Hello BESTers,

I've posted about these before, but this week there was a flood of 
articles about food waste apps that have been recently developed.  It 
seems that using technology to prevent food waste is growing 
exponentially.  There are two main types of apps: ones that are used to 
educate consumers on when foods really expire and how to better plan 
meals, and ones that match unwanted food to charities and food pantries 
where this food can go to needy people.  I couldn't pick just one to 
share so I'm sharing them all.

The Pantry app was developed in the UK and helps prevent food waste in 
the home through helpful tips on planning meals and tracking expiration: 
http://www.newfoodmagazine.com/24394/news/industry-news/app-reduce-food-waste/ 
(A similar app was develop by the USDA called FoodKeeper)

Olio, also out of the UK, allows grocery stores and restaurants to post 
photos of unwanted food.  Organizations can see this and request to pick 
it up.  Think of it as a Craigslist for food: 
http://www.theguardian.com/media-network/2016/may/12/craigslist-uk-food-waste-sharing-economy-apps

Other similar apps include Food Cowboy, Froodly, and Cropmobster, all 
designed to match consumers and charities to unwanted food:  
http://www.eco-business.com/news/these-entrepreneurs-are-using-technology-to-turn-a-profit-on-food-waste/

Finally, in Chicago, a non-profit organization, Zero Percent, has 
developed an entire logarithm connecting food donors with charities.  
Read their story here: 
http://www.fastcoexist.com/3058544/two-computer-scientists-are-programming-an-end-to-food-waste-in-chicago

While technology won't solve all of our problems, it is definitely a 
valuable tool in the fight against food waste.

Have a great weekend,

Ryan

P.S. As if there weren't enough links, here is an update to last week's 
post with a report from the Feeding the 5000 event in New York City.  
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/05/160510-food-waste-new-york-feeding-5000-chefs/