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Batch recipes let you model products that are made in advance — sauces, doughs, marinades, pre-portioned proteins — rather than assembled to order. When you run a production batch, oFatoura deducts the raw ingredients from stock and adds the finished quantity as a new batch stock entry. Menu items linked to the recipe draw from that batch stock when orders are placed.
You need the Show Batch Recipe permission to access batch recipes and run production. Viewing the resulting stock entries requires the Show Batch Inventory permission. Contact your administrator if either section is missing from your menu.

Setting up a batch recipe

Go to Inventory > Batch Recipes and select Add recipe.
1

Enter basic details

Give the recipe a clear name and an optional description. Choose the yield unit — this is the unit of measurement for the finished product (for example, litres, kilograms, or portions). The yield unit determines how batch stock is measured and how serving sizes are expressed when you link menu items.
2

Set default production quantities

  • Default batch size — the quantity you typically produce in one run. This value pre-fills the production form so you don’t have to type it every time.
  • Default expiry days — how many days a produced batch remains usable. oFatoura uses this to calculate the expiry date automatically when you record a production run. You can override both values at production time.
3

Add ingredients

Add each raw inventory item used in the recipe along with the quantity required per batch. The unit shown next to each ingredient comes from the item’s configured unit. You can add as many ingredients as needed and edit quantities at any time.
4

Link menu items

Under the Linked menu items section, choose which menu items (and specific variations, if applicable) draw from this batch recipe when an order is placed. For each link, enter the serving size — the amount of batch stock consumed per sale of that item. For example, if the recipe yields litres of soup and one bowl of soup uses 0.35 litres, enter 0.35 as the serving size.You can link multiple menu items and variations to the same batch recipe.
5

Save the recipe

Select Save. The recipe appears in the batch recipes list and is now available for production runs.

Running a production batch

When you are ready to produce a batch, open Inventory > Batch Recipes, find the recipe, and select Produce batch.
1

Confirm production details

The form pre-fills with the recipe’s default batch size and expiry days. Adjust them if this run differs from the default. You can also add notes to record anything relevant about the production run (supplier lot, shift, preparation notes).
2

Review ingredient consumption

oFatoura shows you the exact quantities of each raw ingredient that will be deducted from stock for this batch size. Check that your current stock covers the run before proceeding.
3

Confirm production

Select Produce. oFatoura simultaneously:
  • Deducts each ingredient from raw inventory stock.
  • Creates a new batch stock entry with the produced quantity, calculated cost per unit, and the expiry date based on your default expiry days setting.
  • Records who produced the batch and when.
Production is not reversible from the interface. If you enter the wrong quantity, record a waste adjustment on the batch stock entry or produce a corrective entry and note the reason.

Tracking batch inventory

Go to Inventory > Batch Inventory to see all batch stock entries across your recipes. Each row shows:
FieldWhat it tells you
Batch recipe nameWhich recipe this stock came from
Quantity producedThe total amount made in that run
Quantity availableHow much remains after menu item sales have consumed it
Cost per unitCalculated from the ingredient costs at the time of production
Total costCost per unit × quantity produced
StatusActive (stock available) or inactive (fully consumed)
Expiry dateDate the batch expires, based on production date + expiry days
Produced byThe staff member who ran the batch
Production dateWhen the batch was recorded
Filtering and search. Use the recipe filter to show stock for a single recipe only, or filter by status to focus on active batches. The search field matches recipe names. Producing from this view. You can also start a new production run directly from the Batch Inventory page using the Produce batch button — you don’t need to navigate back to Batch Recipes.
Check the expiry date column regularly. The Inventory Dashboard highlights items expiring within seven days, but the Batch Inventory list gives you a full picture with exact dates.

How batch stock connects to orders

When a customer orders a menu item that is linked to a batch recipe, oFatoura deducts the configured serving size from the oldest active batch stock entry for that recipe (first-in, first-out). Stock movements linked to batch consumption appear in Inventory > Inventory Movements with a batch production reference so you can trace which batch was used. If batch stock runs out and no active entries remain, the system will flag a stock-out for that recipe. Ensure you schedule production runs before stock is depleted.