State of Broccli Prices: Wholesale Restaurant Food Cost Trends

Broccoli prices probably aren’t the first thing that comes up when restaurant owners, operators, kitchen managers, or chefs think about food prices.

Not many dishes feature broccoli as the primary ingredient, though it’s plentiful enough in side dishes, salads, and more. And the green cruciferous has seen some impact from food inflation on its wholesale price.

Like any ingredient, it can benefit restaurant operators to keep an eye on broccoli price increases and its impact on overall restaurant food costs.

Toast is the point of sale system built for restaurants. We're able to calculate the average monthly prices that restaurants pay for specific ingredients by using proprietary data from xtraCHEF by Toast, our invoice automation and recipe costing tool.

The national average price for a pound of broccoli is $1.97 in August. This represents a 4% MoM decrease in restaurant broccoli prices — dropping below $2 per pound for the first time since May 2022.

On average, a pound of broccoli contains four servings.

Historic broccoli prices trends

Here's a breakdown of broccoli prices over the past four years for restaurants:

Broccoli prices spiked at an average cost of $2.75 per pound for restaurants in January 2019.

The four-year average in broccoli prices is $2.04, with the lowest price in that span coming in December 2019 at $1.52.

Commodities experts weigh in on broccoli prices

We were able to speak with some experts in the food commodities space to understand their analysis on broccoli price trends and the impacts on restaurants. 

Question

Restaurant broccoli prices are relatively stable compared to the other ingredients we’ve examined. What’s driving that, and are there any notable aspects driving variations in price fluctuation between fresh and frozen broccoli?

Next steps informed by this data may include: 

• Substituting broccoli for other vegetables

• Opting for a cheaper, lower grade of broccoli

• Consider a different style of broccoli

Broccoli supply chain for restaurants

In the last year, $1.90 is the lowest price restaurants have paid for one pound of broccoli. That may vary from retail prices, as consumer food costs are often different than restaurant prices.

This is due to multiple factors, including a different restaurant supply chain, shortages at the consumer vs commercial level, and regional and local food systems that may impact costs.

There are also similarities between what impacts broccoli costs for grocery prices and restaurant prices. The grocery store and the restaurant both get higher costs past from growers and producer prices, any potential export fees, relevant energy prices, and more.

While broccoli’s relative pricing seems pretty resilient for fresh vegetables, there have been instances of supply chain disruptions in the past. For example, California’s heavy rains in 2023 may lead to some broccoli shortages in time.

Judging by price inflation, the broccoli supply chain remained mostly steady in the thick of the pandemic. Consistent price hikes really only hit foodservice broccoli prices in the summer 2021.

Start tracking broccoli prices today

Broccoli shows up in salads, sautés, stir fry, and plenty more dishes. Incorporating these broccoli prices — and all ingredient costs — into financial reports requires restaurant operators to have a strong back-of-house foundation built on invoice automation.

Invoices are the single source of truth for restaurant costs — pinpointing prices and fluctuations for individual ingredients as well as paper goods, non-alcoholic beverages, and more. 

With accurate and up-to-date ingredient prices from invoices, operators can start calculating plate costs. Plate costing is a detailed exercise that zooms into the recipes and/or individual ingredients that make up a dish — requiring detailed recipe costs and portion costs for ingredients.

Costing exercises can help show how each component is contributing to the overall profitability of a dish or drink. And recipe costing software can help make it easier to calculate and achieve an ideal balance between portions and profits.

Methodology

Toast analyzed monthly invoice items for broccoli from restaurants using xtraCHEF by Toast. Items are weighted by the frequency of orders, not quantity. A standard unit of measure is determined so that an average price can be calculated across all invoice inclusions of the ingredient.