Tackling food waste with an app

• Author: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (European Commission)
• Pages: 34-35

SOCIAL INNOVATION: INSPIRATIONAL PRACTICES

SUPPORTING PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES

34

© ResQ Club, 2018

The location-based mobile app allows for people to f‌ind cheap food options that would otherwise go to waste

Problem addressed

Around 88 million tonnes of food are wasted annually in the

EU, resulting in an estimated cost of EUR 143 billion. In Finland

alone, about 120–160 million kilograms of food are wasted

by households (about 20–25 kilograms per person). This

waste has signif‌icant negative ef‌fects on the environment

as food waste depletes the world of f‌inite natural resources,

such as water, and contributes to global warming.

Innovative solution

The Finnish start-up ResQ Club has developed a location-

based mobile app that enables consumers to buy surplus

food that would otherwise be thrown away by restaurants,

cafes, hotels and grocery stores. The food is discounted by

30–100%. The chosen meals can be bought through the

app, using a payment card or PayPal. Once the transaction

has gone through, consumers are able to pick up the meal

whenever they want from a pick-up window without

having to wait in line. ResQ Club’s overall goal is to limit

the amount of food that goes to waste in restaurants and

reduce it down to zero.

ResQ Club adopts a franchising model but also operates some

market areas itself. Its management remains centralised in

Finland. All of the prof‌its made by ResQ Club are re-invested

back into the company, mostly for hiring purposes.

Key results and benef‌its

The benef‌its of this initiative extend both to restaurants

and customers. Consumers are able to buy food that is

close to its expiry date at a reduced price. Restaurants,

cafes and grocery stores are able to sell food that would

otherwise go to waste. The app has over 30 000 active

monthly users and, in the cities where ResQ Club is active,

sells about 70 000 portions of food each month. The app

has been downloaded 800 000 times and, so far, 7 000

restaurants, cafes and grocery stores have registered on the

app. According to one grocery store owner, daily food waste

at his store ‘has gone down from three shopping carts to

half a shopping cart5’.

Tackling food waste with an app

ResQ Club

Finland