Can food waste make or break your restaurant business? It most certainly can. When you throw away food, you’re effectively throwing away money which can severely impact your bottom line. What you need is an efficient way to prevent food spoilage from happening in your restaurant by taking control of your inventory. Here are some simple steps you can take to reduce your food waste and manage your inventory for increased profit margins.

Get the Most Out of Ingredients

If you have any ingredients that are being only used in one dish, you’re likely to end up with problems. For one, it’s hard to predict how much of this item you will need every week, and it’s also likely that this item will spoil if the dish isn’t popular. You should always aim to get the most out of every ingredient you have by spreading them over a number of dishes that can be easily tracked. And, if you do end up with an extra case of tomatoes one week, figure out how you can add a special item on the menu to use up items before they go off.

Hire a Good Manager

Your budget can suffer if you have unproductive team members who don’t understand how to order, track, and stock inventory properly. Make sure to hire a trustworthy and experienced inventory manager who can improve your profitability and manage your inventory software.

Improve Shelf Life

Food items that are exposed to air, light, and moisture can spoil much faster than items that are appropriately stocked. You can improve the overall shelf life of your ingredients by ensuring they are kept in controlled storage conditions, and by using containers that have air-tight seals.  Just don’t forget to label everything, so you know which food items need to be used up first before they go off.

Inspect Every Order

It’s not uncommon for vendors to make a mistake from time to time. They may forget a few items in your order or deliver spoiled or wilted items. But if those little mishaps start to happen more frequently, it can cost you a significant amount of money if it goes unnoticed. This is why it’s important to inspect each incoming order and to be prepared to send food back if something isn’t up to your standards.

Implement Accurate Inventory Tracking

Without an inventory management software system, it can be challenging to prevent food spoilage from occurring in your restaurant. And when your restaurant throws a significant amount of food away each day, it can heavily impact your profit margins. You need an easy way to track the trends of each one of your ingredients to prevent waste. By implementing an inventory tracking system, you can order the proper amounts each and every time, so you never have to throw away your hard earned money into the garbage.

Don’t wait for your inventory problems to become money troubles. With Optimum Control Inventory Management, you can gain back control over your inventory to prevent food spoilage and to obtain a healthy profit margin. To find out how you can get started, contact us today!