Module VII- Food Production and Distribution

CRD 3.5 Coordinate procurement, production, distribution, and service of goods and services
CRD 4.7 Propose and use procedures as appropriate to the practice setting to reduce waste
and protect the environment

1. Rotate through all food production stations at the facility.

Work Leader- helped prepare entrees for dinner. Used tilt skillets to prepare pepper beef and an orzo side
item. Discussed his job, how he knows what to make, how he obtains goods from dry storage, coolers and
freezers. How he knows how much to make and how he gets it to the front line for service to customers.
Please see module VIII for additional information on time spent with cook work leader.
Patient Tray Worker- Please see module VIII for description of time spent with PTS.
Cook Supervisor- Please see module VIII for description of time spent with cook supervisor.
Salad Bar-Watched salad bar worker prepare items for her shift. Observed her take precautions to prevent
food spoilage including FIFO principles, and labeling and dating items to be stored in cooler. Took
temperatures of salad bar items before the start of lunch shift and had to make adjustments to foods that
were not at the correct temperature including pasta and pistachio salads.
Cook Forman- Observed as Cook Forman prepared a recipe for a taste testing. He began by printing the recipe
and measuring all ingredients using weight measurements. He then prepared the food according to the recipe
specifications to present to other cooks and management for tasting purposes. Please see module I for
additional time spent with Cook Forman.

2. Participate in the production of specialized nutrition products such as modified diets,

specialized food products, enteral and supplemental nutrition products, where possible.
-On the patient tray line I helped make broth for clear liquid trays. I observed on several occasions, patient
tray workers transforming regular meals into mechanical soft, chopped.
-Observed the preparation of a blenderized diet for a wired-jaw patient who was a DFAC meal card holder and
thus was able to get all of his daily meals prepared to-go.
A blenderized diet for inpatients and outpatients at WAMC will provide recommended servings of all
food groups. Some of the food items provided include: yogurt, ice cream, thinned puddings or
custards, cream of wheat or rice, thinned and pureed grits and oatmeal, mashed potatoes, fruit and
vegetable juice, fruit and vegetable purees or soups, thinned and pureed meat and cheese products,
and nutritional supplements like Ensure or Carnation Instant Breakfast.
-Made water and soup with bene-protein for a patient who had undergone bariatric surgery several months
ago and was now in the hospital due to dehydration and malnutrition.

3. Participate in ingredient control. Perform a yield analysis of a main menu or bakery item.1
Because food items are perishable, food service operations purchase food, beverages and other items on a
day-to-day basis. Buying the right amount, at the right time, reduces the amount of cash tied up in inventory,
prevents waste and spoilage, and saves space in dry storage and cooling units.
One way food service organizations know how much product to order, and when to order that product, is
through the use of menus and standard recipes. WAMC uses a 3 week cyclic menu. For each meal, standard

recipes are used by employees to ensure that their preparations of entres, side items, desserts, etc. are
precise. A standard recipe is a formula used to produce a food item the same way, in both quality and
quantity every time. Standard recipes should list the amounts required of ingredients after the peel, core, fat
or other inedible portion is removed. If a recipe is prepared using the same preparation method, and the
same quality and quantity of food, a standard yield can be expected. A standard yield can be expressed as a
quantity (3 gallons) or by the number of portions it produces (48-8 oz. bowls).
In order to determine how much a recipe costs to produce, and how much profit it should generate, a yield
analysis should be done first on all individual ingredients. Though time consuming, a yield analysis will tell you
how many edible portions an ingredient or whole food item will produce and how much those portions will
cost. In order to perform a yield analysis you will need to obtain the As Purchased Cost, the As Purchased
Weight, and the Standard Portion Size or required recipe amount (in ounces). The standard recipe and
purchasing documents will supply this information.
The following is a yield analysis or yield test for a WAMC food item:

Yield Test Standard Portion Cost Form

Product:Chicken Breast, Single Lobe 6 oz Boneless, skinless

Menu Listing: Chicken with Coucous Stuffing_

Standard Portion Size in Ounces:_6 0unces_____

As Purchased Cost:__$4.11___
As Purchased Weight in lbs:__1.5____
As Purchased Cost/lb:___$2.74___
Product Use

Weight/lbs.

Yield %

Total Weight

1.5 lbs

100%

Trim Loss

Edible Product

1.5 lbs

1.5 lbs

# of
Portions

Edible
Cost/lb.

