1.) In this case study, it is very important to figure out the cost of food.

a.) True

b.) False

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2.)

How should James select items for his salad bar?

a.) Whatever the students want he should give them

b.) James should hire an outside consultant to determine the outcome of this very complex issue

c.) Managers cannot possibly figure this out, only an executive chef can do this

d.) James should calculate the cost per pound of the ingredients he would like to utilize and create a cost efficient product mix that incorporates popularity, seasonality, labor cost, and color mix.

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3.)

What will affect his $2.25 CPM that was not factored into Jamess original equation?

a.) Lack of execution of recipes from a portion and production standpoint

b.) Special events in the area

c.) Poor receiving and storage techniques

d.) All of the above.

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4.) If Jamess menu is higher than $2.25, what can he do to make his target?

a.) James must ensure that his associates are portioning the correct amount of food hes forecasted to ensure consistency from a cost and quality standpoint.

b.) James should analyze the cost of the specific ingredients he is utilizing in his recipes.

c.) James should analyze which menu options are driving his CPM by reviewing the cost of each individual item on the menu. Once James has targeted the menu items that are higher in cost, he may then make an educated decision on whether to keep the items or switch to different, less expensive items.

d.) All of the above.

Title: Food Production Management Purpose: To experience one of the challenges of a food service manager. Company Background: James is a Food Production Manager for a large public university in the United States. Each semester he is faced with the task of designing a menu that satisfies not only the students but also his planned budget. James's target cost per meal (CPM) is $2.25. The cost per meal is the total dollar value of food divided by the amount of total customer transactions. James must select a menu that contains three main entrees, three vegetable sides, three starch sides, and a salad bar that contains eight different toppings. Case: First, James will identify recipes that are acceptable for the school's demographic. All schools are different and trends fluctuate year to year. Once a base menu has been created, James will then begin pricing out ingredients in order to evaluate the cost per serving or the direct food cost it takes to produce one serving of each recipe. If James's menu has too many high cost-per-servings recipes it will drive his CPM higher than desired. James has selected entrees that range from $0.52-$0.95 per serving, vegetable sides that range from $0.14-$0.28, and starch sides that range from $0.06-$0.18. Now that James has selected a diverse menu that satisfies his customers and appears to meet his cost per serving, he should next forecast his menu to ensure that his menu meets his CPM target of $2.25. James must establish either the percentage of each recipe that his total population will consume or the acceptability factor for each recipe. James forecasts each recipe based on the last menu and current trends. Lastly, James must pre-cost his menu to ensure his CPM meets his target. He will take the acceptability factor of each recipe and multiply it against the total population to derive the total amount of planned portions, which will in turn provide him with a total dollar value for all servings served. Once a total value has been determined for James's menu, he will divide the total recipe dollars by total customers to find his CPM