On-demand recipe service Gousto has launched its latest broadside against grocers, after a study revealed its meals produced 23 per cent less CO2 than shopping at a supermarket.
According to sustainability assessors Foodsteps, Gousto’s short supply chain and limited food waste means that each order saves 7kg in carbon emissions.
This means that it saved 40,000 tonnes of CO2 over 2020.
By sending out ingredients measured for specific meals, Gousto believes it creates “almost zero food waste” in homes.
READ MORE: Gousto to double workforce after revenue soars
Waste is also limited in company warehouses, where AI is used to avoid over-ordering.
Surplus food, which comes to around 1 per cent of total orders, is redistributed by FareShare, a charity that also works with Tesco and Asda.
“Gousto was born out of the vision to remove food waste from the system, a lot of which is created by inefficiencies in traditional grocery chains,” chief executive Timo Boldt said.
“Whilst we grow rapidly, we are committed to doing so with purpose towards our goal that every meal will leave the world better off.”
In 2022, Gousto is set to trial “carbon labelling”, displaying the carbon impact of each meal with the option to swap ingredients that have a large footprint.
It also plans to use more seasonal fruits and vegetables, which need less energy to grow.
Dr Isaac Emery, who verified the study, said it was “crucial for helping consumers make more environmentally-friendly food choices” and to “inform the wider industry where improvements should be made”.
The news comes after Gousto celebrated its first year of profit since launching in 2012.
One of the big beneficiaries from the e-commerce boom during the Covid-19 pandemic, its 2020 profit reached £18.2 million, up from a £9.1 million loss in 2019.
The company became a unicorn after a £25 million funding round last November.
