In a world where nearly 24% of all food produced goes to waste, the battle against food wastage has never been more critical.
The consequences of this wasteful trend are both financial and environmental, with food waste significantly contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.
That’s where food waste management come in!
In this digital age, there’s a silver lining to this pressing issue: a growing number of innovative technology-based solutions designed to help individuals and businesses combat food waste.
In this article, we will look at the evolving landscape of food waste management and provide a comprehensive guide to the most remarkable innovations tackling this global challenge head-on!
Let’s first understand what food waste is and why we must address this issue collectively.
The Issue of Food Waste: A Market Overview
In recent years, food waste has become a global concern, sparking the growth of dynamic industry solutions dedicated to reducing this complex issue.
According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 1.3 billion tons of food becomes waste each year.
This harsh reality not only puts enormous strain on our planet’s diminishing resources but also imposes a massive economic cost, with an estimated yearly financial loss of $1 trillion.
Furthermore, food waste has a substantial environmental cost of around $700 billion yearly and a considerable social cost of $408 billion.
What’s more, every year, an area the equivalent to 28% of the world’s arable land, or 1.4 billion hectares, is devoted to producing food that is eventually wasted.
This waste devalues agriculture and food production, exacerbates inequities along the food production value chain, and highlights discrepancies in access to nutrition.
When looking at localized statistics, the scale of the problem becomes much more apparent. In the United States, for example, food waste accounts for 30-40% of the total food supply, amounting to an estimated $162 billion.
Check out this video by AJ+ to better understand the massive food waste issue in the US.
Innovative Food Waste Solutions
In response to this pressing challenge, the food waste sector has flourished, offering numerous opportunities for innovative food waste solutions.
Startups and established companies have entered the market with a shared goal: to reduce food waste and its adverse impacts.
These enterprises have introduced cutting-edge technologies, innovative food waste products, and user-friendly applications to tackle food waste at every level of the supply chain.
From farm to fork, these companies are pioneering change, offering sustainable alternatives, and incentivizing consumers and businesses to take action against food waste.
In our exploration of food waste solutions, we will highlight three food waste prevention technology and organization solutions to address this problem head-on.
These are:
- Food waste apps
- Food waste start-ups
- Food waste organizations
Let’s see how these forward-thinking companies are leveraging technology to make a meaningful impact in their quest to curb food waste, save money, and safeguard our planet.
8 Best Food Waste Apps to Use in 2024
Below are the leading food waste apps aimed at helping consumers. These apps empower individuals to reduce food waste, protect the environment, and save money.
Too Good to Go
Too Good to Go has emerged as a pioneering force in the global battle against food waste. At the heart of their mission is a mobile app that seamlessly bridges the gap between restaurants, food retailers, and eco-conscious consumers in the local community.
This innovative platform creates a harmonious win-win scenario that benefits individuals and contributes significantly to our planet’s well-being.
Through the Too Good to Go app, sellers, including restaurants and food retailers, can divert surplus food from the brink of waste by offering it to nearby buyers at a substantially reduced price.
This approach minimizes economic losses for businesses and ensures that perfectly edible food finds a new home rather than landing in the trash.
Too Good to Go operates in 15 countries, rescuing over 100,000 meals from ending up in landfills each day.
This app is available for both Apple and Android users.
4.9/5 of 101k ratings
Kitche
Kitche is a kitchen management solution available on Android and Apple devices.This app is designed to prevent food waste and simplify the culinary experience.
By capturing a photo of your supermarket receipt, Kitche creates a digital inventory of your groceries, ensuring you never unintentionally double up on items you already have.
With this app, you can say goodbye to wasted food and unnecessary expenses as Kitche keeps track of your kitchen essentials, accessible anytime, anywhere, from your smartphone.
But Kitche doesn’t stop at inventory management. It also provides personalized recipe recommendations. Tailored to your dietary habits and preferences, Kitche suggests recipes that make the most of the ingredients you already own.
Whether you follow a specific diet or have unique culinary tastes, Kitche helps you transform your pantry items into delicious meals, efficiently using your resources while minimizing food waste.
3.7/5 of 70 ratings
Flashfood
In the quest to reduce food waste and help budget-conscious consumers, Flashfood has emerged as a beacon of hope.
This Canadian-made app, also available in ten US states, offers a treasure trove of high-quality groceries at great discounts.
Their mission is simple: to connect people with perfectly good groceries nearing expiration dates and ensure they don’t go to waste.
With the Flashfood app, you can access a real bargain hunter’s paradise. It identifies groceries near you approaching their best-before dates and makes them available for purchase at a significantly reduced rate. Plus, the convenience of in-app payments ensures a seamless shopping experience.
The Flashfood app can be found in the Apple and Android app stores.
4.8/5 of 28k ratings
Gander
Gander, is a pioneering app that saves you money on your food and grocery shopping and plays a pivotal role in reducing the staggering food waste problem.
In a world where eating well for less is a universal desire, Gander steps in as a game-changer. The Gander app makes it easier than ever to score fantastic deals on food marked with those coveted yellow stickers at local supermarkets and convenience stores.
This app is available for both Apple and Android users.
