Yield and Waste Calculator
Enter the purchase price per unit (per kg, per litre, per item) and the yield percentage - the proportion that remains after trimming, peeling, or cooking. The calculator gives you the true cost per usable unit, which is what you should use for all recipe costing and menu pricing decisions.
Cooking loss (optional)
How to use this tool
- 1Enter the purchase price per kg, per litre, or per item as you see it on the supplier invoice.
- 2Enter the yield percentage - the proportion of the ingredient that is usable after preparation. A potato peeled and trimmed typically yields 80%. A beef sirloin trimmed yields around 75-85% depending on fat cover.
- 3Read the yield-adjusted cost per usable unit. This is the figure you should use in recipe costing.
- 4Use the cooking loss section if an ingredient also loses weight during cooking (meats, fish). Enter the raw yield after trimming, then the cooking yield, to get the final as-served cost.
Formula used
Example
Yield-adjusted cost: 8.50 / 0.70 = 12.14 per usable kg. If you cost a 180g portion at 8.50/kg you are undercosting by 42%. The correct portion cost is 180g x 12.14/1000 = 2.19, not 1.53. This error compounds across every dish served.
Yield-adjusted cost: 1.85/kg. If your recipe calls for 100g broccoli per plate and you cost it at 1.20/kg, you underestimate by 54%. At scale, this small error across hundreds of portions adds up to significant untracked food cost.
Common use cases
- Accurately costing whole proteins (whole chicken, side of salmon, pork shoulder) that require significant butchery
- Comparing the true cost of buying whole versus pre-prepped ingredients after accounting for prep labor
- Calculating the actual cost of fresh vegetables with variable yields across seasons and suppliers
- Building a kitchen yield table for all regularly purchased ingredients to use in recipe costing
- Training junior chefs to understand why the purchase price is not the same as the usable cost
Common mistakes
- Using purchase price instead of yield-adjusted cost in recipe costing - this consistently understates food cost and leads to underpricing.
- Applying a single yield percentage for all suppliers and seasons - yields vary significantly by quality grade, ripeness, and butchery skill. Test and update regularly.
- Ignoring cooking loss for proteins - a chicken breast may yield 90% after trimming but only 75% of the raw weight after cooking. The serving cost is based on the cooked yield.
- Not tracking actual yield in the kitchen - the yield percentage must come from measurement, not assumption.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find the yield percentage for an ingredient?
Weigh the ingredient before preparation. Trim, peel, or cook it using your standard method. Weigh the usable result. Yield % = usable weight / starting weight x 100. Do this for multiple batches and average the results. Yield varies by supplier quality, season, and technique, so measure regularly.
What is a typical yield for common proteins?
Typical yields vary: whole chicken 65-70%, chicken breast (skin on) 85-90%, beef sirloin (trimmed) 75-85%, pork belly 80-85%, whole salmon 50-60%, salmon fillet (skinned) 85-90%, whole lamb leg 55-65%. These are starting points - always test your actual yield with your suppliers and prep methods.
Should I buy whole or pre-portioned to save money?
Compare yield-adjusted cost of whole product plus your butchery labor cost against the pre-portioned supplier price. Whole product is often cheaper per kg but requires skilled labor. If you can accurately measure your labor cost and yield, the comparison becomes straightforward. In high-volume operations, pre-portioned product often wins once labor is included.
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