How Save Eat could save us from mountains of food waste

From Candy Crush to fitness trackers, the popularity of smartphone and tablet apps shows no sign of waning. Myself and two other students (Lourdes Saca and Isaure Tsassis) are studying on the MDes programme at the Centre for Competitive Creative Design at Cranfield. We thought we could come up with an app business model that also solved a social and environmental issue – food waste.

As part of our course, we had to spend a week inventing a company and developing its business model. We had realised a few weeks before that a third of the food bought in UK supermarkets is thrown away. The amount of food still edible represents £1.2 billion and this waste means resources used in producing, transporting and selling the food are wasted. We decided to invent a company that could tackle the food waste crisis.

We created Save Eat, a mobile app which helps users to manage their food consumption in a smart and delicious way while also reducing the food they waste. Our tutor, Dr Maarten Van Der Kamp saw real potential in our idea and here we are… we are really hoping that we can make Save Eat a reality!

Save Eat is an easy-to-use app and we’re hoping it will become your favourite new tool in the kitchen. All you have to do is take a picture of your receipt from the supermarket and the app records all your items automatically. Then, Save Eat sorts all your items depending on the expiry date, and it sends reminders and suggests delicious recipes for the food which is going to expire. It also proposes your shopping list and allows you to plan meals in the calendar. You will also be able to see how much money you save or waste, and set a budget for your grocery. Finally, you will receive advice to store your food in a better way to make sure it lasts longer.

As a result, you will:

• Reduce waste
• Save time
• Save money

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We’ve just launched this Save Eat promotion video and posted it as part of the #VOOM Competition, organised by Virgin, in order to win £250,000 ad campaign and £50,000 cash. To win this competition we have to be in the first 160 participants and then pitch our idea in front of judges including Sir Richard Branson. This would be an amazing opportunity to make the Save Eat app a reality. Please vote for us!

We are so grateful to be on this incredible adventure thanks to the support of Cranfield University and the Bettany Centre for Entrepreneurship.

Make your life easier. Don’t Waste It. Save Eat.