Maria's Food Service provides meals that nonprofit organizations distribute to handicapped and elderly people. The following is her forecasted income statement for April, when she expects to produce and sell 2,800 meals:

	Amount				Per Unit
Sales revenue	$	16,240			$	5.80
Costs of meals produced		12,320				4.40
Gross profit	$	3,920			$	1.40
Administrative costs		2,240				0.80
Operating profit	$	1,680			$	0.60

Fixed costs included in this income statement are $4,144 for meal production and $560 for administrative costs. Maria has received a special request from an organization sponsoring a picnic to raise funds for the Special Olympics. This organization is willing to pay $3.40 per meal for 300 meals on April 10. Maria has sufficient idle capacity to fill this special order. These meals will incur all of the variable costs of meals produced, but variable administrative costs and total fixed costs will not be affected.

Required:

a. What impact would accepting this special order have on operating profit? (Select option "higher" or "lower", keeping Status Quo as the base. Select "none" if there is no effect.)

Status Quo 2,800 Units	Alternative 3,100 Units	Difference
Sales revenue	$16,240selected answer correct	$17,260selected answer correct	$1,020selected answer correct	higherselected answer correct
Variable costs:
Meals	8,400selected answer incorrect	9,300selected answer incorrect	900selected answer incorrect	higherselected answer correct
Administrative	1,680selected answer correct	1,680selected answer correct	0selected answer correct	noneselected answer correct
Contribution margin	$6,160selected answer incorrect	$6,280selected answer incorrect	$120selected answer incorrect	higherselected answer correct
Fixed costs	4,480selected answer incorrect	4,480selected answer incorrect	0selected answer correct	noneselected answer correct
Operating profit	$1,680selected answer correct	$1,800selected answer incorrect	$120selected answer incorrect	higherselected answer correct

b. From an operating profit perspective for April, should Maria accept the order?