{
    "name": "Kitchen Food Waste Calculator",
    "url": "https://calculators.geekmidst.com/calculators/kitchen-food-waste-calculator",
    "markdown": "https://calculators.geekmidst.com/calculators/kitchen-food-waste-calculator.md",
    "category": "Food & hospitality",
    "description": "Turn a kitchen waste audit into waste as a percentage of food used, its cost, and grams and cost of waste per cover served.",
    "summary": "Weigh what goes in the bin over a period, compare it with the food bought or used, and put a price on it. Grams per cover lets you compare weeks with different trade.",
    "also_called": [
        "Restaurant food waste calculator",
        "Food waste audit calculator"
    ],
    "applies_to": "Worldwide",
    "last_updated": "2026-10-29",
    "computation": "Results are computed in the visitor’s browser on the HTML page. This API describes the calculator; it does not compute results.",
    "inputs": [
        {
            "name": "food_used",
            "label": "Food purchased or used in the period",
            "type": "number",
            "default": "1200",
            "unit": "kg"
        },
        {
            "name": "waste",
            "label": "Food wasted (weighed)",
            "type": "number",
            "default": "96",
            "unit": "kg"
        },
        {
            "name": "cost_per_kg",
            "label": "Average food cost per kg",
            "type": "number",
            "default": "6.50"
        },
        {
            "name": "covers",
            "label": "Covers served in the period",
            "type": "number",
            "default": "3000"
        },
        {
            "name": "currency",
            "label": "Currency",
            "type": "currency",
            "default": "USD"
        }
    ],
    "outputs": [
        {
            "key": "waste_pct",
            "label": "Waste as % of food used",
            "format": "percent"
        },
        {
            "key": "waste_cost",
            "label": "Cost of food wasted",
            "format": "currency"
        },
        {
            "key": "grams_per_cover",
            "label": "Waste per cover",
            "format": "number"
        },
        {
            "key": "cost_per_cover",
            "label": "Waste cost per cover",
            "format": "currency"
        }
    ],
    "formula": {
        "text": "Waste % = Waste kg ÷ Food used kg × 100;  Waste cost = Waste kg × Cost per kg;  Grams per cover = Waste kg × 1000 ÷ Covers",
        "variables": {
            "Waste kg": "weight of food thrown away",
            "Food used kg": "weight of food bought or issued to the kitchen",
            "Cost per kg": "average purchase cost of food",
            "Covers": "guests served"
        }
    },
    "worked_example": {
        "inputs": {
            "food_used": "1200",
            "waste": "96",
            "cost_per_kg": "6.50",
            "covers": "3000",
            "currency": "USD"
        },
        "steps": [
            "Waste % = 96 ÷ 1,200 × 100 = 8%.",
            "Cost = 96 × 6.50 = 624.",
            "Per cover = 96,000 g ÷ 3,000 = 32 g, or 624 ÷ 3,000 = 0.21."
        ],
        "result": "The kitchen wasted 8% of the food it used, costing 624, or 32 g and 0.21 per cover."
    },
    "interpretation": "Separate the waste into spoilage, preparation and plate waste if you can: each has a different fix (ordering, prep methods and portion sizes respectively). Track grams per cover weekly to see whether changes work.",
    "assumptions": [
        "Wasted food costs the same per kg as the average food purchased."
    ],
    "limitations": [
        "Expensive items (meat, fish) wasted cost more than the average figure suggests; weigh and cost them separately for a sharper picture."
    ],
    "rules": null,
    "faqs": [
        {
            "question": "Should unavoidable waste such as bones and peel be included?",
            "answer": "Track it, but separately. Unavoidable trim is part of the recipe yield; avoidable waste is what you can reduce."
        }
    ],
    "sources": [],
    "related": [
        {
            "name": "Food Cost Percentage Calculator",
            "url": "https://calculators.geekmidst.com/calculators/restaurant-food-cost-percentage-calculator"
        },
        {
            "name": "Ingredient Unit Cost Calculator",
            "url": "https://calculators.geekmidst.com/calculators/ingredient-unit-cost-calculator"
        },
        {
            "name": "Percentage Calculator",
            "url": "https://calculators.geekmidst.com/calculators/percentage-calculator"
        }
    ],
    "disclaimer": null,
    "publisher": "GM¹X CalcVerse"
}