Food salvaging to alleviate hunger and food insecurity: the role of mobile technology

ABSTRACT

This article aims to discuss the role of a novel app, called Food2Share, developed at New York University (NYU). The study describes the potential of the app to alleviate hunger and food insecurity and simultaneously reduce food waste. The app is an example of a digital marketplace, designed to connect stakeholders and local communities, to help vulnerable New York City populations to obtain food. The app will be instrumental in scaling up efforts to combat food insecurity and to provide safe and nutritious foods through widespread local community outreach. Lastly, the study discusses how the Food2Share app may be adapted for global settings- particularly relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Public Health Nutrition research group and technology experts at New York University have partnered to develop a prototype app, Food2Share, which connects food-insecure individuals with food establishments. Food salvaging is a strategy to recover food that would otherwise go to waste from restaurants, supermarkets and other food establishments and redistribute it to local food programmes and communities. The aim of the app is to improve and scale up food salvaging and redistribution efforts. To ensure that everyone has access to sufficient food, they must innovate by developing technology-enabled initiatives to increase food security and reduce food waste. Public-private partnerships can yield initiatives that can be replicated globally. Digital platforms need to be piloted to ensure that they are scalable and sustainable. Evaluation must ensure access to vulnerable, food-insecure populations. During the COVID-19 pandemic, with food establishments forced to close, many owners have risen to the challenge of providing food to those in need and to front-line responders through grassroots food-distribution initiatives. Scaling up these initiatives using technology and applying them to the global context could expand the efforts they have witnessed during the crisis. The Food2Share app is one illustration of a community initiative that connects food-insecure individuals with food establishments with excess prepared food and individuals willing to engage in helping those in need.