Three numbers you already know. One annual cost you probably don't.
Total invoiced food spend per month
Industry average is 4–10%
Your food waste cost
$21,000
Wasted per year
$1,750
Wasted per month
$58
Wasted per day
20x
Revenue multiplier
At a 5% margin, you need $420,000 in extra revenue to offset your waste.
Reducing waste by just 2-6% saves $420 to $1,260/yr. Most restaurants hit 2% just by tracking.
Stop losing margin to subscriptions tooWhere it adds up
Peels, trimmings, portions cut for presentation or food safety. Unavoidable, but controllable with tighter menu planning and cross-utilization of trim.
Ingredients that expire before they get used. Over-ordering, poor rotation, last-minute menu changes that leave product without a destination.
What diners leave behind. On average, guests leave 17% of their meal on the plate. That accounts for 30 to 40% of total restaurant waste.
Every dollar wasted is a dollar that already cleared your food cost. To replace it, you need to generate many times that in revenue. At 5% margins, $1 of waste requires $20 in new sales.
Start here
A clipboard and a scale. Weigh what goes in the bin for one week. Restaurants that start measuring cut waste by 2-6% just from awareness.
Fewer items means fewer unique ingredients. Cross-utilize: the same trim that becomes stock today can be a sauce component tomorrow. Less variety on paper, less waste in the bin.
Standardize portions with scales and portioning tools. When every plate goes out the same, you can predict usage and reduce both prep waste and plate returns.
Yesterday's bread becomes today's croutons. Vegetable trim becomes stock. Build repurposing into your prep routine, not as an afterthought.
Every cook who tosses trim without thinking is costing you money. Make waste visible: post the weekly waste number in the kitchen. When the team sees the dollar figure, behaviour changes.
Go deeper
The full data breakdown behind the calculator's numbers, with Canadian industry benchmarks.
Read articlePractical steps you can start this week. No tools required, no budget needed.
Read articleA simple protocol to start tracking waste and see results within a month.
Read articleRestaurants across Canada are joining
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FAQ
The calculator multiplies your monthly food purchases by your estimated waste percentage, then annualizes the result. The revenue multiplier shows how much additional revenue you would need to generate to offset that waste, based on your profit margin.
Food waste in restaurants falls into three categories: prep waste (trimmings, peels, portion cuts), spoilage (ingredients that expire before use), and plate waste (food left by diners). Industry data shows diners leave about 17% of their meal, accounting for 30 to 40% of total restaurant waste.
The revenue multiplier shows how much additional revenue you need to cover each dollar of waste. At a 5% profit margin, every $1 wasted requires $20 in new sales to replace. At 3%, it takes over $33. This is why small waste reductions have outsized impact on profitability.
Start by measuring. Use a scale and a clipboard to track what goes in the bin for one week. Restaurants that begin measuring cut waste by 2-6% from awareness alone. From there, focus on tighter menu planning and portion standardization.
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