Glossary: terms from the food warehouse

B

Batch (lot): A quantity of goods produced or packed under the same conditions and carrying a common identifier (batch or lot number). The batch is the unit in whic...
Best-before date: The date until which a food keeps its properties when stored correctly. Goods in perfect condition may in principle still be sold after it, but many b...
Blocked stock: Goods that are physically in the warehouse but must not be picked — for instance because they expired, await a quality check or are subject to a recal...

Cash & carry: Self-service wholesale: business customers pick the goods themselves, pay and take them away. Many wholesale market businesses combine collection and...
Cold chain: Keeping the required temperature without gaps from producer to buyer. Quick-frozen foods must be kept at −18 °C or colder throughout; interruptions ha...
Cycle counting: Counting part of the locations continuously throughout the year instead of everything on one day. The warehouse stays open, and differences are found...

Delivery note: The document accompanying a delivery, listing articles and quantities. If it also contains the batches, it answers the key traceability question when...

FEFO: First Expired, First Out: the goods with the earliest expiry date leave the warehouse first, regardless of when they were stored. In food distribution...
FIFO: First In, First Out: what was stored first is shipped first. For food, FIFO is often not enough because a later delivery can carry an earlier expiry d...

Goods issue: The last station in the warehouse: packing, checking, loading and documenting outgoing goods. With the batches on the delivery note, the traceability...
Goods receipt: Accepting, checking and recording delivered goods. Quantity, condition, temperature, batch and shelf life are captured here — whatever is missed at go...
GS1-128: A barcode standard that carries further data alongside the article number using application identifiers — such as batch, best-before or use-by date. S...
GTIN / EAN: The globally unique GS1 article number, usually printed as a 13-digit barcode on the packaging (formerly called EAN). It identifies the article, but n...

HACCP: Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points: a system food businesses use to identify hazards and monitor them at critical points. EU hygiene Regulati...

Inventory management system: Software for purchasing, sales, prices, invoices and stock at article level. In wholesale it is often linked to accounting — it usually does not follo...

Order picking: Gathering goods from the warehouse according to a customer order. In food wholesale it decides delivery accuracy: a wrong line means a complaint, a re...

Pack unit: The packaging unit in which an article is traded — such as piece, carton, crate or pallet. Buying in cartons and selling in pieces requires a clean co...
Pick list: The list of lines to be taken for one or more orders. Sorted by warehouse route rather than order sequence, it noticeably shortens walking distances.
Pick-by-scan: Picking in which every unit taken is scanned and checked against the order immediately. A wrong article, wrong quantity or an ineligible batch shows u...

Recall: Taking back a food that may already have reached consumers because it is not safe. It is usually preceded by a withdrawal from trade. What matters is...
Remaining shelf life: The time a product has left until its expiry date. Many retail and restaurant buyers agree a minimum remaining shelf life on delivery; goods below it...
Reorder point: The stock level below which goods are reordered. For short-shelf-life products it is a balancing act: too high leads to write-offs, too low to shortag...
Return: Goods sent back by the customer. For food, it must be checked before restocking whether the cold chain and shelf life are still intact — otherwise the...
Route planning: Assigning deliveries to vehicles and sequences. For the warehouse it determines the order of picking and loading — what is delivered last goes onto th...

SSCC: The 18-digit Serial Shipping Container Code that uniquely identifies a pallet or parcel worldwide. It lets a whole pallet be received or loaded with a...
Stocktake: The physical count of all stock on a given date. For food, not only the quantity counts but also batch and shelf life; differences show where goods ge...
Storage location: A uniquely labelled place in the warehouse, such as a rack, bin or floor position. When every item has a place, it is found rather than searched for —...

Traceability: The ability to follow a food through every stage. Article 18 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 requires every food business to identify its suppliers and...

Use-by date: The “use by” indication on microbiologically highly perishable foods such as fresh minced meat or poultry. After that date the product is considered u...

Warehouse management system (WMS): Software that tracks stock by location, batch and shelf life and controls goods-in, picking, shipping and stocktaking. It complements the inventory or...
Write-off: Goods booked out, discarded or sold at a discount because of expiry, damage or quality issues. The write-off rate is one of the most honest indicators...