A manufacturer should disclose the following categories of inventory: raw materials, work-in-process, finished goods, manufacturing supplies, and packaging supplies. When some of these amounts are not significant, some categories may be combined, such as raw materials and supplies, or raw materials and work-in-process.
In addition, a manufacturer (and others with inventory) should disclose the method for valuing the inventory. This includes whether it is cost or the lower of cost or net realizable value, and also the cost flow assumption such as 1) first-in, first-out or FIFO, 2) last-in, first-out or LIFO, 3) weighted average, etc. If LIFO is used, the company must disclose what the dollar amount of inventory would have been if FIFO had been used.
