ClearCOGS

At a Glance

Industry

Internet, Software, Hardware and Technology Services

Project Types

Data Analysis, Food and Agriculture

Year

2024

Location

Summary

McKenzie Huneke quantified emission savings and socio-environmental cost impact reductions based on food waste prevention.

Goals

Foodservice providers face challenges in forecasting how much food to prepare to meet daily demand. Overproduction, bulk purchase errors, and improper storage contribute to food waste accumulation in landfills and substantial greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. ClearCOGS is an AI-powered technology for restaurants to forecast daily preparation, stock, and staffing to increase profitability and prevent food waste before it is created. ClearCOGS engaged McKenzie Huneke to quantify greenhouse gas reductions resulting from food waste prevention for ClearCOGS customer restaurants.

Solutions

Huneke approached the challenge using a three-part process: 1. Identify datasets and applicable emissions factors to calculate emissions based on food waste prevention. After reviewing ClearCOGS datasets and related regional food supply chains, Huneke selected emissions factors from ReFED, WRAP, and Hestia. 2. Quantify emissions based on food waste prevention by integrating ClearCOGS datasets and standardized emissions factors. Huneke found that ClearCOGS helps to prevent between 2.90 - 4.48 tons of CO2eq monthly, depending on ingredient types, per restaurant location. 3. Propose a way to share emissions insights with customers and prospects to communicate the potential of food waste prevention. Huneke created an automated emissions calculator concept, including GHG metrics and related socio-environmental cost measurements of food waste, that ClearCOGS will build and launch.

Potential Impact

By creating a way for ClearCOGS, its customers, and its prospects to understand food waste emission prevention and socio-environmental cost impacts, Huneke helped the company to begin driving specific foodservice industry actions to prevent food waste at the preparation stage, reduce the single largest component of landfills, cut methane emissions, and decrease socio-environmental impacts. The project also reinforced ClearCOGS' innovator status. Prior to Huneke's work, no quantification of emissions reductions related to food waste prevention resulting from technology intervention at the preparation stage among foodservice providers had been conducted or published publicly.

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