Recording Food Waste

This guide shows how to record food waste on the device so it reaches the cloud dashboard for your cost reports and your due-diligence records.

Waste recording is built around the label. When a labelled item is thrown away, you scan the label you are about to bin, and the device knows which product it was and which label it came from. That link is what makes the record stand up at an inspection.

Before You Start

Every record needs a reason, and your branch already has a starter list: Expired, Damaged, Over-prepared, Customer return, Dropped, Contaminated, Wrong order and Other. Edit it in the dashboard under Settings → Waste Reasons so it matches what your kitchen actually says. The device shows these as buttons, so keep the list short enough to pick from at a glance.

One Item: Scan Its Label

1. On the device, open the Label tab and tap the scan icon in the top right
2. Point the scanner at the QR code on the label
3. The device shows the product, and warns you if the label has expired
4. Tap Waste
5. Pick a reason
6. Add a note if it helps, for example what went wrong
7. Optionally tap the camera icon in the top right to attach a photo
8. Tap Save Waste Record

Each scanned label is one record, so there is no quantity to type. Three trays binned means three labels scanned.

Several Items: Batch Scan

For an end of service clear-down, scan everything first and file it in one go:

1. Open the Waste tab
2. Tap the batch scan icon in the top right
3. Scan each label in turn. The list grows as you go, and shows N scanned
4. Remove anything scanned by mistake with the x on its row
5. Tap Submit as Waste
6. Pick one reason for the batch, add a note and a photo if you want
7. Tap Save N Waste Records

Every item in the batch gets its own record, all under the reason you picked.

No Label to Scan

Sometimes what you are throwing away was never labelled, such as a part-used bulk ingredient:

1. Open the Waste tab
2. Tap the add icon in the top right
3. Pick a reason, add a note and optionally a photo
4. Tap Save Waste Record

This record carries no product, so it will not show a product name or a cost in your reports. Use it only when there is genuinely no label, and put the detail in the note.

Checking It Saved

The Waste tab lists what this device has recorded, newest first. Each row shows Synced once the dashboard has it, or Pending while it is still waiting.

Records are written on the device first, so waste can be filed with no internet at all. Anything pending goes up on the next sync, which runs every few minutes.

Expired Labels Left on the Shelf

A label that has passed its use-by and was never dealt with is tracked separately, because it is a food-safety flag rather than a cost:

1. On the device, open Home
2. Tap All expired labels
3. Deal with each item, then use the bin icon on a row to mark it as physically discarded

Clearing the whole list needs a chef or owner to approve it, so the list cannot be quietly emptied by whoever is on shift. If the device sends a request instead of clearing, that approval is what it is waiting for.

Viewing Waste in the Dashboard

Wastage shows every record with its product, reason, when it was wasted, who recorded it and any note. One row is one binned item.

Under Reports:

• Waste Report: totals, cost and the breakdown by reason over the last 7, 30 or 90 days, with a records-per-day chart
• Over-Production: how much of what you print ends up wasted, per product, which flags items being over-prepped
• Compliance Pack: a single PDF for an EHO visit, with your wastage log alongside your label discipline and allergen coverage

Why Record Waste

• Cost: the patterns only show up once the records exist, and over-production is usually the biggest one
• Due diligence: an inspector asking what happened to out of date stock wants a record, not an assurance
• Accountability: every record carries the person who filed it and the device it came from