New technology is helping grocery stores dramatically reduce food waste, but that progress may also be changing the food supply available to food banks. A Fast Company investigation examines how artificial intelligence and other tools are helping retailers better predict demand, optimize inventory and sell food before it expires, reducing the amount of surplus food that historically has been donated to food banks.
The shift is already being felt by some food banks. West Seattle Food Bank, for example, reported a 10% decline in donations from its largest grocery partners over six years, representing more than 15,000 fewer pounds of food. At the same time, food banks are seeing demand increase and are spending more of their own budgets purchasing food. Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana expects to devote 50% of its budget to purchasing food this year, compared with 16% in 2018.