Price per kilo isn't the whole offer.

Price per kilo is a useful figure. But it's only one figure. If two numbers sit side by side and no one knows whether they refer to the same product, the comparison tells you nothing useful.

What to compare besides price

The same type of product

The first question is the most boring and the most important: are we talking about the same product. Different product categories behave differently in the kitchen, regardless of how similarly they're named on the offer.

Agreed composition and specification

The specification is what makes an offer comparable. What the product contains, how it's prepared, what shape and weight each piece has. Without a specification, you're comparing the price of two unknowns.

Packaging

Unit size, packaging method and the number of pieces per unit affect kitchen workflow and how much stock you need to open at once. Packaging that doesn't fit your rhythm of work is a cost that doesn't show up on the offer.

Portion weight

Piece weight, number of pieces and price per kilo form the basis for calculating the meat cost per portion. Also factor in the actual yield from your preparation method; the total cost of a dish also includes other ingredients and labour.

Delivery terms

• Minimum order and delivery frequency.
• Order deadline and delivery window.
• What applies if the quantity changes before delivery.
• How complaints are handled.

Preparation in your own kitchen

How much work the product requires on your end: trimming, shaping, prep before service. Working time is a cost, even when it doesn't appear on the supplier's invoice.

The result on the plate

In the end, what counts is how the product performs with your method of preparation and whether the result is repeatable from service to service. That's checked in your kitchen, not in a table.

Two things worth dropping

First: that cheap is automatically bad. It isn't. A lower price can be the result of a different composition, different packaging, or simply a different way of working.

Second: that more expensive is automatically better. That isn't true either. A higher price is a data point about price, not proof of quality. The proof is the specification you can check, and the result you see on the plate.

The most useful offer is one you can read alongside the specification and use to work out the cost per portion. Everything else is guesswork with precise decimal points.