Yields - FAQs

Overview:

Yields will adjust an ingredient's theoretical cost and usage based on the ingredient's Yield. Yield is an ingredient's usable amount (usable meaning not lost to preparation or cooking).

For example, we buy tomatoes by the pound and we use them in recipes by the weighted ounce (WZ). We start with 10 pounds of tomatoes and preparing them results in 9 pounds of usable tomatoes. The yield for tomatoes is therefore 90% (9 lbs of usable tomatoes divided by 10 lbs of raw tomatoes).

Yield is an optional feature in COGS-Well. Yields will only show up on the recipe ingredient entry displays If you enable Yields in your Company Settings on the Recipes tab. Also, there is an alternative method to address yields that we discuss below.

If you are looking for a resource to help calculate yields then this online document from the USDA on yields may be helpful. This link to an online chart from US Foods also provides yields for common ingredients.

Viewing or Editing Yields via Recipe Item Setup:

A Yield % column will display on the Ingredients tab for a Recipe Item if Yield is enabled in your company settings. The default in Company Settings is to enable yields so if you do not wish to use this column, you should disable yields in your Company Settings.

An Ingredient's yield can be entered in the Yield % column. Please note that the Yield field for each ingredient will default to a 100% Yield and this is indicated by a blank field. So the Yield % for every ingredient other than tomato is 100% in the above example.

Please note that the unit and total cost for "Tomato Large (Loose)" in the above example are increased by 10% over its raw cost due to the 90% yield. Each time the California Burger is sold, the theoretical usage for this tomato will increase by 10% over the recipe unit quantity used in the recipe as well.

Viewing or Editing Yields via Ingredient Setup:

Yields can also be entered at the ingredient level using the setup feature for that ingredient. There is a Recipe Items Tab on the Item Setup display for any Inventory, Recipe, or Combined item that is used as an ingredient in at least one Recipe Item. Please see the example below:

In the above example, we have navigated to the Inventory>Setup>Inventory Items feature and we have selected "Pld Skirt Steak" as the inventory item. We then clicked on the Recipe Items tab. This display shows us every recipe item that PD Skirt Steak is used in. The setup feature provides an alternative way to adjust yield percentages, this time by ingredient versus by recipe item.

Please note that if you use the above method for entering yields, you will need to create your recipe items first, then go back and enter the yields.

Alternative Ways to Address Yields:

As mentioned initially, the use of the Yield function is optional in COGS-Well. Below are other methods to address Yields:

Option #1 - Create Prepared Item Recipes:

Some users address Inventory Item yield by creating a Recipe Item for an ingredient that has a consistent yield (we refer to this method as creating a "Prepared Item Recipe"). After the Prepared Item is created, it is used as the ingredient in other Recipe Items.

For example, we can create a Prepared Item for the Large Tomatoes (Loose) that we used in the California Burger example above. As a reminder, these tomatoes have a 90% yield. To get started, we want to define the batch size and the recipe unit configuration for these tomatoes based on their yielded quantities. Please see the example below:

In the example above we gave the tomatoes a batch size of 9 pounds (the usable quantity after preparation) and we configured the Recipe Units per batch as 144 WZs (9 lbs X 16 WZ per lb.).

The next step is to configure the ingredient quantity used to reflect the raw quantity of tomatoes required to yield a 9-pound batch (in our example 10 pounds of tomatoes is the starting quantity). Please see the example below:

In the example above, by creating a recipe that uses 10 pounds of tomatoes for a Prepared Item that has a Batch Size defined as 9 Pounds and Recipe Units configured for 9 Pounds, we have created a 90% yield for these tomatoes.

Please also note that by creating a prepared item recipe for tomatoes - Prepared, we can also flag this recipe item to be counted so we can enter inventory counts for these tomatoes.

Prepared Item Recipe Used for Portioned Items: If you are cutting or portioning items like steaks, then consider creating a prepared item recipe for the portioned item and factor the yield into the prep item's ingredient.

For example, if it requires on average 11 ounces of Sirloin Butt to yield an 8-ounce finished Sirloin portion, then create a prep recipe item for the "Sirloin - 8 Wz", use Sirloin Butt as the ingredient, and make the quantity used in the recipe be 11 Wz. Then use the Sirloin - 8 Wz in your Recipe Items that are sold with the Sirloin - 8 Wz. You can also flag the prep item for Sirloin - 8 Wz to be counted in inventory.

Option #2 - Adjust the Recipe Units per Pack for the Inventory Item:

Some users adjust the Number of Recipe Units per Pack to reflect Yield. If we stay with the Tomato Large (Loose) Inventory Item, then In the example below the normal number of Recipe Units per Pack would be 160 (10 pounds in a pack times 16 WZ per pound). However, if we modify the 160 Recipe Units per Pack to 144, then we have adjusted for Yield. Please see the example below:

Summary:

Yields can be challenging to manage because yields on certain ingredients like produce can change from delivery to delivery, season to season, or vendor to vendor. An ingredient may also have a different yield when used as an ingredient for one recipe item, versus another.

Yields are important, however, if you want the most accurate theoretical cost for your Recipe Items or theoretical usage for your ingredients. Please click this link to Theoretical Cost and Usage - FAQs for more information.

We recommend that you spend the most time determining yields for ingredients that are the most impactful to your business due to high cost and/or high usage.

We also usually prefer the Prepared Item Recipe approach to managing yields because: 1) it provides the option to count the ingredient if you prepare it in quantity, and 2) you can manage changes to the yield in one place.