Record waste and stock adjustments
Write off spoiled or broken stock, book goods that came in without a purchase, and correct a quantity, each with a reason you can find later.
On this page
Not everything that leaves your stock is sold. Milk goes off, a bottle breaks, a tray of pastries is thrown out at closing. Recording this as waste keeps your stock numbers right and shows you where money is lost.
Before you start
- You need the Inventory & recipes feature. See Track your stock.
- Adjust stock, where waste and adjustments are recorded, is shown to people with the Manage inventory permission. It includes Record waste.
- Waste is recorded in the back office, not on the POS or the kitchen screen. Staff who record waste need back-office access; see Invite someone to the back office.
Record waste
- Go to Inventory and open the stock item.
- Select Adjust stock.
- Check the location. The change is booked at one location only.
- Under Type, choose Waste.
- Enter the quantity that was thrown away, in the item's unit. You always enter a positive number; waste is taken off.
- Under Description, write the reason, for example "Milk past date" or "Dropped tray".
- Check New quantity at the bottom, then select Save.
The three types in Adjust stock
| Type | What it does | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Goods received | Adds the quantity | Stock that arrived without a recorded purchase, or a first quantity for a new item |
| Waste | Takes the quantity off | Spoiled, broken, expired or thrown-away stock |
| Adjustment | Adds the quantity | A small correction upwards, such as a bottle found in the cellar |
Adjustment in this sheet only adds. To bring a number down because it is simply wrong (not because something was thrown away), count the item instead: the count books the difference in either direction. See Count your stock.
If you use Purchasing, book supplier deliveries as a purchase rather than Goods received: that also records the supplier, the invoice and the input VAT. See Record a supplier delivery.
What happens next
- The movement appears in the item's Movements with its type, the person, the time, your reason and the balance after it.
- Stock can go below zero; a waste entry larger than what is on hand is still booked.
- If the item drops below its low-stock level, it is flagged Low.
- Each entry is recorded in the activity log.
Waste of a finished dish
Waste is recorded per stock item, not per product. If a whole dish is thrown away, record the main ingredients it used as waste. A dish sold to a guest and then given away should be put On the house on the POS instead: its ingredients are deducted like a sale. See Discounts and on-the-house items.
Common questions
Can I correct a waste entry?
Movements cannot be edited or deleted. Record the opposite: if you wrote off 2 litres instead of 1, record 1 litre with Adjustment and note why.
Can I see how much was wasted in a period?
Open the item's Movements to see each waste entry. There is no separate waste report.
Who on my team should record waste?
Whoever throws it away, ideally at the end of each shift. They need back-office access and Manage inventory. See Roles and permissions.
If something goes wrong
- Adjust stock is missing: your role does not have Manage inventory. Ask an owner.
- "The quantity cannot be zero.": enter the amount that was wasted.
- The wrong location was used: record the same quantity as Adjustment at that location to put it back, then record the waste at the right location.