Food for All Launches Social Campaign to Help End Food Waste

Food for All, the app-based marketplace for surplus food, recently kicked off a grassroots social pressure campaign following feedback from users that they want to see more restaurants in their cities take a stand against food waste. The campaign, #FoodForAllinYourCity, mobilizes users by urging them to connect with local restaurants through social media and encourage them to be part of the zero food waste movement. By partnering with popular restaurants, Food for All said it makes good on leftover food and offers fresh unsold meals to consumers every day for at least 50 percent off.

Global food waste is one of the leading causes of climate change. A recent study by the United Nations found that not only is one third—or 1.3 billion tons—of all food produced in the world lost or wasted every year, but if food waste could be represented as its own country, it would be the third largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world. In the U.S. alone, $160 billion in food is wasted each year.

“Food waste is overlooked in restaurants because it seems so small—five meals here, 10 meals there—but when added together, all of the food that is thrown away has major consequences for our communities, our environment and our planet,” said Sabine Valenga, Food for All chief marketing officer and co-founder, in a statement. “Although food waste can seem like an overwhelming problem to tackle, we believe in bite-sized changes. That’s why we are so excited for our users and people across America to join us in growing the movement with this campaign.”

Food for All partners with more than 250 restaurants in New York City and Boston, including fresh&co, Bread Bakery, Between the Bread, Nanoosh, Chicken and Rice Guys, Boloco and many more. The company is also a participant of URBAN-X, the MINI-backed accelerator for startups reimagining city life.

“With a shared commitment of providing affordable, accessible and healthy meals, we are thrilled to partner with Food for All and help take one step closer to zero food waste,” said Sandra Pope, director of marketing at fresh&co, in a statement. “Food for All is bringing a much-needed solution to the food industry to cut down on food waste, while also enabling restaurants to provide low-cost, quality meals to the masses.”

To be a part of Food for All’s campaign to raise awareness of the need to end food waste among local restaurants, individuals can tag their favorite local eateries with the hashtags: #FoodforAllinNYC or #FoodforAllinBoston for local restaurants in these two cities, or #FoodforAllin[your city], entering your local city into the hashtag.

“With the many cafes and restaurants in Boston, the app has helped narrow the list of quality places to try. I fell in love with Juliet through Food for All; I even visit outside of app usage for Sunday supper when 10 percent of proceeds go to a special cause, but also the food is just that good,” said Claire Remolano, Food for All user in Boston, in a statement. “This entire experience is why I am thrilled to support Food for All in their summer campaign—my fervent hope is that other quality restaurants will join the movement to send less food into the dumpster and instead into grateful bellies with modest wallets.”