Mathematics Project (Term I)

Topic: Making a detailed plan to keep accounts of running a virtual food truck, and
calculate the weekly profit/loss incurred from this business venture.

Fatima Zahra Rahman

Class 9D
Reference number: 3855
AY 2022-23
Table of contents

Rationale 3
Mathematical Presentation 3
Food Products 3
Food Products (selling price) 4
Quantity 5
Delivery Charges 6
Salary 6
Maintenance 7
Delivery Charges (selling price) 7
Profit / Loss 8
Reflection 10
Conclusion 10
 Rationale

Any business, be it a large multinational, multi-million company or a small food-delivery

truck, needs detailed account plans for the company to function smoothly. This project
shows how accounts for a virtual food-truck were made, with detailed reasons and
calculations shown for each part of the account plan. The project has used multiple
tables to depict different aspects that help determine the cost and selling price.

This project aims to gain a deeper understanding of inferring profit and loss, and also
helps in gaining an insight into the application of the topics taught in school. A first-hand
understanding of how the topics of profit and loss are essential for any business to run
is gained. Along with that, this project also applies the concepts of unitary method, to
calculate the total profit or loss made in a week while running a virtual food truck.

Mathematical Presentation

To make a detailed plan to keep accounts of a food truck, it is essential to know certain
information, such as the price of the food products, total salary of staff, delivery charges
etc. A great deal of research and planning must be done before fixing the prices of a
product. Setting prices that are too high, results in loss of customers while setting prices
that are too low leads to loss and also reduces the quality of the given product.

Food Products

Here are two tables showing the calculation of both cost price (CP) and selling price
(SP) for the three food products – Tomato Basil Toast, Fruit Salad and Filter Coffee –
given below :

Serial Cost Final cost

Food item Raw materials Quantity for 6 Total (in ₹)
number (in ₹) (in ₹)
Basil Leaves 400 per kg 200g 80
Tomato 40 per kg 200g 8
Tomato Basil Toast Bread 20 per packet 1 packet 20
1 130
(serves 6) Garlic 50 per 200g 20g 5
Cashew nuts 90 per 200g 10g 4.5
Butter 50 per 100g 25g 12.5
 Apple 300 per kg 300g 100
Banana 80 per dozen 3 bananas 20
Pear 180 per kg 300g 60
Fruit Salad Orange 15 per piece 1 orange 15
2 272.5
(serves 6) Strawberry 700 per kg 50g 35
Kiwi 580 per kg 50g 29
Lemon 15 per piece 1/2 lemon 7.5
Chaat masala 30 per 50g 10g 6

Coffee powder 60 per 50g 90g 120

Filter Coffee
3 Sugar 40 per kg 60g 5 207.5
(serves 6)
Milk 55 per litre 1.5 l 82.5

Table shows calculation of cost price for food products

In the above table, quantity has been taken to serve six people, since it aids us in
calculation. Had the quantities been taken for one person, there would have been more
decimals, leading to error in calculation.

Thus,
Total cost price for complete food package = ₹130 + ₹272.5 + ₹207.5
(for 6 persons) = ₹610

Therefore,
𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 6 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑠
Total cost price for one person = 6
610
= 6
= ₹101.6667 (which can be rounded off to
₹102)

Here is the table for the selling price :

Cost Price for one Average market Final Selling Price (in
S. No. Food item
person (in ₹) SP (in ₹) ₹)
 1 Tomato Basil Toast 22 60 69
2 Fruit Salad 45 100 115
3 Filter Coffee 35 70 80.5

Table shows how selling price is fixed and calculated (15% above average)

Thus,
Total selling price for complete food = ₹69 + ₹115 + ₹80.5
package (for 1 person) = ₹264.5 (which can be rounded off to ₹265)

Thus, the total cost price of food is ₹102 and the total selling price is ​₹265. Since the
selling price is greater than the cost price, a profit is made.

Thus, profit per package= ₹265 - ₹102 = ₹163

Quantity

After fixing prices for the products, information regarding the customers of the food truck
must be gathered. Since this food truck breakfast service is for office-goers, three
offices are researched and chosen. It is necessary to have data on the number of
working days in each, along with the number of employees opting for the
breakfast-delivery service. Keeping all these factors in mind, the table below shows the
number of food packages delivered in a week:

Serial Number of days Total number of food

Name of office Number of people
number (per week) packages (people x days)
1 BSNL office 24 6 144
2 ITC limited 40 5 200
3 Wipro limited 26 6 156
Total 500

Table shows calculation of total number of food packages delivered in a week

Delivery Charges
 Using above information about the offices (customers) of the food truck, the delivery
charges can be calculated. However, the distance of the office from the food-truck
(kitchen) must be known for calculation of delivery charges. The calculation of the
distance is done with the aid of Google Maps. Additionally, since delivery requires hiring
of new employees and consumption of fuel, the service of a third-party delivery service,
Swiggy Genie, is used and all calculations have been made keeping their rates.

Note: the third-party service charges ₹30 per km.

