Tag

order to cash

2 insights

Bullet bars showing inventory-to-shipments ratios in June 2026: food products at 0.82, paper products at 1.08, nondurable goods at 1.12, and beverage and tobacco at 1.89, each measured against the all-manufacturing benchmark of 1.48.

Food Manufacturing Already Runs the Leanest Inventory in Manufacturing. The Next Dollar Is Somewhere Else.

Food products carry an inventory-to-shipments ratio of 0.82 against 1.48 for manufacturing overall. The inventory savings are already taken, so the remaining working capital sits in the order-to-cash cycle, not on the floor.
Consumer Packaged GoodsBusiness Case & ROI
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A labeled diagram of six stages from materials through cash, marking finished goods as the stage holding 51.8 percent of food manufacturing inventory against 6.8 percent in work in process.

Food Manufacturers Hold Half Their Inventory as Finished Goods. Only 7 Percent Is Actually Being Made.

Census data puts 51.8 percent of food manufacturing inventory in finished goods and 6.8 percent in work in process. The working capital is not tied up in production. It is tied up in everything that happens after production.
Consumer Packaged GoodsData & Reporting
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