New Delhi, November 22 (IANS). Technology can be used to prevent and reduce food wastage, which is a major challenge for India’s food service industry. Along with this, sustainable practices can also be promoted.
Food waste can reduce restaurant profits and increase environmental concerns, while millions of people around the world suffer from malnutrition.
Parthasaradhi Reddy Bokkala, principal consumer analyst at data and analytics company GlobalData, said accurately predicting customer demand is a challenge in itself, which is why restaurants prepare excess food and it ends up getting wasted.
“Small and medium-sized restaurants often have limited resources and experience, making it difficult for them to negotiate with vendors or find quality services that can help reduce waste,” Boccala said.
The report suggests the need to incorporate technology to tackle the problem of food wastage.
It said the adoption of technology will help streamline operations by helping in procurement planning and reducing wastage.
The report cites Zomato’s new initiative “Food Rescue”, which will help restaurants tackle the challenge of food wastage to some extent.
Another feature that will help reduce food wastage is the new order scheduling feature on both Swiggy and Zomato, the report said. This feature helps customers to order food in advance and receive it on time.
Meanwhile, it will help restaurants plan their kitchens better and avoid wastage.
Reddy said that while larger restaurant chains can use technological solutions to streamline their operations, smaller businesses cannot do so due to financial constraints.
“Online food delivery platforms will help small businesses overcome financial challenges to invest in technology,” Reddy said.
He said that although these technology innovations are still new, they have the potential to transform waste management in food service businesses.
–IANS
SKT/AS
