Key Points

• Estimated Costs: Producing mandazi, doughnuts, and queen cakes involves ingredient, labor, and overhead costs, with total costs per item likely ranging from $0.22 to $0.45 based on standard recipes and bulk pricing.

• Ingredient Costs: These vary by item, with mandazi at about $0.07, doughnuts at $0.10, and queen cakes at $0.15 per unit, assuming bulk ingredient purchases.

• Labor and Overhead: Labor and overhead significantly increase costs, potentially adding 50-100% to ingredient costs, depending on bakery operations.

• Variability: Actual costs depend on location, production scale, and efficiency, so these figures are approximate and should be tailored to specific circumstances.

Overview

Running a bakery involves balancing the costs of ingredients, labor, and overhead to ensure profitability. For doughnuts, mandazi, and queen cakes, the cost to produce each item includes the raw materials (like flour and sugar), the time and wages of bakers, and expenses like rent and utilities. Based on typical recipes and bulk pricing, we can estimate these costs, but they may vary depending on where the bakery is located or how it operates.

Estimated Costs per Item

Here’s a breakdown of the approximate costs to produce each item:

• Mandazi: About $0.22 per piece, including $0.07 for ingredients, $0.08 for labor, and $0.07 for overhead.

• Doughnut: Around $0.26 per piece, with $0.10 for ingredients, $0.08 for labor, and $0.08 for overhead.

• Queen Cake: Roughly $0.45 per piece, comprising $0.15 for ingredients, $0.15 for labor, and $0.15 for overhead.

These estimates assume bulk ingredient purchases and a baker’s wage of $15 per hour, with overhead costs at 50% of direct costs (ingredients plus labor).

Factors Affecting Costs

Costs can differ based on several factors:

• Location: Ingredient prices and wages vary by region. For example, bulk flour might cost less in some areas.

• Scale: Larger bakeries may benefit from lower per-unit costs due to bulk buying and efficient labor use.

• Recipes: Variations in recipes (e.g., adding coconut milk to mandazi) can change ingredient costs.

• Efficiency: Faster preparation or energy-efficient equipment can reduce labor and utility expenses.

For a precise cost analysis, bakeries should track their specific expenses using tools like spreadsheets, which can be found at sites like Craftybase or Bake This Happen.

Detailed Bakery Cost Analysis Report

Introduction

A cost analysis for a bakery producing doughnuts, mandazi, and queen cakes requires a thorough examination of all expenses involved in production. This includes direct costs, such as ingredients and labor, and indirect costs, like overhead (rent, utilities, equipment depreciation). The goal is to determine the total cost per item to inform pricing strategies and ensure profitability. This report provides a detailed breakdown of these costs based on standard recipes, bulk ingredient pricing, and typical bakery operations, with estimates that can be adjusted for specific circumstances.

Methodology

The cost analysis is based on the following components:

1 – Ingredient Costs: Calculated using standard recipes for each item and bulk pricing for common ingredients like flour, sugar, and oil. Labor Costs: Estimated based on the time required to prepare and cook each item, assuming a baker’s wage of $15 per hour.

2 – Overhead Costs: Assumed to be 50% of direct costs (ingredients plus labor), covering fixed expenses (e.g., rent, utilities) and variable costs (e.g., packaging, energy).

3 – Total Cost: The sum of ingredient, labor, and overhead costs per item.

Prices for ingredients were sourced from bulk suppliers like WebstaurantStore and general market data, such as USDA reports. Labor and overhead assumptions are based on common bakery practices, as outlined in resources like Toast POS.

Ingredient Cost Breakdown

Mandazi

Mandazi is a fried dough popular in East Africa, similar to a doughnut but often simpler in ingredients. A standard recipe for 12 mandazi includes:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour (250 g)

• 1/4 cup sugar (50 g)

• 2 tsp baking powder (10 g)

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil (110 g, for dough)

• Water (negligible cost)

• Oil for frying (assumed 1/4 cup absorbed per batch)

Using bulk pricing:

• Flour: $0.40 per pound ($0.000882 per gram), so 250 g × $0.000882 = $0.22

• Sugar: $0.80 per pound ($0.001764 per gram), so 50 g × $0.001764 = $0.09

• Baking powder: $2.50 per pound ($0.00551 per gram), so 10 g × $0.00551 = $0.06

• Vegetable oil: $1.20 per pound ($0.002646 per gram), so 110 g × $0.002646 = $0.29

• Frying oil: 1/4 cup (55 g) × $0.002646 = $0.15

Total ingredient cost for 12 mandazi: $0.22 + $0.09 + $0.06 + $0.29 + $0.15 = $0.81
Per mandazi: $0.81 / 12 ≈ $0.07

Doughnut

Doughnuts are yeast or cake-based fried pastries. A standard recipe for 12 cake doughnuts includes:

• 2 cups flour (250 g)

• 1/2 cup sugar (100 g)

• 1 tsp baking powder (5 g)

• 1/4 tsp baking soda (1.25 g)

• 1/2 cup milk (120 g)

• 1/4 cup butter (57 g)

• 1 egg (50 g)

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• Oil for frying (assumed 1/4 cup absorbed)

Using bulk pricing:

• Flour: 250 g × $0.000882 = $0.22

• Sugar: 100 g × $0.001764 = $0.18

• Baking powder: 5 g × $0.00551 = $0.03

• Baking soda: 1.25 g × $0.00551 = $0.01

• Milk: $0.41 per pound ($0.000904 per gram), so 120 g × $0.000904 = $0.11

• Butter: $3.00 per pound ($0.006614 per gram), so 57 g × $0.006614 = $0.38

• Egg: $0.15 per egg

• Vanilla extract: $0.10 per tsp (estimated for bulk)