Final charges
Serial Distance from Number of days Total
Office name (distance x days x ₹30)
number kitchen (km) per week (in ₹)
(in ₹)
1 BSNL office 4 6 720
2 ITC limited 2 5 300 1920
3 Wipro limited 5 6 900
Table shows calculation of total delivery charges

Staff Salary

Even though the given food-truck is virtual, preparation of the food packages everyday
requires staff members such as chefs and helpers. To calculate the salaries for the
entire staff, research into average salary for the respective positions is vital. Therefore,
ample research has been done before deciding the salary for each staff position.

Average salary Final Salary in

Serial Salary per No. of staff
Staff categories per month one week (in Total
number week (in ₹) members
(in ₹) ₹)
1 Accountant 35000 7000 1 7,000
2 Chef 13000 2598 3 7,794 19,804
3 Helpers 5000 1002 5 5010
Table showing calculation of total salary

Maintenance

The rates for maintenance and hygiene must be accounted for, since maintenance is
crucial for any business to function. Especially since the coronavirus pandemic hit us,
 hygiene and sanitation is necessary in food businesses. Thus, here is the table for
maintenance charges:

Cost of raw Charges per Charges per

Serial
Components Raw materials materials month week
number
(in ₹) (in ₹) (in ₹)
1 Electricity - - 6000 1200

Sanitisers 290 per litre

handwash 450
2 Hygiene dish soap 500 1750 350
mops 210
face masks 300

Table shows detailed calculation for maintenance

Thus, total maintenance = electricity + hygiene

= ₹1200 + ₹350
= ₹1550

Delivery Charges (selling price)

Now, the total amounts for the food packages, delivery, salary and maintenance have
been determined. Using all these values, the total cost price for one week can be found.
Cost price will include the prices for food packages (according to number of packages
per week), delivery, salary and maintenance while selling price will include only the
selling price for food packages and delivery charges. Delivery prices will be fixed 5
percent above the original delivery rates (₹30 per km).

Thus, delivery rates (at the selling price):

Serial Final price Final selling price

Office name Total
number (cost price) (5% above CP)
1 BSNL office 720 756
2 ITC limited 300 315 2016
 Serial Final price Final selling price
Office name Total
number (cost price) (5% above CP)
3 Wipro limited 900 945

Table shows fixing and calculation of delivery charges (selling price)

Profit / Loss

Now that all values have been calculated for determining the cost price as well as the
selling price, the total gain or loss can be evaluated weekly.

It is to be noted that this value of gain or loss is evaluated considering that there are no
cancellations of orders, or any mishaps taking place in regard with the preparation of
food or delivery. However, for the given purposes, discrepancies such as these will not
be considered and a single, perfect value will be calculated.

Thus, here is the table showing the final cost and selling price :

COST PRICE SELLING PRICE

Unitary price Final Price Final Price

Components Quantity Office name Food price per week Delivery
(in ₹) (in ₹) (in ₹)

Final
Quantity (265 x quantity)

food products ₹102 500 51000 BSNL office 144 38160 756 38916
delivery ₹30 64 1920 ITC limited 200 53000 315 53315
salary - - 19804 Wipro limited 156 41340 945 42285
maintenance - - 1550

TOTAL 74274 TOTAL 134516

Thus, the final cost price is ₹74274 and the final selling price is ₹134516

Since 74274 < 134516, a profit is made.

Profit = selling price - cost price
= ₹134516 - ₹74274 = ₹60242

𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑓𝑖𝑡
Profit percentage =
𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑃𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑒
× 100 %

60242
=
74274
× 100 % = 81.107%

Thus, ₹60,242 is gained, making a profit of 81.1% weekly.

The factors involved in determining the cost and selling price are as followed:

Cost price - factors involved

 Selling price - factors involved

The profit earned weekly, as calculated, has been graphically represented below:
Reflection

This project helps us gain an insight into how concepts of unitary method, profit and
loss, average, approximation etc. are applied into real world scenarios. Thorough
market research was done before starting this project, to gain knowledge about how
other similar businesses fix their prices and the data gathered was applied into the
calculations done. This helped us realise the vitality of research before carrying out any
such business venture. Furthermore, since the profit or loss incurred was to be
calculated for only a week, all values in terms of days or months had to be brought
down to six working days in a week, strengthening the core concepts of unitary method.

After all calculations were done and the total cost price and selling price were found, the
profit was determined to be ₹60,242, which is a tremendous 81% profit. This shows us
that the goods are always sold at a much higher price than the basic cost value. This is
done because there might be a spike in the market price for the raw materials, and if the
product is not marked significantly above the cost price, the company can end up facing
huge losses. Thus, through this project, I understood the reasons and importance of
selling the product at a much higher rate than the cost price.

This project does have some limitations, the most apparent one being the assumption of
all products, deliveries etc. to be made perfectly, which is not the case in real life. More
often than not, orders get cancelled on some days, staff members take leaves, delivery
rates can differ based on petrol price etc. Such events can change the profit or loss
incurred at the end of the week, which has not been considered in this project. Since the
factors that were considered in computing the cost price were found through basic
research on the internet, there might be more elements that have not been considered
here, which is the second limitation of this project.

Conclusion

Thus, it can be concluded that a business venture of catering breakfast items to

office-goers generates a profit of ₹60,242 per week, considering all factors to function
flawlessly. It can also be concluded that any business requires the fundamental
concepts of mathematics – profit and loss, unitary method, average and basic logic – to
function.