Social Impact - Food-ATM x The Surpluss

Food-ATM utilized The Surpluss platform technology to transform their approach to sourcing affordable ingredients for low-income communities. Through intelligent platform matching, they connected with FMCG retailers and vendors with excess food stock, enabling them to create 2,800 meals from just 150kg of surplus vegetables in their first week, while successfully expanding their reach to serve over 50,000 community members across multiple UAE emirates.

Social Impact in Food Security

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Waste Diversion Rate from Partner Vendors

The Problem: Limited Access to Affordable, Quality Ingredients

Food-ATM, a mission-driven social enterprise providing meals for low-income members of society from as low as 3 AED per meal, faced significant challenges in sourcing affordable, high-quality ingredients at scale. As a HACCP-certified business maintaining strict food safety standards, they needed consistent access to fresh produce and staples that met their quality requirements while remaining cost-effective enough to support their social mission.

The traditional procurement approach limited their ability to serve more people and create diverse, nutritious menus. Without access to bulk purchasing opportunities or surplus food networks, Food-ATM struggled to optimize their costs while maintaining the quality standards necessary for their community-focused operations. This challenge was particularly acute given their goal to significantly expand their reach across the UAE's lower-income communities.

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The Solution: Platform-Enabled Food Surplus Access

Food-ATM utilized The Surpluss platform technology to gain free access to a comprehensive network of FMCG retailers, distributors, and vendors with excess food stock. The platform's intelligent matching system connected them with businesses looking to redirect surplus produce, vegetables, and pulses at affordable bulk rates, creating valuable synergies that benefited both parties.

The platform enabled Food-ATM to discover surplus opportunities they wouldn't have known existed in the market, such as excess spinach cuts from Pakistan Supermarket during their pilot program. Through The Surpluss network, they gained access to multiple vendors offering competitive bulk rates and donation opportunities, allowing them to become more creative with their menus while driving costs down. The platform also facilitated partnerships with local manufacturers providing special discounts on fresh produce, including essential items like milk, creating a comprehensive supply chain solution for their social enterprise operations.

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The Impact: Scaling Social Impact Through Resource Optimization

The results of this platform-enabled approach to food sourcing created significant social and environmental impact:

2,800 affordable and innovative meals created in the first week using less than 150kg of excess vegetables
400 people fed daily through the Pakistan Supermarket spinach surplus partnership alone
Expansion toward feeding 80% of UAE's lower-income communities (over 3 million people) by end of 2024
Significant reduction in food waste sent to landfill from participating vendors

These numbers demonstrate how technology-enabled resource optimization can create scalable social impact while addressing environmental challenges. The partnership addresses the critical issue that wasted food accounts for 8% of all greenhouse gas emissions globally, while simultaneously providing consistent and affordable access to high-quality food for vulnerable communities.

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Client Testimonial: Mission-Driven Innovation

Ayesha Khan, Founder of Food-ATM, shared her experience with the platform:

"We soon saw endless possibilities during our first synergy with Pakistan Supermarket as part of the pilot. We sourced excess spinach cuts from them, which were used to feed 400 people every day. This highlights the huge potential for redirecting food waste on a national level, and we wouldn't have known these produce items were on the market if we hadn't used the The Surpluss tool. Through the partnership, we expect to feed 80% of the lower-income communities in the UAE (slightly more than 3 million people) by the end of 2024. I hope we can encourage new organisations to change the way they view wastage. We are looking forward to more synergies with companies who want to donate or provide competitive bulk rates for staples that can be converted into lovingly prepared meals."

Her words highlight the transformative potential of circular economy platforms in addressing both social and environmental challenges simultaneously.

"This highlights the huge potential for redirecting food waste on a national level, and we wouldn't have known these produce items were on the market if we hadn't used the tool."— Ayesha Khan, Founder, Food-ATM

Food-ATM operates as a mission-driven social enterprise focused on providing affordable, nutritious meals for low-income members of society across the UAE. As a HACCP-certified organization, they maintain strict food safety and quality standards while working to address food security challenges in local communities. The organization emphasizes innovation in social impact delivery, sustainable sourcing practices, and scalable solutions for community nutrition programs.