80%
Napa cabbage yields 80%
You buy napa cabbage by its whole weight, but you only plate 80% of it. That 20% loss is real cost the invoice never shows — here's the math.
Yield is the fraction of an ingredient that actually reaches the plate after you clean, peel, and trim it. What you pay is the AP (as-purchased) price; what it costs on the plate is the EP (edible-portion) price.
Coring, ribs, and bruised outer leaves are the loss. Weigh what you actually plate, not what you carry in from the walk-in.
Say your invoice shows $1.50 per head of napa cabbage (an example AP price).
At 80% yield, your real cost is $1.88 per head EP — because $1.50 ÷ 0.80 = $1.88.
AP price is illustrative; the EP figure is computed (AP ÷ yield). Use your real invoice price below.Yield breakdown
| As-purchased (AP) | 100% |
|---|---|
| Edible portion (EP) | 80% |
| Lost to trim | 20% |
Source: CIA Standard Yield Tables.
Common questions
What is the yield of napa cabbage?
Napa cabbage typically yields 80% edible portion of its as-purchased weight, per the CIA Standard Yield Tables.
How much napa cabbage is lost to trim?
About 20% of the as-purchased weight is lost to cleaning, peeling, and trimming before it reaches the plate.
How do you calculate the edible-portion cost of napa cabbage?
Divide the as-purchased price by the yield: EP cost = AP price ÷ 0.80. At 80% yield, the trim makes your real plated cost meaningfully higher than the invoice price.
Market readconfidence low · as of 2026-07-24
About $25.00–$35.13/carton (wholesale reference), down -5.6% over the recent window.
Higher than 11 of its last 26 weekly reads — around the middle of its recent range.
Cheapest in Los Angeles (~$18.50), priciest in Miami (~$52.00).
Hold. Inside its usual range — nothing to do.
Enter your price to compare it against this public wholesale reference.
One pricing methodology backs the level, and the trend leans on a single independent source.
Sources · 1
Sourced: CIA Standard Yield Tables, via the Plate Cost Calculator · what yield means · edible portion