Comparison of ingredients and base materials
Learn about two major categories of ingredients and how to select country of origin for base materials.
Categories of ingredients
Ingredients come in various forms and degrees of processing.
Two major categories of ingredients are “elemental ingredients” and “compound ingredients”.
Elemental ingredients
The simplest ingredients are materials that cannot be deconstructed into components or constituent parts. Most commonly, these are fresh, unprocessed or “raw” foods, such as “perishable agricultural commodities”.
For such materials, the list of components would contain a single ingredient, which would be the ingredient itself. Accordingly, its packaging or accompanying resources will state a only one country of origin.
Compound ingredients
More complex ingredients contain sub-ingredients. These are commonly referred to as “compound ingredients”. For example, an item like "tomato sauce” may contain “tomatoes, olive oil, spices”. Compound ingredients are often processed foods or branded food products.
The item’s list of components may show a country of origin for each sub-ingredient, but the packaging or accompanying resources will generally specify a single country of origin for the entire item. For example, the item “tomato sauce” may have the country of origin stated as, “Product of Japan”, with following list of sub-ingredients: “tomatoes (Japan), olive oil (Italy), spices (USA)”.
Ingredients as base materials
In Fillet Origins, a base material can only be an ingredient, not a recipe or menu item. Base materials are the most elementary component, so they cannot be deconstructed into components or constituent parts. Accordingly, a base material can only have one country of origin.
Your operations may involve “elemental ingredients” as well as “compound ingredients”.
Therefore, this is how you would input the country of origin depending on the type of ingredient, that is, base material:
Elemental ingredients
Enter the country of origin stated on the item’s packaging or accompanying resources.
Compound ingredients
Enter the country of origin stated on the item’s packaging or accompanying resources.
Confirm that this is the overarching country of origin for the entire item.
Do not enter the country of origin based on the item’s sub-ingredients.
Accompanying resources for ingredients
When sourcing or purchasing an ingredient, you will typically receive accompanying resources such as the following:
- manufacturer or processor certifications
- specifications sheets (“spec-sheets” or “data-sheets”)
- import/export documentation
- brochures
- catalogues
- vendor or supplier price lists
The country of origin stated on the item’s packaging should match what is stated in its accompanying resources.
If there is any uncertainty or ambiguity, you may wish to contact your vendor or the manufacturer of the item.