What this calculation means
Service purchase planning converts a finished portion requirement into a continuous number of purchase units after a stated usable yield.
Use the package planner if you must buy indivisible packs. A rounded display here is not an instruction to round an order down.
How to use this calculator
Enter the servings and usable quantity per portion. Supply the measured yield percentage and the amount in one purchase unit, expressed in the portion unit.
Formula and variables
Purchase units = Target servings × Portion size ÷ (Yield percentage ÷ 100) ÷ Purchase unit size
- Target servingsservings
- Number of servings planned.
- Portion sizeusable unit
- Usable ingredient quantity per serving.
- Yield percentage%
- Usable proportion, such as 80 for 80%.
- Purchase unit sizesame unit as portion
- Quantity contained in one purchase unit, such as 16 ounces per pound.
Quantity results display up to two decimal places. The calculation retains the underlying quantity; the display does not impose a whole-portion policy.
Understand your result
The answer retains fractional purchase units. Its two-decimal display is an approximation of the underlying requirement.
Worked example
Produce 50 servings of 4 oz each from an ingredient with 80% yield.
Target servings: 50 servings
Portion size: 4 usable unit
Yield percentage: 80 %
Purchase unit size: 16 same unit as portion
- Finished requirement: 50 × 4 oz = 200 oz.
- Raw requirement: 200 ÷ 0.80 = 250 oz.
- Purchase pounds: 250 ÷ 16 = 15.625 lb; the form displays 15.63 purchase units.
Example result: 15.63 purchase units
Frequently asked questions
What does a purchase unit size of 16 mean?
If portions are in ounces and purchases are in pounds, one purchase unit contains 16 portion units. The result is then pounds before whole-pack purchasing rules.
Can I order the two-decimal display without checking it?
Check the unrounded requirement and supplier unit. This continuous planner does not guarantee that displayed decimal rounding provides enough whole packs.