PRINCIPLES OF FOOD, BEVERAGE, AND LABOR COST CONTROLS

130 � CHAPTER 4 FOOD PURCHASING AND RECEIVING CONTROL
basis of use and then must consistently include each item in the predetermined
category.
It should be noted that many foodservice operations, particularly
smaller ones, do not bother to classify food into directs and stores. They
simply verify that the food received is that which has been ordered, and
then they send the invoice to accounting for payment. This procedure certainly
simplifies the receiving procedure, but it does not allow an accurate
food cost calculation to be made until a physical inventory is taken, typically
once a month. In the meantime, excessive food cost can take place without
the knowledge of management. Further, when management finally finds out
that food costs are higher than warranted, there is no basis for determining
what caused it to happen. Thus, if management is interested in keeping control
over food costs, the separation of food into directs and stores is necessary,
and a Receiving Clerk ’ s Daily Report form should be filled out whenever
food is received. Alternatively, this same information can be entered into the
computer.
The Receiving Clerk ’ s Daily Report, illustrated in Figure 4.7 , is a summary
of invoices for all foods received on a given day.
The Receiving Clerk ’ s Daily Report is prepared by a receiving clerk,
who merely records data from each invoice in appropriate columns on the
report and then enters the total for each invoice into one of the three columns
under the general heading Purchase Journal Distribution — “ Fo o d
Direct, ” “ Food Stores, ” or “ Sundries. ” These are the three rightmost columns
in Figure 4.7 . In the exhibit, the invoice previously described in Figure 4.5
has been entered as the first invoice of the day, with the individual items
and the totals recorded. The total dollar value of food listed on that invoice,
$437.00, has been recorded in the “ Food Stores ” column, because these
items have been purchased for future use and will be held in inventory until
needed, at which time they will be charged to cost. In contrast, the third
invoice on the report, from Jones Produce and Fruit, totaling $70.15, is
found in the “ Food Direct ” column, because the listed items have been purchased
for immediate use and will thus be charged to cost on the day they
are received.
In computerized control systems, the information may be keyed into
records directly as the goods are received. In some operations, this information
is entered by the purchasing steward when the records of received goods
are provided. It is still necessary to keep separate records of those foods
treated as directs and those treated as stores, in order to facilitate the calculation
of daily food costs.