The Shocking Truth About Food Waste: How Sustain-a-Plate is Changing the Game

Did you know that the largest contributor to US landfills is food? That’s because about 30% of the US food supply is wasted every year. The second largest contributors to this problem are grocery stores, restaurants, and food service businesses, which make up 40% of this loss. Within this sector, grocery stores themselves throw away about 30% of their food annually, generating over 16 billion pounds of waste. Not only is perfectly good food being tossed out, but millions of dollars in potential profits are going straight to the trash as well. Everyone loses out, even the environment (food waste accounts for about 10% of greenhouse gas emissions)!!

I know this sounds scary, and that's because it is—but it won’t always be this way. There are already a number of solutions in place to curb the issue of food loss and waste, including food donation banks, AI and dynamic pricing services, demand forecasters, and businesses that repurpose food waste. Despite these efforts, the problem persists, and that’s where Sustain-a-Plate comes in to close the gap.

Sustain-a-Plate is designed specifically to help grocery stores get ahead of food waste before it becomes a problem. Unlike many existing solutions that address waste at the end of the product life cycle, Sustain-a-Plate tackles the issue from the very beginning. By leveraging data from distribution contracts and invoices, our software keeps track of inventory and expiration dates in real-time. This means grocery stores can avoid overstocking, better manage shelf life, and dynamically price items nearing expiration—all without shuffling products into a discount section.

Our approach is proactive, not reactive. Sustain-a-Plate not only saves grocery stores from losing millions of dollars in wasted inventory, but it also helps them operate more efficiently while reducing their environmental footprint. Imagine a world where grocery stores can plan smarter, save inventory, and maximize profits by selling more of what’s already on their shelves. Sustain-a-Plate is making that a reality. If you’re interested in working with us, book a meeting with the team on our calendly or send us an email!

Sources:

https://www.rts.com/resources/guides/food-waste-america

https://www.usda.gov/foodwaste/faqs

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6723314/