Chef de Production

Chef de production is a kitchen leadership role focused on planning and supervising food production, often in a central kitchen, commissary, hotel, catering operation or large foodservice business. The chef de production coordinates batch preparation and ensures that food is produced to specification, on schedule and in the required quantities.

Typical responsibilities

• Translate menus, forecasts and orders into daily or weekly production plans.
• Organise batch preparation of stocks, sauces, soups, cooked components, desserts or other products.
• Assign tasks and supervise production cooks and kitchen assistants.
• Standardise recipes, yields, portion sizes and product specifications.
• Coordinate purchasing, receiving, inventory and storage requirements.
• Monitor food quality, allergen controls, sanitation and safe food handling.
• Plan packaging, labelling, cooling, storage and distribution when products move to other outlets.
• Track labour, waste, production output and adherence to schedules.

Production kitchen versus restaurant service

A production kitchen generally concentrates on planned batch work and the consistent preparation of components or finished products. A restaurant line kitchen focuses more directly on cooking and finishing dishes to order during service. Some operations combine both functions, so the chef de production must coordinate timing and product specifications with the chefs who finish or serve the food.

Skills and operational controls

The role requires strong organisation, recipe scaling, yield management, equipment planning and team supervision. Production records should identify what was made, how much was produced, the relevant batch or date code, and how the food was cooled, stored or dispatched. Any cook-chill, vacuum-packing or extended shelf-life process must follow a validated food-safety procedure and applicable local requirements.

Example: A central kitchen prepares stocks and sauces for several restaurants. The chef de production plans the batch quantities, schedules staff and equipment, checks quality, and coordinates safe cooling, labelling and distribution.

Chef’s tip: A production plan should be driven by actual outlet demand and storage capacity. Producing more than the operation can safely store or use simply converts labour and ingredients into waste.

Key distinction: A chef de production leads planned food production and batch preparation. A chef de partie leads a specific station, usually within a service kitchen.