Different Methods Of Food Purchasing

METHODS OF PURCHASING- There are many ways to purchase. It all depends on the item being purchased, the frequency of need, the quantity purchased, and the market. None of the methods is best for all purchases.

Open Market Purchase:

This is a method of buying products that aren’t used often. The committee consists of three people (a purchase officer, an accounts man and one from f & B). They then go to the market to determine the price of the product. The most advantageous product is chosen after weighing the prices and quality. When comparing prices, quality should not be sacrificed. This purchase has the advantage that you will only pay for the highest quality product.

Purchasing by contract:

Contract purchases are required for food items that require frequent purchase. Tenders can be awarded for meat, poultry, eggs, milk products, fruits, and vegetables. Tenders are invited to submit their annual requirements. Based on the expected consumption for the year, the tenders will be evaluated for their total worth. To ensure that these items are supplied regularly, the supplier must sign the contract. They must supply only the quality specified. We can purchase the indented products at the current market rate and debit the supplier’s account if the supplier does not supply them. This is called risk purchase.

Centralized Purchasing:

This is based on the principle that purchasing is performed by one person or one department. HOD is usually responsible for making sure that profit is made in centralized purchasing operations. All H.O.D. are involved in this type of purchasing. You can combine all the H.O.D. items under one head to purchase them all on a large scale.

Advantages

1. All the H.O.D. provide better coordination and control. all the H.O.D. are under one head or department.
2. You will get a better discount
3. Purchases are a common activity for very few people.
4. The economic and profit potential of purchasing policies makes them a profit centre rather than a cost centre.

Standing order purchase:

This is where the purveyor will send merchandise at a pre-determined time. You may need to replenish stock or purchase a fixed quantity each time. This method is used to purchase milk and dairy products. This saves the receiver a lot of time and allows him to replenish stock quickly. This type of delivery is subject to a formal agreement and must be reviewed periodically. This system has its disadvantages. It is dependent on one vendor and may cause delays. It works well for items that are bought daily, weekly, or multiple times per week or month.

Periodical purchasing/ fortnightly quotation list/ purchasing bi weekly:

This is a method to buy groceries items that are only available for delivery once per week or twice per week. H.O.D. would replenish the stock and fill in the desired quantity of each item, based on the expected volume of business and normal order quantities. The purchase officer would send a copy to each supplier on the master list. Each supplier must then quote the rates upon receipt of the quotation. These will be added to a master quote list, and then the order is made for each item. The next week/ Fortnight’s requirements and available storage space would determine this. You should note that specifications for items are usually based on the brand names of the products along with the size, weight, and count.