Global annual food waste is both a social justice and environmental concern. These apps aim to reduce the 1.3 billion tons of food waste discarded each year. Whether your goal is purchasing surplus staples, sharing and connecting with your community, or monitoring your household food waste, these apps will be a great addition to your toolbox.
1. Too Good to Go
Ending food waste is the mission of Too Good To Go. The app connects users to food retailers, restaurants, and vendors looking to distribute their food surpluses. Any surplus items are heavily discounted for Too Good to Go users. This solution aims to cut food waste and decrease rates of food insecurity across the globe. Too Good to Go offers an educational hub where users can find helpful information about food waste, greenhouse gas emissions, and updates on food policies in various countries. Users of the app save money and help divert waste from landfills. The app currently hosts over 17,000 food surplus providers worldwide.
Users: 9+ Million
Cost: Free to Download – Price of Goods Varies
2. NoWaste
The NoWaste app is interactive and customizable to allow users to create digital inventories of their pantries, refrigerators, and freezers. To reduce household food waste, NoWaste has made it easy to catalog food items, sort them by expiration date, and plan shopping lists and meal ideas. The app allows users to track food waste by deleting food as eaten or expired, view statistics of monthly food waste and cost savings, hosts a community for users to share their experiences and tips, and offers educational tips that show users what foods have a high-waste risk.
Cost: Free Version, Pro Features $5.99 Annually, Pro Features $27.99 Lifetime Access
3. OLIO
Available in over 31 countries, the Olio app makes it easy and enjoyable to link up with neighbors and friends to share food, sell homemade goods, or borrow items. The goal of Olio is to promote community, divert waste from landfills, and create a more sustainable world; where more is shared than thrown away. Olio is easy! Users take a photo of their goods or items they are looking to give away or sell, add a description, and post when and where the item is available for pick-up. Other users can then interact with the post and send a private message to arrange meeting details.
Users: 1 Million +
Cost: Free