Four Objectives
in Food Purchasing
Obtain food that is
high quality
 Obtain food that is nutritious
 Obtain food that is safe
 Purchase at a
cost-effective price

Section 1:
Introduction
1
Steps in the Food
Purchasing Process
1.
Plan menus
2.
Develop a list of the foods needed to
prepare the menus
3.
Estimate the quantity of each food needed
4.
Analyze the market area
5.
Develop quality standards for each food
6.
Obtain price quotes
7.
Award a contract to a business or make a
recommendation to the board of
directors/owners
8.
Place orders
9.
Receive food or go to the store to purchase
food
10. Store food
11. Prepare meals
Section 1:
Introduction
2
Section 2
Menu Resources
•
Feeding Infants: A Guide for Use in the Child Nutrition
Programs
http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Resources/feeding_infants.html
•
Building Blocks for Fun and Healthy Meals
http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Resources/buildingblocks.html
•
Child Care Recipes: Food for Health and Fun
http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Resources/childcare_recipes.html
Section 3
Making the Grocery List
Break up the task of making
the grocery list in two parts:
1. Making a list of items
needed
2. Estimating the quantities
Section 3
Parts of the Grocery List



Standard Stock Items

Foods kept on hand all of the time

Staple foods that are replaced often
Yearly Items

Food purchased 1x per year

Mostly herbs & spices
Menu Items

Foods purchased only when they
are on the menu
Section 3
Standard Stock Items
Examples of foods of this type are all:
Purpose flour
Granulated sugar
Brown sugar
Salt
Vegetable oil
Vinegar
Pan release spray
Jams
Jellies
Imitation maple syrup
Peanut butter
Catsup
Tomato paste
Instant nonfat dry milk mayonnaise
Section 3
Yearly Items
Examples of foods of this type are
all:
 cinnamon
paprika
vanilla flavoring
cayenne pepper
poultry seasoning
crushed oregano
garlic powder
Section 3
Menu Items
Menu items are foods that are
purchased only when they are on the
menu:
Milk
fresh eggs
fresh fruits
fresh vegetables
Section 4
Quantities
Green Beans – Calculating the amounts for No. 10 cans,
No. 2 ½ cans, & No 300 cans
A No. 10 can contains 45.3 ¼ cup servings. When the
total number of ¼ cup servings needed (40) is divided by
the number of ¼ cup servings in a No 10 can (45.3), the
answer is 0.88 or 1 No. 10 can.
40/45.3 = 0.88 or 1 No. 10 can
A No. 2 ½ can contains 12.5 ¼ cup servings. When the
total number of ¼ cup servings needed (40) is divided by
the number of ¼ cup servings in a No. 2 ½ can (12.5), the
answer is 3.2 or 4 cans.
40/12.5 = 3.2 or 4 cans
A No. 300 can contains 5 ¼ cup servings. When the total
number of ¼ cup servings needed (40) is divided by the
number of ¼ cup servings in a No. 300 can (5), the answer
is 8 cans.
40/5 = 8 cans
Section 9
Quantities
Defining/Measuring Quality









Ingredient list on the label
Nutrient content
information
CN label information
Taste
Appearance
Children’s acceptance
Food preparation
Grade standards
Cost
Section 9
Quantities
Free The reference amount used on the food label
contains none or a very small amount: less than 5 calories;
less than 5 mg sodium; less than 0.5 g total fat and
saturated fat; less than 2 mg cholesterol or 0.5 g sugar.
Light (1)An altered food contains 1/3 fewer calories or
contains 50% of the fat in a reference food; if
50%ormore of the calories come from fat, the reduction
must be 50%of the fat; or (2)The sodium content of a
low calorie, low-fat food has been reduced by 50%; or
(3) The term describes such properties as texture and
color, as long as the label explains theintent (for
example,“light brown sugar”or“light and fluffy”).
Low The reference amount contains no more than 40
calories; 140 mg sodium; 3 g fat.
High The reference amount contains 20% or more of the
Daily Value for a particular nutrient.
Good source The reference amount contains 10% to 19%
of the Daily Value for a particular nutrient. Reduced The
reference amount of a nutritionally