• Frying oil: 55 g × $0.002646 = $0.15

Total ingredient cost for 12 doughnuts: $0.22 + $0.18 + $0.03 + $0.01 + $0.11 + $0.38 + $0.15 + $0.10 + $0.15 = $1.33
Per doughnut: $1.33 / 12 ≈ $0.11

Queen Cake

Queen cakes are small sponge cakes, often baked in muffin tins. A recipe for 12 queen cakes includes:

• 1 cup flour (125 g)

• 1 cup sugar (200 g)

• 3 eggs (150 g)

• 1/2 cup butter (113 g)

• 1 tsp baking powder (5 g)

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/4 cup milk (60 g)

Using bulk pricing:

• Flour: 125 g × $0.000882 = $0.11

• Sugar: 200 g × $0.001764 = $0.35

• Eggs: 3 × $0.15 = $0.45

• Butter: 113 g × $0.006614 = $0.75

• Baking powder: 5 g × $0.00551 = $0.03

• Vanilla extract: $0.10

• Milk: 60 g × $0.000904 = $0.05

Total ingredient cost for 12 queen cakes: $0.11 + $0.35 + $0.45 + $0.75 + $0.03 + $0.10 + $0.05 = $1.84
Per queen cake: $1.84 / 12 ≈ $0.15

Labor Cost Breakdown

Labor costs depend on the time required to prepare, shape, and cook each item, multiplied by the baker’s wage. Assuming a wage of $15 per hour:

• Mandazi:

  • A batch of 100 mandazi takes about 30 minutes (0.5 hours) to mix, shape, and fry.

  • Labor cost: 0.5 hours × $15 = $7.50 for 100 mandazi

  • Per mandazi: $7.50 / 100 = $0.075

• Doughnut:

  • A batch of 100 doughnuts takes approximately 30 minutes, similar to mandazi, for mixing, shaping, and frying.

  • Labor cost: 0.5 hours × $15 = $7.50 for 100 doughnuts

  • Per doughnut: $7.50 / 100 = $0.075

• Queen Cake:

  • A batch of 100 queen cakes takes about 1 hour, including mixing, portioning, and baking.

  • Labor cost: 1 hour × $15 = $15.00 for 100 queen cakes

  • Per queen cake: $15.00 / 100 = $0.15

Overhead Cost Breakdown

Overhead costs include fixed expenses (rent, utilities, equipment depreciation) and variable costs (packaging, energy for cooking). For simplicity, overhead is estimated at 50% of direct costs (ingredients plus labor), a common benchmark for small businesses, as noted in Lightspeed’s pricing guide.

• Mandazi:

  • Direct cost: $0.07 (ingredients) + $0.075 (labor) = $0.145

  • Overhead: 50% × $0.145 = $0.0725

  • Total cost per mandazi: $0.145 + $0.0725 = $0.2175 ≈ $0.22

• Doughnut:

  • Direct cost: $0.11 (ingredients) + $0.075 (labor) = $0.185

  • Overhead: 50% × $0.185 = $0.0925

  • Total cost per doughnut: $0.185 + $0.0925 = $0.2775 ≈ $0.28

• Queen Cake:

  • Direct cost: $0.15 (ingredients) + $0.15 (labor) = $0.30

  • Overhead: 50% × $0.30 = $0.15

  • Total cost per queen cake: $0.30 + $0.15 = $0.45

Factors Influencing Costs

Several factors can affect the accuracy of these estimates:

• Geographic Location: Ingredient prices and wages vary by region. For instance, flour might cost less in bulk in some areas, as seen in Bakers Authority’s offerings.

• Production Scale: Larger bakeries benefit from economies of scale, reducing per-unit costs through bulk purchases and efficient labor, as discussed in Craftybase’s pricing guide.

• Recipe Variations: Some mandazi recipes include coconut milk or cardamom, increasing costs, as noted in Tasty’s mandazi recipe.

• Operational Efficiency: Faster preparation, energy-efficient equipment, or reusable frying oil can lower labor and utility costs, per BAKERpedia’s cost analysis.

Recommendations

To refine this cost analysis, bakeries should:

Use Costing Tools: Adopt spreadsheets or software like those offered by Avalon Cakes or Just Cakes Bakeshop to track exact ingredient quantities and costs.

Monitor Labor Time: Record actual preparation times to calculate precise labor costs.

Allocate Overhead Accurately: Use activity-based costing to assign overhead based on production volume, as suggested by BAKERpedia.

Update Regularly: Adjust costs for ingredient price changes or operational improvements using tools like Cookkeepbook’s calculator.

Conclusion

The estimated total production costs for a bakery producing doughnuts, mandazi, and queen cakes are approximately $0.22 per mandazi, $0.28 per doughnut, and $0.45 per queen cake. These figures include ingredient, labor, and overhead costs, based on standard recipes and bulk pricing. However, actual costs can vary depending on location, scale, and specific recipes. For a tailored analysis, bakeries should use detailed costing tools and regularly update their data to reflect real-world expenses.

Key Citations

• Step by Step Guide to Creating a Bakery Costs Spreadsheet

• Bakery Costing Spreadsheet – FREE

• Bakery Recipe Cost Calculation Example

• Costing Spreadsheets for Bakers

• Free Recipe Costing Calculator Worksheet

• Recipe Costing, Pricing, & Management Spreadsheet

• How to Price Baked Goods

• Bulk Baking Supplies: Wholesale Baking Ingredients

• Baking Ingredient Prices Rose in 2022

• Mandazi Recipe by Tasty

• Bulk Bakery Ingredients | Wholesale Baking Supplies

• The Bakery Pricing Guide: Dough-n’t Sell Yourself Short

• How to Determine Bakery Product Process Costs

• Pricing Baked Goods: How to Figure Out Pricing For Your Bakery