in your food cost calculations instead of the nominal price. This gives you a more realistic picture of your food cost per dish.
✨ Pro tip
Weigh your 3 most expensive proteins every Monday morning after weekend storage. Track this for 4 weeks to establish your baseline shrinkage rates.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
Was this article helpful?
Frequently asked questions
Is shrinkage the same as trim loss?
No, shrinkage is weight loss during storage through dehydration. Trim loss is unusable parts like bones and peels that you discard during preparation.
How often should I measure shrinkage percentages?
Measure shrinkage quarterly for your main products. Season and supplier can influence the percentages, so regular checks ensure accuracy.
Does shrinkage affect frozen products differently than fresh?
Yes, frozen products have lower shrinkage through sublimation (ice that evaporates directly). This is usually 50-70% lower than with chilled products, but still needs accounting for.
📚 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.
Manage inventory without spreadsheets
Always know what you have in stock and what it's worth. KitchenNmbrs connects inventory to recipes and purchasing for complete oversight. Start your free trial.
Start free trial →