How to Read a Broadline Distributor Invoice
A broadline invoice is written to be paid, not to be understood. Reading one properly takes five minutes and routinely finds money. Here's what each part actually says.
The pack line: 6/10, 4/5 LB, 25#
6/10 = six #10 cans. 4/5 LB = four 5-lb units (20 lb total). 25#= one 25-lb bag. The case price means nothing until you divide it into a unit cost: a $48.00 case of 4/5 LB chicken is $2.40/lb. Unit cost — per pound, per ounce, per each — is the only number recipes care about, and the only number you can compare across vendors.
Catch weights
Proteins ship by actual weight: the case says ~40 lb, the invoice bills 41.6 at $3.85/lb. Two consequences: track the per-pound price over time (total spend wobbles with weight, hiding real price moves), and spot-check the scale — receiving 39 lb billed as 41.6 is real money by December.
The quiet lines that raise prices
- Fuel / delivery surcharges — negotiable, especially above order minimums.
- Split-case fees — 10–15% upcharge for breaking a case; fine occasionally, a habit worth breaking.
- Substitutions — “SUB” lines swap the spec you priced for one you didn't. Check the unit cost on every one.
- Price creep — the same SKU up 3% this week, 2% next month. Nobody notices per-invoice; it compounds to real points of food cost.
At the dock, in order
- Count pieces against the invoice before signing.
- Spot-weigh catch-weight items.
- Refuse or note shorts and damage on the driver's copy — that note is your credit.
- Get unit prices into your costing system the same day.
Step 4 is the one that dies of friction — which is why Freecost lets you photograph the invoice with your phone; it reads the lines, matches them to your ingredients, and updates every affected recipe cost overnight. The five-minute read stays; the data entry goes.