making a difference.
to a nationwide de-cluttering
trend à la Marie Kondo, but
adds that newspaper photos
of empty shop shelves at
the beginning of lockdown
helped people recognise that
food is precious.
Olio targets the place
where more than half the
UK’s food waste occurs: our
homes. “Let’s imagine that
instead of it being thrown in
the bin, someone else picks up
that food for free and doesn’t
have to buy new food that could
end up being wasted.”
That’s significant at a time
when reducing food waste has
been ranked by environmental
organisation Project Drawdownas
one of the most effective solutions
to the climate crisis (by reducing
CO² emissions). “We’ve achieved
the equivalent of taking 19 million
car miles off the road,” claims Tessa.
Large-scale action is neededtoo,
but Tessa believes in the impactof
the individual. She and Saashaboth
have a corporate background and
the app’s profit-with-purpose
business model has been designed
for rapid growth – the aim is togain
one billion users by 2030.
A new feature, Olio Made, enables
smallbusinessestosell
locallyviatheapp.SaysTessa:
“It’sbarmyforpeopletoship
theircraftsacrossthecountrywhen
neighbourscouldbebuyingthem.”
Oliogeneratescommission
throughlinkstoeco-friendly
productsintheappandcharges
businessestoredistributetheir
surplususingitsFoodWasteHeroes
programme.Thisfoodis collected
bythousandsofvolunteerswho
listit ontheapp.Theirreward?
Thegratificationofdiverting
foodfromlandfilltolocals– and
a 10percentshareofthehaul.
A dealtoserviceTesco’s2,
storeswasrecentlyannounced.
Peoplefromallsocio-economic
backgroundsusetheapp(giving
andreceiving),butit’snoticeable
thatitspopularityhasgrownin
responsetoa riseinpoverty.“Therearepeoplegoingthrough
toughtimes,andthey
tellustheyliketheapp
becausethere’snostigma
attached,”saysTessa.
ShelaunchedtheCook
4 Kidscampaignin
March,inspiredbyher
childrenaskingwhat
theirclassmateswho
receivedfreeschoolmeals
wouldeatwhentheschoolsclosed.
“Ithought:whydon’twegalvanise
ourcommunityandgetpeople
preparinglunchesfortheir
neighboursviatheplatform?”
25,000mealswerelisted,inspiring
a secondcampaign,Cook4 Carers,
tocaterforhealthworkers.CHRISTMASISCOMING
Thiswinter,Cook4 Kindness
willcontinueinthesamespirit.
“Christmasis a timewhentoomany
peoplegohungry,”saysTessa.
Cananapphelpbuilda more
locallyengaged,supportivesociety?
Tessais optimistic:“Ourobjective
is toconnectyouwithanamazing
neighbourwhoyoumightendup
buildinga lifelongfriendshipwith.”
That’sa hopewecanallrelateto.
DownloadOliofromtheappstoreor
usethedesktopversionatolioex.comGIVINGAND
RECEIVING
(FROMLEFT)
Thebrilliantly
namedSaasha
Celestial-One
(left)andTessa
Clarkeputskills
pickedupinthe
commercial
worldtogood
useincreating
theirfoodsharing
app;youcanlist
anyitemoffood,
frombreadto
vegtohalfa jar
ofcurrypaste,
thenanexchange
canbearranged“I was pregnant during the
pandemic, which left me feeling
isolated. After discovering Olio, my
husband and I began to feel supported
by a community – and we’re lucky
enough to have been given wonderful
baby necessities, too.” SARAH (APP USER)deliciousmagazine.co.uk 15