3.4/5 of 75 ratings
Karma
Karma’s core mission revolves around two fundamental pillars: reducing food waste and fostering stronger customer connections.
Karma mitigates food waste by offering surplus restaurant food to savvy diners at discounted rates.This means that perfectly good food that might otherwise go to waste finds its way to appreciative diners’ tables, reducing economic losses and environmental impact.
This app is available for both Apple and Android users.
4.8/5 of 2k ratings
Olio
Olio is not just another app; it’s a powerful tool that champions local sharing and plays a significant role in curbing food waste.
This community-driven platform, available via Apple and Android stores alike, empowers users to pass on items they no longer need to nearby individuals, turning the potentially useless into someone else’s ‘useful’ and, most importantly, helping combat waste.
While Olio covers a diverse array of items, its primary focus on food sharing stands out as a remarkable initiative in the fight against food waste.
Users can easily give away surplus food items, ensuring that perfectly good provisions don’t end up in landfills.
Whether it’s excess produce, canned goods, or bakery items, Olio provides a platform to redistribute these items within the local community.
4.9/5 of 49k ratings
Solution NoWaste
NoWaste’s allows you to manually input the expiration dates of the items in your fridge and pantry. Once recorded, you can activate notifications that gently remind you when your food is nearing expiration. No more forgotten items languishing at the back of your fridge only to be discovered after it’s too late.
But NoWaste isn’t just about personal food management; it also fosters a sense of community. The app includes a social media platform to share food waste statistics.
By showcasing your achievements and challenges, you hold yourself accountable and inspire others to join the mission of reducing food waste.
This app is available for both Apple and Android users.
4.1/5 of 683 ratings
Geev
Geev Anti-Waste Solution provides an app that empowers you to take action against food waste.
Do you have surplus vegetables from your garden? Are you going on vacation with a full fridge? Have you baked an extra delicious cake? Geev allows you to share excess food with those who can use it, fighting food waste effectively and effortlessly.
Join the movement to reduce food waste, one share at a time.
4.2/5 of 70k ratings
6 Top Food Waste Start-Ups to Watch Out for in 2024
The start-ups mentioned below demonstrate that innovation and collaboration can lead to meaningful solutions in the fight against food waste. Whether through technology, direct support to farmers, or creative business models, they pave the way toward a more sustainable future.
Phenix
Hailing from the vibrant city of Paris, France, Phenix is a food waste start-up that has been a trailblazer since its establishment in 2014.
This innovative company has taken a multifaceted approach to tackling the problem of food waste, and its suite of solutions leaves no stone unturned.
At the forefront of Phenix’s arsenal is a mobile app that empowers consumers to make a meaningful impact. With this app, users can purchase soon-to-expire, surplus, and other perfectly good foods that would otherwise be destined for waste, all at a discounted rate.
This solution saves individuals money while significantly reducing food waste by giving these products a second chance.
4.3/5 of 210 ratings
Phood
Phood is a US-based start-up that provides a tabletop solution for daily waste disposal. This company uses Artificial Intelligence through computer vision to help food businesses of all sizes reduce their food waste. Phood systems identify waste products and data, such as the origin and movement of waste inside kitchens.
This food waste data allows companies to analyze the root causes of food waste and prevent it before it occurs. This AI-powered technology provides real-time data, for instance, on when and how many products are put out. This data ultimately informs production and ordering practices and business owners to make sustainable and cost-effective decisions.
Copia
Copia is a for-profit start-up using technology to allow businesses (e.g., food management companies like Compass Group, corporate cafeterias, universities, hospitals, grocers, caterers, etc.) to easily request pickups of their surplus food, have it matched, and safely deliver it to non-profits in need.
With Copia, partnering businesses can seamlessly access significant tax savings, dramatically reduce food waste through data and analytics on surplus, and remove CO2 from the atmosphere, all while feeding their community.
TotalCtrl
TotalCtrl, a Norwegian startup, offers food inventory management apps for restaurants, retailers, consumers, and food banks. Their business software solution allows companies to improve their inventories with its automated expiration system.
The TotalCtrl platform uses automation and smart technology to make inventory tracking faster and more efficient. This digital solution helps the food service industry save time, cut costs, and prevent food waste.
3.9 of 36 Reviews
Dash-Water
UK-based Dash Water produces upcycled sparkling water drinks made from fruits and vegetables that would otherwise go to waste. The company sources its fruits and vegetables by partnering with Feedback, a food waste charity organization that helps Dash Water find farmers with excess supply of “wonky” produce.
Dash Water drinks can be purchased from retail stores and online via the company’s website. Consumers can also subscribe to Dash Water to receive drinks on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis at a 15% discount.
Full Harvest
Full Harvest is a business-to-business (B2B) marketplace start-up that connects farmers with food and beverage companies to sell their surplus or imperfect produce. The platform enables farmers to sell their entire harvest, including fruits and vegetables that traditional retailers would typically reject due to shape, size, or color imperfections.
Using the Full Harvest platform, farmers can reduce food waste and increase their profits, while food and beverage companies can access high-quality produce at a lower cost.
4./5 of 4 ratings