Edible
Cost Factor
Cost/Portion per lb.

Cost Factor
per portion

$2.74

$1.03

.375

1.0

Edible Yield % = [(Edible Weight / As Purchased Weight) X 100]

Number of Portions= Total Ounces of Edible Weight (oz.) / Portion Size
Edible Cost per Pound = As Purchased Cost / Edible Weight
Edible Cost per Portion = As Purchased Cost / Number of Portions
Cost Factor per Pound= (Edible Cost per Pound / As Purchased Cost per Pound) X 100
Cost Factor per Portion = (Edible Cost per Portion / As Purchased Cost per Pound) X 100
As Purchased Costs fluctuate on a regular basis, due to supply and demand, product popularity and seasonal
changes, etc. Therefore it is not efficient or reasonable to prepare a yield test on a case of green beans every

time the As Purchased Cost fluctuates. By understanding the relationship between the Edible Cost and the
As Purchased Cost originally paid, you should be able to recalculate the new Edible Cost, without performing
a new yield test whenever the As Purchased Cost changes. For example:
Cost Factor per Pound X New as Purchased Cost per Pound = New Edible Cost per Pound
Cost Factor per Portion X New as Purchased Cost per Pound = New Edible Cost per Portion
Where the Yield Test determines the costs prior to the cooking process, a Cooking Loss Test can be used to
determine the cost and number of portions for products that need to be cooked before portioning and
serving. This is most often used for roasts and poultry where cooking losses affect the amount of available
product to be served. The steps in preparing the Cooking Loss Test are very similar to those applied in
preparing the Yield Test.
The following is an example a Cooking Loss standard portion cost form: Hypothetical as cooks are not able to
do this exercise.
Product:___Chicken Breast_____

Menu Listing:__Chicken with Coucous Stuffing_

Standard Portion Size in Ounces:___6 ounces_____

As Purchased Cost:____$32.25_____
As Purchased Weight in lbs___8 ounces___
As Purchased Cost/lb__
$4.03________
Product Use

Weight in Yield %
lbs.

Total Weight

8.0

100

Trim Loss

3.0

37.5

Pre-Cooked Weight

5.0

62.5

Loss in Cooking

1.25

15.6

Trim After Cooking

.25

3.1

Edible Product

3.5

43.8

Number
Portions

Edible
Cost/lb.

Edible Cost
/Portion

Cost
Factor/lb

Cost Factor
per Portion

$9.21

$3.58

$2.285

.888

A chef or food service manager may perform several tests on the same product, cooking it for different times
and temperatures to most effectively evaluate the product yield.
Edible Yield % = The percent of product that is servable. After the meat has been boned, trimmed, and cooked
the amount of servable product in pounds left divided by the As Purchased Weight will give the Edible Yield
Percentage.
Cost Factor per lb. = (Edible Cost per Pound / As Purchased Cost per Pound) X 100
New Edible Cost per Pound = Cost Factor per Pound x New as Purchased Cost per Pound

Now if you have a recipe that calls for beef, peppers and onions you will know how to calculate the cooking
loss for the beef and the edible portion for the green peppers and onions. A standard recipe cost card for
pepper steak will be:

Standard Recipe Cost Card

Recipe Name:__Chicken with Couscous Stuffing___________________
Standard Portion:__6oz______ Portion Control Tool:_____#6 scoop___ Standard Yield:__4_______
Recipe

As Purchased

Quantity Unit

EY %

Quantity Unit

TBS

100

1.00

TBS

Oz

100

2.00

1/2

Tsp

100

1/2

Tsp

Invoice
Ingredient

Recipe

Individual
Ingredient Cost

Cost

Unit

Cost

Unit

Base, Chicken

29.97

6 lb

0.16

TBS

0.16

Oz

Couscous

21.55

15 lb

0.09

Oz

0.18

0.50

Tsp

Salt, Iodized

2.32

26 oz

0.00

Tsp

0.01

100

0.50

Tsp

Black pepper

12.87

18 oz

0.06

Tsp

0.03

TBS

80

4.00

TBS

Roma Tomato

21.20

10 lb

0.06

TBS

0.24

TBS

92

2.50

TBS

Can sliced olive

5.41

#10

0.03

TBS

0.05

Oz

100

0.25

Oz

Feta cheese

3.01

lb

0.19

Oz

0.05

TBS

100

2.00

TBS

Olive oil

16.11

gal

0.06

TBS

0.12

TBS

100

2.00

TBS

Parsley

11.29

10 oz

0.04

TBS

0.07

TBS

100

0.50

TBS

Garlic

7.05

32 oz

0.06

TBS

0.03

1.5

lb

100

1.50

lb

Chic breast 6 oz

48.58

48/6 oz

2.70

lb

4.05

Oz

100

1.00

Oz

Cooking spray

3.43

17 oz

0.20

Oz

0.20

Total Ingredient Cost:

