Kitchens across the U.S. have experienced heightened food costs, labor shortages, and labor costs during 2022. So, what does this all mean for the back-of-house? Increased operational costs, lower customer satisfaction, and new challenges to be solved with by technology.
Food Cost Inflation
In a recent study conducted by the USDA, researchers found that the cost of food in April 2022 was 9.4 percent higher than the previous year. It’s predicted that the cost of food will increase at a higher rate than previous years. One way to combat this is by mitigating food waste.
Over 85 percent of food loss and food waste issues are caused by temperature and time. By using remote temperature sensors, operators can be notified of real-time temperature changes before any food spoils or becomes unusable. This is especially important with cold storage products, such as meat or dairy, where you have a maximum of two hours to remedy an “out-of-range” temperature before that food must be disposed of.
Kitchen staff can also digitize food temp taking by utilizing Bluetooth probes that automatically populate HACCP logs. Solutions like BOHA! Temp connect your iOS devices to industry trusted temp probes for process that eliminates pencil-whipping and illegible handwriting all in one step.
Labor Shortages
Labor shortages were an industry concern long before the pandemic. However, a whopping seven out of 10 food service operators reported difficulty meeting labor demands in a 2022 report released by the National Restaurant Association. Not only is it difficult for operators to find and hire new staff, it’s also difficult to train them efficiently and retain them indefinitely.
One of the ways that operators have had newfound success in training employees is by digitizing recipe cards, instructional videos, how-to sheets, and other important resources. By using cloud-based solutions like BOHA! Media, employees across the globe can instantly access important resources right in the kitchen when they need them most. And another bonus, this also eliminates pricey reprints of recipe cards any time they get damaged or a recipe changes. All changes can be made from the cloud and pushed to dozens of locations in a matter of minutes.
By using back-of-house technology, operators in the foodservice industry have seen a significant reduction in the time it takes for employees to complete necessary tasks. For example, in a case study by BOHA!, implementing back-of-house technology saved retailers three hours a week on task management by digitizing checklists. In addition, when using BOHA! Labeling to automate date code processes, operators saw an average of 4.8 hours saved per week per location. When employees are so hard to come by, every minute counts.
To learn more, visit bohasolutions.com.
