Beer Spilage

[shiva]

Just wanted to know if anyone has any info on average beer spilage in the brewpub world.

[Michael Murphy]

spillage as waste or spillage into glasses over the bar top?

[shiva]

both i would like to know industry standard in a brewpub.

[Larry Horwitz]

Hey Shiva,

This is a very important topic that many brewers overlook. Spillage is a cost of sales nightmare if imporperly managed. Here is what I have experienced in my years of brewing. I have seen spills as high as -25% and as low as +4%. I’d say the industry average is some where in the -8% range. Spill is the easiest place to increase profit and decrease cost. Remember, the more you spill the less you get cash for.

Couple of things to remember as a pub brewer.
1. Do your spill number every week, and make it accurate
2. Make sure your POS is set up correctly to account for every sale (cash or comp)
3. Watch your dollars gross profit per bbl as well as your spill %...you will find the info very informative.
4. you ‘gotta dial in the draft…don’t let the problem be poorly pooring beer
5. Don’t forget to take into account line cleanings

Also, we collect the spill from the draft drains into a bucket under the bar and measure it daily….good way to tell if loss if from theft or from poorly pouring or poured beers.