Startup and VC Ecosystem Updates | Issue# 8 [November 19, 2024]
What?
Zomato has introduced Food Rescue to reduce waste from cancelled orders. Over 400,000 meals are wasted monthly due to cancellations. This feature allows users within 3 km of a cancelled order to purchase it at a discount. These meals are delivered in original, untouched packaging within minutes of being claimed. However, orders with items, such as ice cream, shakes, smoothies, which are sensitive to temperature and distance, or other perishable items, are not offered through the service. See more about the new development in coverages by Inc42 and Indian Startup News.
How it Works
The system alerts users within a small radius of the delivery partner holding the food. These users can claim the meal in its original, untampered packaging at a lower price. Customers near the original recipient would not receive these notifications for privacy reasons. A short window is provided to claim the meal, ensuring its freshness. Payments are shared between the restaurant and the original payer (for online payment), with Zomato keeping none of the proceeds except for government taxes.
Benefits for Stakeholders
Food Rescue is an initiative that benefits all of the parties involved. Restaurants get paid in full for the cancelled order and a share in the resale. The delivery partners are compensated for the original and re-routed trips, while the customers receive meals at discounted rates. The most important part is that Zomato is able to curb food wastage.
Focus on Innovation
The Food Rescue feature is a part of Zomato’s efforts to improve its platform and user experience. The company has recently launched a host of new features for its users, such as group orders, scheduled deliveries, and cash-on-delivery options. The company has also acquired Paytm’s events and movie ticketing subsidiaries. Other recent innovations include Brand Packs to reward repeat orders and build loyalty program for restaurants, ability to view the cumulative order count and delete past orders from history, priority deliveries at extra cost, helping customers make healthier food choices, and flexible payment options like pay later. The new capabilities reflect Zomato’s commitment to enhancing convenience for its users while driving long-term value for its partners.
Thoughts
Zomato, now a public company, is working diligently to uphold investor trust through continuous innovation. It focuses on understanding and addressing challenges faced by users, delivery partners, and restaurant partners. The foodtech giant’s performance has improved in the recent quarters on the back of such innovations and strong growth in its quick commerce arm Blinkit.
In a country like India, where a significant portion of the population struggles to secure two meals a day, innovative initiatives like Food Rescue are a game changer. The feature addresses a critical societal issue by redistributing food that would otherwise go to waste, providing affordable meals to those in need. Beyond its immediate societal benefits, the innovation also has a notable economic impact, creating value from cancelled orders and minimizing losses for businesses. Moreover, by reducing food waste, it aligns with global sustainability goals, making it a meaningful step toward a greener and more equitable future.
A big shoutout to the foodtech giant for leveraging technology to tackle the pressing issue of food waste and for leading the way forward. This initiative sets a strong example, and we hope other foodtech startups will join the effort to create a more sustainable future. We look forward to a day when no food is wasted, and foodtech companies and restaurants come together as a community to champion sustainable policies that redistribute surplus food to those in need.
If you are interested to learn more, feel free to check out this coverage by Inc42 and this article by Indian Startup News.
Thank you for reading through! I genuinely hope you found the content useful. Feel free to reach out to us at [email protected] and share your feedback and thoughts to help us make it better for you next time.
Acronyms used in the blog that have not been defined earlier: (a) Venture Capital (VC) and (c) Kilometre (km).