According to a report by Transitions Research, the United Nations Environment Programme predicted that India wastes 74 million tonnes of food every year. It was a huge loss when the country’s ranking on the Global Hunger Index in 2023 was 111 out of 125 nations. While the cultural values teach not to waste a morsel of food, India comes second to China when it comes to wasting edible items.
Taking a step to tackle this problem, Zomato’s CEO Deepinder Goyal has announced a new initiative by the Gurugram-based food aggregator platform. It has announced a ‘Flash Sale’ or ‘Food Rescue’ option for the cancelled orders. Despite all the stringent actions, Zomato has reported 400,000 cancellations of orders every month.
‘Food Rescue’ Feature On Zomato
This unique feature will address food cancellation which leads to wastage of a meal that could feed hungry people. The option will transform a cancelled order into a budget-friendly meal that nearby customers can enjoy.
Sharing about the feature, Deepinder Goyal posted on X (formerly known as Twitter). The post read, "We don't encourage order cancellation at Zomato, because it leads to a tremendous amount of food wastage. Despite stringent policies and a no-refund policy for cancellations, more than 4 lakh perfectly good orders get cancelled on Zomato, for various reasons by customers."
He mentioned that the top concern for restaurateurs and people in this business is to tackle cancelled meals to prevent the wastage of perfectly edible food. “Today, we are introducing a new feature (being scaled as we speak) – Food Rescue! Cancelled orders will now pop up for nearby customers, who can grab them at an unbeatable price, in their original untampered packaging, and receive them in just minutes.”
When the order is cancelled, and you are in a radius of 3km, you will receive a notification. Though time-sensitive, these notifications will allow people to get a meal at a budget-friendly price. Why time-sensitive? Once cooked and out for delivery, food has a short shelf life. To ensure you receive a high-quality package, you will have to respond fast.
Since beverages and desserts are time-sensitives, many of these dishes are excluded from this feature. Interestingly, vegetarian customers will receive notifications for cancelled vegetarian meals. The restaurant has also reported that more than 99% of the restaurant partners have agreed to participate in this.