Touro Infirmary Case Touro Infirmary is a medium-sized teaching hospital located in New Orleans.

The department of dietetics must meet the varying needs for the feeding of patients, staff, and visitors of the facility. The nutritional requirements of the patients are diverse, necessitating a complex menu structure. Diet options include sodium-restricted, bland, calorie restricted, and numerous other regimes. The bed capacity for the institution is 500, indicating a maximum of approximately 1,500 meals daily. Since Touro has a large number of Jewish patients, a unique demand is the frequent serving of kosher food. Kosher food must be prepared and served in accordance with strict religious rules. For example, the food must be blessed by a rabbi and prepared with equipment that is used exclusively for kosher products. Additionally, there are restrictions placed on the food combinations that can be offered in a kosher meal and certain types of meats and fishes may not be served. Approximately 1,825 kosher meals are served to Touro patients over a one-year period. Because the hospital cannot prepare these meals in its kitchens, all kosher meals are ordered from Schreiber Foods in New York and are shipped by air mail. The cost per dinner is $3.50. If more than 150 dinners are ordered at once, the price is reduced to $3.25 per dinner. The order is placed by telephone and shipment can be expected to be received in three working days. The cost of placing an order is $10. It is estimated that carrying costs are 25 percent of the meal cost; the many additional requirements of religious laws, including special silverware, are part of the reason for this high cost. A problem arises when a patient orders a kosher meal and the hospital has run out of stock. An alternative source is available in New Orleans, but at a premium of $10. Another unusual problem is storage. A separate freezer must be used to store the kosher food. The present freezer has a capacity of 75 dinners. Patton Industries offers a commercial freezer that has a capacity of 225 dinners. The cost of the freezer is $1,800 and it has a useful life of ten years. The head of the dietary department, Mrs. Kathy Fedorko, has requested an inventory analysis to determine a method for inventory control that will minimize costs