Are fresh chips profitable for your business?

The margin on fresh chips is a question every owner asks before switching. Fresh chips take more handling than frozen ones, so they need to bring something in. Whether fresh chips are profitable for your business depends not only on the purchase price, but on everything that happens afterwards: in the kitchen, at the counter and in your customers' minds. Below are the factors that make the difference, without calculations that would not fit your own business anyway.

1. Standing out on a street full of fryers

In many villages and neighbourhoods there is more than one place selling chips over the counter. If everyone fries the same industrial chips from the same freezer, there is little to compete on except price. Fresh chips from a recognisable grower give you a story: potatoes from the family's own land in Zeewolde, cut on Tuesdays and Fridays, with nothing added. You can tell that story on your menu, in your window and on social media.

A product that stands out gives you room in your pricing. Customers who notice that your chips taste different are less quick to compare you with the place round the corner. That is where much of the margin lies: not in what you save, but in what you can charge. How snack bars approach this is covered under fresh chips for snack bars.

2. Yield from every potato

With fresh chips, the quality of the potato decides how many usable chips you end up with. Large, well-graded potatoes with plenty of dry matter give long chips, few breakages and little moisture in the fryer. A watery potato shrinks more and absorbs more fat. A fixed growing schedule with the same varieties throughout the year makes that yield predictable, and you see it reflected in your purchasing.

Customers eat the chips, not the weight on the delivery note. Chips that are fluffy inside and crisp outside make a portion look generous without you having to add more. Which variety works best for that is explained under which potato for chips.

3. Less waste and labour under control

Waste arises where stock and demand do not match. With two fixed delivery days a week you order in smaller amounts and keep your cold room clear. You store vacuum-packed chips cold and sealed, and each shift you open only what you need. How to handle that in the cold room is explained under storing fresh chips.

Then there is labour. Peeling and cutting potatoes yourself takes hours, space and a machine; that is exactly why a local chip shop approached the Van Beusichem family in 2016 and Friet van Beus was born. With ready-cut fresh chips that work disappears and only the frying remains. If you still prefer to cut your own, you save on purchasing but pay in time. Which option works out better depends on your staff and your volume. If you are considering cutting your own, read buying a chip cutter first.

4. Customers who come back

The most expensive customer in any catering business is the one who does not come back. Chips are often the product a business is judged on, even when someone really came for a snack. A portion that always tastes the same and looks fresh builds a base of regulars. They come more often, order more and bring others along.

Not sure whether fresh chips suit your business? Talk it through with Thijs on 06 23972300, or send us a request. Together we will look at your kitchen, your busy periods and your menu. If you are considering the step, you will find a practical plan under switching to fresh chips.

Frequently asked questions