Why and How Japanese Are Fighting Against Food Waste

COVID-19 AND RE-EXAMINATION OF FOOD WASTE

When the Covid-19 came into effect at the beginning of 2020, the supply chain was having a tough time, including the food industry. Numbers of restaurants were forced to close-down, and many people asked to stay at home. The market is disappearing and making the producers suffers. On top of that, the schools were closed, which made the suppliers left with ingredients for millions of school meals.

Shoin Shin, the CEO of InSync, straight away thought about the implication of the Covid-19 and had an idea to directly connect the producers and the consumers. Thus, they launched Wakeari, a service where those with surplus stock could list their products at a discounted price. In this service platform, producers could post product’s photos along with their heartfelt stories. One of the producers who live in Kyoto prefecture writes that he has nowhere to sell his chicken, and he feels sorry that he has to discard the chicken.

Last year in October, Wakeari joined hand with an organization that works in a similar cause, named Facebook Corona Shien. Both now merged as WakeAi, which has 360,000 members and is selling from premium quality beef to seaweed. Numbers of big food manufacturers are currently collaborating with WakeAi to prevent the stock from going to waste. The result was an online food bank that sent provisions to 200 single-parent households last January. This good cause will continue as part of the company’s social responsibility.

This pandemic has shifted the Japanese perspective on food waste, and it seems they are now more appreciating the art of mottainai. Food-waste was considered as part of the business, but now the mindset has changed. The indication is the increased numbers of online platforms that provide a similar service to WakeAi, with the amounts of registered buyers rising day by day. The question is whether this attitude will sustain after the pandemic passes.