A new app is launching this month, which its developers hope will reduce the amount of food waste Guernsey creates, while saving people money.
SOS Food Angel has been set up by entrepreneur Hansen Canagareddy, based on similar initiatives in the UK and Europe.
It will allow cafes, pubs and restaurants to sell surplus food at the end of the day, while customers will be able to buy discounted snacks and meals.
Mr Canagareddy said the concept was “like supermarket yellow stickers, but for cafes and restaurants”.
People and companies could also pay for other people’s food if they wanted, through local food banks.
The not-for-profit is inviting people in the catering industry, as well as sustainability charities and Deputies, to its public launch at the newly-refurbished Duke hotel on 18 March, from 15:30 to 17:00.
Personal experience
Mr Canagareddy was moved to tackle the problem after witnessing extreme poverty growing up in Mauritius, including learning a close friend had previously been homeless.
Food and water came “top of the priority list” on his home island, he said.
“They come above education, above shelter, above everything… you don’t care about your health as long as you’ve got food on your table.”
Mr Canagareddy said about 1,500 tonnes of commercial food waste gets shipped off island each year to Hampshire in the UK.
He told Express: “We’ve got a bunch of people going hungry [in Guernsey], yet we’re paying to ship food off the island, rather than [making] a bit of money from it.”
Charities and some chains in the UK and Europe already offer surplus food to rough sleepers and people facing food poverty, he said.
“So my question is, ‘If others are doing it, why can’t we do it?'”
Easy to use
Business owners can easily add ‘bags’ of surplus food – from spare sandwiches to cooked meals – to the app towards the end of the day.
They then set up a ‘pickup window’ and a discounted price, so people know when the food is available and at what cost, with the app taking a small commission to cover costs.
Members of the public can see food that’s available near them, reserve a bag, and pay for it.
They then turn up at the cafe or restaurant, scan a QR code, and pick up their food.
Dignity
As well as alerting anyone who uses the app, people who are registered with one of the island’s two food banks would also get an alert telling them about new offers.
They would be able to download a QR code for free, paid for by a person or firm that had gifted a meal, and collect the meal.
“So the restaurant doesn’t know if they paid it or they got it for free,” allowing them to eat with dignity, he added.
Community spirit
As well as restaurants and cafes, Mr Canagareddy said he was also keen to speak to schools and the hospital about food waste from their canteens, as well as firms and high-net-worth people looking to support the initiative.
He said SOS Food Angel would initially need a smartphone or other internet-enabled device, but he was “looking at” lower tech solutions for people who didn’t have internet access or were less confident with technology in future.
Mr Canagareddy said Guernsey’s history of community spirit and helping each other out made it the perfect testbed for the concept.
“We could be the first, but I’d love to roll it out to Jersey and other islands and smaller jurisdictions,” he said.
Olio
Mr Canagareddy’s app will work alongside other local initiatives for reducing food waste that are already up and running.
This includes Olio which launched in 2018.
It works by connecting people with their neighbours and with local shops so surplus food and other items can be shared, not thrown away.