How Smartphones Can Help Fight Global Food Waste

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Food waste is a global epidemic. In America alone it’s estimated that 70 billion pounds of food go unused and uneaten each year. But what if we could get the most out of our fruits and veggies before we toss them into the bin?

The first step is making sure we properly use what we already have. A new app called foodee promises to help users with just that by identifing whether food will soon expire and needs to be cooked, and if it can also be used in a handy recipe with other fridge-dwelling items. In addition, it also provides helpful recipes to maximize sustainability.

Foodee also comes with a produce scanner and scale that helps diners to peruse soon-to-be-expired food inventory and prepare meals with exact portions (preventing even more waste).

How it works is users scan “expiration date sensitive foods” or simply their entire pantry. After inputting data into the app, users can then select a recipe and the number of people they wish to serve. From there the ‘smart kitchen’ scale can guide them through portions and inredients.

Through their smart phones, users can also take stock of their pantries on the go and share lists and inventory with family members, friends, and significant others. The more information Foodee has, meaning the more you scan, the more indepth its “shopping lists” become. Another useful addition is the presence of the ‘fridge pal’ app, which provides “preset average shelf spans” for each type of food.

For those worried about opening an item and then forgetting about it (meaning everyone), there is also an ‘opened’ button on the scanner that lets people know they still have a perfectly good item left in the fridge. Basically, you now have zero excuses for not turning yesterday’s take out into today’s delicious meal.