Where the numbers come from.
The percentage ranges on the Method page describe how much food cost most operations quietly leak. They are directional estimates, not published research. Here's how we arrive at them, and how honest we're being about it.
Operator interviews
Conversations with chefs, food service directors, and operators across long-term care, restaurant groups, and facility kitchens. The ranges reflect what these operators report seeing in their own books — directional, self-reported, and varied by operation.
Secondary industry research
Publicly available food-cost and foodservice operating benchmarks from industry trade press and associations (e.g. Restaurants Canada). Used to sanity-check the interview ranges against broader industry figures.
Engagement observation
Patterns observed while running Kitchen Counts on live operations during pilots and engagements. As documented engagements accumulate, these ranges will be revised toward what we measure directly rather than what is estimated.
The honest version. These are estimates, not promises. Every operation is different, and the only numbers that matter for yours are the ones we measure together once Kitchen Counts is running. We'd rather show you a defensible range than a precise figure we can't stand behind.