Bestbefore saves food at risk of waste by saving on groceries

The Bestbefore startup recovers food rejected by sales channels and makes it available to end consumers at discounted prices.

• Between damaged packaging, surpluses and goods close to expiration, part of the edible food stored in producers' warehouses is sent to waste.
• A waste that has an enormous ethical, social, economic and even environmental impact.
• The startup Bestbefore gives a second life to food that would otherwise be thrown away, purchasing it from companies and selling it at discounted prices on its online platform.
• Not only businesses and customers benefit, but also the environment.

Between poorly labeled products, surpluses, damaged packaging and goods close to expiry, some of the food stored in producers' warehouses is sent to waste even though it is still edible.A real waste, that Bestbefore startups aims to reduce.In fact, this reality deals with collecting "good" foods that would otherwise be thrown away and making them available to final consumers through a e-commerce which provides discounts from 30 to 70 percent.It is not only the manufacturing companies and people who benefit from it, but also the environment, considering that food losses they have a huge impact on CO2 emissions.

Food waste:an ethical and environmental problem

According to the report The Italy 2023 case ofWaste watcher international observatory, during 2022 the Italian agri-food supply chain has over 4 million tons of food wasted, for a total value of 9 billion euros.A paradox considering that, again in our country, 2.6 million people struggle to feed themselves regularly and that 9.4 percent of the population is in a situation of poverty.

Much of this waste occurs in company warehouses, due to various reasons, for example batches with a short expiry date, damaged packaging, labeling errors, changes in a range or surplus stock due to production or forecasting errors.In fact, to reach large-scale distribution, the items must comply with a series of requirements, in particular regarding packaging and minimum expiry times;otherwise the producers are forced to get rid of them.

Thus, tons of food that could easily end up on consumers' tables are thrown away, generating a huge ethical, social, economic impact.And also environmental, given that the resources that were used to produce them are also thrown away with them.There Bestbefore startups was born precisely with the aim of breaking this mechanism, reducing the share of goods which is thrown away needlessly when it could instead be destined for consumption.

The goal of Bestbefore

“Let's save the world one bite at a time!” is the motto of Bestbefore, which aims to save food discarded by the agri-food chain, involving both producers and consumers.Founded in 2020 by Nikas Bergaglio, the startup aims to fight food waste by offering anyone who wishes the opportunity to easily and conveniently purchase products that cannot be placed on the market through traditional sales channels because imperfect, expiring or surplus.Cheese, chocolate, pasta, rice, breadsticks, biscuits and many other items (including those for personal care) are given a second life thanks to Bestfore which creates a bridge between companies and people.

With more than 1,700 active customers, e-commerce has saved more than that in recent years 50 tons of food for more than 35 thousand kilos of offset carbon dioxide.

How the startup works

First, this innovative startup select with the company foods that are still edible but risk being rejected by traditional sales channels for economic, aesthetic reasons or due to the proximity of the expiry date.At that point he buys them and puts them there resells at discounted prices on its platform, delivering them directly to customers' homes within a few hours.

THE producers they have a economic return immediate, because they recover the goods destined for waste, collect the proceeds immediately and avoid the processes and costs associated with the disposal of the products.They can also communicate to all stakeholders their results in terms of reducingenvironmental impact, inserting them into the sustainability report and thus improving its reputation.THE consumers, for their part, they do the shopping at advantageous prices and at the same time they make a concrete contribution to the fight against waste.

Precisely because of its attention to sustainability and its ethical and social value, Bestbefore is part of LifeGate Way, the Italian ecosystem that supports and connects naturally sustainable startups.