{"id":75817,"date":"2021-03-04T14:23:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-04T14:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/interac1.wpengine.com\/content\/%content-category%\/how-foodhero-helps-canadians-fight-food-waste-while-shopping-for-groceries\/"},"modified":"2025-05-30T10:50:55","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T14:50:55","slug":"how-foodhero-helps-canadians-fight-food-waste-while-shopping-for-groceries","status":"publish","type":"content","link":"https:\/\/www.interac.ca\/en\/content\/business\/how-foodhero-helps-canadians-fight-food-waste-while-shopping-for-groceries\/","title":{"rendered":"How FoodHero helps Canadians fight food waste \u2014 while shopping for groceries"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cFor me, it’s fascinating to realize that food waste is responsible for 10 per cent of the CO2 emissions worldwide,\u201d says Jonathan Defoy. \u201cIf it were a country, it would be the third-biggest emitter after China and the U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jonathan has been filling his head with interesting facts and statistics about food waste ever since he happened to catch a documentary about the issue one Sunday morning. The serial tech entrepreneur became so passionate about the problem that he decided to use his skills to do something about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Canadian<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

So Jonathan founded FoodHero, a Montreal-based company that leverages the power of the digital economy and a unique business model<\/a> to help Canadians combat food waste (and save money) while grocery shopping. \u201cIt\u2019s a free mobile app that acts as a secondary market for food that would otherwise be lost,\u201d Jonathan says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big wins: Using innovation to promote positive consumer behaviour <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s how it works: When participating grocery stores have food that\u2019s marked down \u2014 sometimes because it\u2019s close to the expiry date, sometimes because it just hasn\u2019t sold as briskly as expected \u2014 they list the items on FoodHero. Users of the app see all of the discounted food available near them. It\u2019s typically marked down as much as 25 to 60 per cent, Jonathan says. The food customers order is assembled for pickup \u2014 and diverted from ending up in the garbage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"FoodHero<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As Jonathan enthusiastically explains, the proposition is a \u201cwin-win-win-win-win.\u201d Consumers save money on food \u2014 and most of it is fresh; everything from steaks to seafood. Retailers receive revenue for product that would have been hauled away as waste. The environment benefits because less energy is squandered on food that never gets eaten. Governments benefit from FoodHero fuelling the digital economy using what would otherwise be garbage. And FoodHero itself benefits (and creates jobs), Jonathan says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thriving in the post-COVID digital economy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

FoodHero launched in May 2019 with a one-store pilot in Montreal. Already it has spread to 300 IGA and Metro supermarkets across Quebec.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Consumer<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

COVID-19 caused a setback along the way. When consumers were panic-buying food in the spring, it turned FoodHero\u2019s business model upside-down \u2014 grocery stores had shortages rather than surpluses, Jonathan explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That was a temporary problem, however.\u00a0Interac data shows that consumers are increasingly embracing the digital economy<\/a> during the pandemic. They\u2019re adopting delivery and curbside pickup services, as well as choosing contactless forms of payment over cash. And they plan to continue making some of these choices an essential part of their daily lives even after the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Businesses like FoodHero that cater to these shifts in consumer behaviour are poised to prosper as a result. With future plans to roll out across Canada and move into the United States, FoodHero is on track to expand aggressively in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What consumers want: digital wallets and debit<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To plan its growth beyond its proving ground in Quebec, FoodHero partnered with payment platform provider Adyen to find solutions for the next phase. \u201cWe wouldn\u2019t be talking if it wasn\u2019t for Adyen,\u201d Jonathan says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As well as being able to scale up, FoodHero wanted solutions that would reduce its transaction fees and enable customers to use debit in its app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The app now offers Interac Debit for In-App and In-Browser Payments<\/a><\/em>, so users can make in-app purchases via eligible digital wallets and pay with real money in their accounts. Thanks to the extremely high penetration of debit cards among Canadian adults, this is the ideal way for FoodHero to reach the greatest number of customers, Jonathan says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He says many customers simply appreciate having the option of paying with debit over other forms of payment. \u201cBeing able to use their debit card is something that consumers have been asking us for. So it’s exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By being able to divert food destined for the landfill into their fridges instead, more Canadians will become food heroes through their own choices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cFor me, it’s fascinating to realize that food waste is responsible for 10 per cent of the CO2 emissions worldwide,\u201d says Jonathan Defoy. \u201cIf it were a country, it would be the third-biggest emitter after China and the U.S.\u201d Jonathan has been filling his head with interesting facts and statistics about food waste ever since…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":98160,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"content-tags":[279,300],"content-category":[189],"spokespeople":[],"in_the_know_post_format":[169],"class_list":["post-75817","content","type-content","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","content-tags-interac-debit","content-tags-small-business","content-category-business","in_the_know_post_format-article"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFoodHero: Fighting Food Waste & Fuelling the Digital Economy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how the FoodHero app helps 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