5.19

Portion Cost:

1.30

Additional Cost:
Total Plate Cost:

1.30

Surcharge X1.2X1.33

0.77

Actual Selling Price:

2.07

Actual Cost %:

62.8%

WAMCs dining facility is a non-profit business. However in order not to lose money they have to account for
labor, equipment, facility maintenance, and utilities, etc. To do this they charge a surcharge by multiplying
their total plate cost by 1.2 and 1.33.

4. Participate in production scheduling, supervision of equipment use, and evaluation of

food quality.
Made food production workers schedule after instruction by the Cook Forman.
For evaluation of food quality, please see Question #7 below.
Supervised use of tilt skillets by work leaders and cook supervisors. Observed use of steam jacketed kettles,
combi ovens, warmers and blast chillers by work leaders. Observed use of pot and pan machine, 3
compartment sinks, and dishwasher.

5. Participate in centralized/decentralized food service systems, patient tray assembly,

employee cafeteria service, dining room service, catering where available.
I participated in preparing for the annual Thanksgiving meal at the Womack DFAC. One day I ironed 40+ linen
tablecloths that would be used to decorate the dining room! I also assisted in preparing Thanksgiving baskets
for patients. We made 2 versions of the gift baskets, one was for diet restricted patients and the other version
was liberalized for those on regular meals. In the baskets were hot chocolate mixes, hot teas, fruit, nuts, trail
mix, muffins, candy (for regular baskets only) and sparkling water. The baskets were wrapped in colorful
cellophane and ribbons with a card from the Nutrition Care Division. On Thanksgiving Day, several Army
employees of the NCD came in their dress blues and delivered the baskets along with the Chief of the hospital
and his NCOIC. After baskets were delivered, the formally dressed employees of the NCD and the hospital
Chief served meals and greeted guests in the dining room. Everyone was jumping in to assist where needed to
make it a special meal for patients, visitors and employees.

6. Participate in patient tray delivery

I participated in the lunch patient meal delivery on December 3. After the meal carts got up to their
designated wards, I used a food thermometer to determine if the food was at the correct temperature. The
first temperature I took was of a chicken cordon bleu entre item, on a plate warmer, covered with a lid. This
item registered at 150 degrees Fahrenheit. The second temperature I took was a chicken cordon bleu entre
that was in a Styrofoam box delivered to the psychiatric ward. The temperature measured 145 degree
Fahrenheit for that entre item. Both entrees made it to their designated wards at a desired temperature.
Patient tray worker knew the patient identifiers and used them in each room.

7. Evaluate and critique the food distribution systems you have observed. Design a
patient/client satisfaction questionnaire and perform an objective quality control study
using control criteria such as food temperature.
This questionnaire was used to evaluate a food item that would be served on the Christmas menu for the first
time. In developing this recipe, the Chief of Production and Service wanted the cook supervisors, cook Forman
and other management to try the new entre and evaluate it for quality. The surveys were kept simple and
asked about appearance, taste, portion size, perceived value, and difficulty of preparation. This questionnaire

is an example of an affective sensory test because the product will be evaluated by a panel with no special
sensory training. It will try to determine if the product will be accepted by the dining facility clientele and if
opinions are favorable or unfavorable. The following is a copy of the survey questions and the responses:

Chicken and Couscous Entre Evaluation

FOOD

Excellent

Very Good

Good

Fair

Poor

1. How does the food look?

2. How does the food taste?

3. Is it enough food per serving?

4. Do you think this food is a good

value?

Very
Difficult

A little
Difficult

Neither

A Little
Easy

Very Easy

PREPARATION
5. Was this product difficult to make?

Well designed and analyzed sensory tests can be used to assist the foodservice manager in presenting food
items to the customer that are more likely to succeed.

References for Module VII1. McVety PJ, Marshall SD, Ware BJ. The Menu and the Cycle of Cost Control. Kendall Hunt Publishing; 2009:89109.