In affluent Japan millions of tons of still-edible food waste are thrown away each year, evoking a sense of guilt for many. According to the agriculture ministry, 6.46 million tons of untouched food were discarded in 2015.
Entrepreneurs are now looking to use technology to tackle the issue, launching new online services that link restaurants with consumers wishing to buy food that would otherwise be discarded, for a much lower price.
Sosuke Uemura is president of Shifft Inc., which launched the Reduce Go smartphone app service on April 5. He believes the business should be driven by economic benefits, not just by the goodwill of the parties involved.