Josh Domingues is the founder and CEO of the Flashfood app, which is now in select Rhode Island stores. It’s used by grocers to post surplus foods or items nearing their best-by date, as well as discounted items. Shoppers can then see the deals at participating stores closest to them, pay for items directly in the app and pick them up.
Domingues spoke with Providence Business News about how the app can help lead to reduced food waste, increased access to healthy foods at affordable prices for the marginally food insecure, recouped revenue for stores and additional food traffic.
PBN: Without the Flashfood app, shoppers would need to go store to store to see what might be available in terms of marked-down food nearing its best-by date, is that accurate?
DOMINGUES: That’s right. The app facilitates a quick and easy pickup that allows shoppers to avoid the line at regular checkout aisles and visit the Flashfood Zones located at the front of the store to grab their order. Purchasing items in advance on Flashfood helps shoppers plan their meals for the week, reduce time spent shopping and save on their grocery bill by showing them the lowest-cost food available at the store before they make their grocery list.
PBN: What social and environmental problems does the Flashfood app solve?
DOMINGUES: Each year, supermarkets throw away about 133 million tons of food, which is nearly $37 billion of loss. This is due in part to the fact that grocery stores have a surplus of food items that reach their “best by” date on a daily basis. Food waste is the single biggest category of material placed in municipal landfills across the U.S. – many [of which are] perfectly good food items. Flashfood has diverted more than 34 million pounds of food from landfills, which translates to 62.7 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions that haven’t escaped into the atmosphere.
Flashfood is a game changer for families struggling with higher food prices and shoppers who experience marginal or low food security. Flashfood also provides access to nutritious food, including meats, fish and produce at a lesser cost.
So, consumers benefit and grocery stores benefit from reducing “shrink,” recouping otherwise lost revenues and increased foot traffic while cutting their operation’s carbon footprint.
PBN: This seems like a great example of technology addressing a social and environmental cause, not only consumer demand. How did you come up with this idea?
DOMINGUES: I was inspired by a conversation with my sister, who was working as a caterer at the time. She called, saying that she had just thrown out thousands of dollars of food after an event was canceled. This phone call got me thinking about where else food was being wasted across the supply chain. I began researching and the more I learned, the more passionate I became about food waste.
After many months of reading and meeting with people across the supply chain, it became clear that there was a substantial opportunity to reduce food waste in grocery stores and supermarkets.
PBN: Take us through the logistics. Does a store mark down its food items daily or weekly and load selections into the app?
DOMINGUES: Posting items on Flashfood is a part of a participating store team member’s daily routine and there are new items listed in the app each day. The grocery store team culls for items reaching their best-by date in each department daily and when they identify an item, they scan the barcode and post it in the app for shoppers to see and purchase.
When using the app, shoppers can see available items at their nearest participating stores. For example, they may see a produce variety box – typically sold for $5 – in the app. They select the items they’d like to buy and complete the purchase within the app. When the items are ready for pickup, customers simply visit the store, store team members confirm the name associated with their order and help them grab their items in the Flashfood Zone.
PBN: Are there any new app features?
DOMINGUES: Users can view their total savings and the CO2 emissions they’ve saved over time while using the app. It’s a feature that users have found valuable because they’re able to see how much money they’ve saved and the positive impact they’ve made against climate change. In general, our focus is to bring Flashfood to more stores and shoppers around the U.S. and continue to increase food options available via the app.
Our stores have fun with all this, too! Our produce boxes are popular, and we’ve seen stores create themed boxes. For example, we’ve seen tomatoes, garlic and onions in a “pasta sauce” box, or pineapples and lemons in a “pina colada” box.
Susan Shalhoub is a PBN contributing writer.
