[ food weyst ]
—
noun
1. Fresh produce that deviates from what is considered “optimal” (e.g shape, size, colour, etc.) and is often discarded during sorting operations
2. Foods that are close to, at or beyond the “best-before” date that are discarded by retailers and consumers
3. Quality, edible food that are unused and discarded from eating establishments and household kitchens
Yet, 1 in every 6 Australians experiences food insecurity. So we’re making this food more accessible and affordable to more people.
On average, food businesses bin over 100 kgs of food every week, over half of which could have been prevented.
Food waste from Australian restaurants and cafes produces the equivalent of almost half a million tonnes of CO2 every year.
When we waste food, we're also wasting all the resources that went into getting it on our plate. Land, water, energy, labour and more are what is needed to provide for our communities. In addition, the food production process comes with a heavy carbon footprint.
If food waste were a country, it would be the world’s 3rd largest emitter of greenhouse gases behind China and the US.
Food that gets thrown out into landfill produces methane, a greenhouse gas 20x more potent than CO2. This happens because food can’t compost properly in landfills. 1kg of food waste produces 2kgs of CO2e (Carbon Dioxide equivalent).
Food waste costs the Australian economy $20bn per year through the resources associated with farming, transportation, sales, disposal, etc.
Food waste is a lost opportunity to feed the food insecure. This has knock-on effects on people's quality of life and productivity in the economy.
Bring Me Home's mission is to eliminate food waste in the food retail space by making unsold food affordable and accessible to everyone.
The Bring Me Home app was created to connect you with your favourite cafes, restaurants, bakeries, grocers and other food venues who are looking to reduce their food waste. By offering quality, unsold food at affordable prices, perfectly good food at the end of the day doesn't need to get thrown out.
The company started in 2017 as Jane Kou's university project. Today, Bring Me Home is a tech company that serves thousands of customers in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, with plans to bring this food rescue solution to the rest of Australia very soon.
We're busting the myth that food waste is "business as usual" by creating a new normal.