A new project aimed at cutting food waste by helping restaurants sell their leftovers has opened in Moscow, the Village news website reported, citing the project’s press service.
In Russia, 17 million tons of food worth more than 1.6 trillion rubles ($25 billion) are thrown out each year, according to a study by the Russian Association of Electronic Communications (RAEC) and the TIAR-Center consulting company. According to the Eatme project, the amount of food products that end up in the garbage each year would be enough to feed 30 million people — more than the number of Russians living below the poverty line.
“The no-waste trend is growing rapidly in the [restaurant] industry, but there are no similar environmental projects in the Moscow market yet. We are the first ones,” Eatme founder Rudolf Ahn said.
The Eatme project allows people to buy leftover food from restaurants, cafes and bakeries at discounts up to 75%. Ahn calls it a “food rescue service.” People can purchase available food from partner restaurants through Eatme’s mobile app, paying for it through the app and picking it up at the restaurant.
The project, which first launched in St. Petersburg in May, says it has already partnered with 120 restaurants and saved 550 kilograms of food in Russia’s northern capital. It says it has 10 partner restaurants in Moscow so far, but two are currently listed on its website.
The Russian food-sharing market is still in its initial stages, the RAEC and TIAR Center study said. According to their estimates, 7,000 tons of food were saved in Russia last year thanks to food sharing.
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