How Saudi FoodTech startups are preventing food waste in the Kingdom
Food waste represents up to 40-51% of the total waste in Saudi Arabia. The average person in the Kingdom is estimated to be wasting more than 184 kg of food each year, amounting to 4 million tons of food, and costing the Kingdom US$10.7 billion annually. This is higher than the average per-person food waste of 163 kg in Arab countries. Preventing food waste is of critical importance to Saudi Arabia, and can be achieved through greater adoption of technologies, awareness campaigns, and implementation of initiatives that combat food waste and loss effectively.
There has been remarkable growth in the food tech ecosystem of Saudi Arabia, with startups acquiring US$555 million in funding between 2019 and 2023. FoodTech startups have been transforming the food industry through various innovative solutions, including streamlining restaurant operations to developing cloud kitchens. Among these many startups is Barakah, founded in 2022, which offers a platform for businesses to optimize their inventory and tackle food waste by offering green discounts to its eco-conscious customers.
Barakah’s solution is an innovative real-time surplus management platform for businesses in the food service industry to sell their unsold food, and for consumers to easily access reasonably priced and environmentally friendly food options. Since its inception, the startup has sold over 400,000 meals that would have otherwise been wasted. With partnerships with over 600 businesses, including local and global brands, Barakah is making significant strides across six cities in Saudi Arabia. With its success in combating food waste, it is now looking to expand to new GCC countries and further promote a sustainable and responsible regional food ecosystem.
Another Saudi startup contributing to the Kingdom’s efforts to reduce food waste is Uvera. Its main product, Aurora, is an IoT device that can increase the shelf life of fresh food by up to 97% on average. This is achieved by utilizing ultraviolet-c (UV-C) light-based technology, known for disinfecting water and destroying harmful microorganisms in liquids and food products. In terms of its functionality, a given food item first needs to be placed inside Aurora’s box-like device. After pressing the ‘start’ button, the 30-second process commences to elongate the shelf-life of the food item. Users can then store this in their pantry or refrigerator. Aurora is supplemented by Uvera’s mobile app, through which users can track their food inventory and predict potential food spoilage.
Startups like Barakah and Uvera are playing an important role in reducing the per capita food waste at both the household and retailer levels. In Saudi Arabia’s growing FoodTech ecosystem, these solutions are poised to drive positive change and enable customers and businesses to take necessary steps to prevent food waste in the Kingdom.
