Lacey Pettigrew Career Portfolio

Foodservice Administration

NFSC 430: Food Procurement and Management

Skill Area: Food Service; Menu Cycle Planning, portion control, customer menu production, efficiency of productivity.

Assignment Title: Elementary School Kitchen Production Menu and Customer Menu

         This assignment taught how to plan school menus based on current secondary school guidelines used in foodservice and other related fields. The skills obtained were an understanding of Excel, measurement calculations, school meal guidelines for nutrients needs, creative menu planning and understanding food safety.        

         From this assignment the understanding of production menu planning and customer menu planning was gained. When applying production menu planning and customer menu planning to foodservice operations it is very useful and can stream line any kitchen in use for preparation of goods made for the public. There is a vast number of important ways these skills can be applied to all areas of nutrition. These factors include clinical hospital setting, education and public facilities. All of the knowledge of foods and recipes applied when compiling and completing this assignment reflects all of the previous foodservice, food preparation and laboratory skills gained in undergraduate nutrition studies.

         Compiling production menus is a very important skill in the Nutrition and Food Science profession. The use of this skill allows creative planning for menus while reducing both cost and error during preparation and production. Having production and customer menus allows adjustments based on personal patient and customer needs, such as religious restrictions on the diet, to be met and planned for ahead of time. It also reduces the over stress of the employees by having meals and meal related tasks preplanned before events. This skill is beneficial in any kitchen and is not only used by foodservice, but by every nutrition professional in the field.