As part of its “Better Tomorrow 2025” initiative and commitment to reducing waste, Sodexo Middle East — one of the leaders in services that improve quality of life — partnered with Leanpath, food waste prevention pioneers, to introduce a new food waste prevention program called “WasteWatch,” powered by Leanpath (WWxLP). Sodexo Middle East will officially launch the innovative platform across 41 sites in the healthcare, corporate, energy, resources and defense sectors in Q3 2021.
Sodexo’s “Better Tomorrow 2025” initiative includes eliminating waste to landfills and a 50 percent reduction in food waste. To achieve these objectives, Sodexo has launched an environment-friendly platform, which is driven by AI algorithms that provide automated food waste data collections by measuring daily pre-consumer and post-consumer food waste, analyzing metrics such as weight, quantity and food type. 
The WWxLP collates data on food waste, identifying wastage areas, and shares operational and behavioral changes required to eliminate waste. The AI platform further enhances organizations’ food waste reduction objectives by using smart data to set waste reduction goals, which can be easily implemented within the operational processes. It shares in-depth real-time insights on the financial and environmental impact created by the food wastage.
Rachid Noujeim, CEO of Sodexo Middle East, said: “Sustainability has always been at the core of Sodexo’s values… We believe that a healthy climate and environment are of utmost importance to quality of life and human prosperity over the long term. I am confident WWxLP will support us to reduce food wastage substantially and contribute to a healthier environment in line with the UAE’s sustainable development goals 2030.”
According to the UAE Ministry of Climate Change, food wastage costs the UAE an estimated USD 3.5 billion per year. WWxLP was designed to tackle food waste while positively impacting social, environmental and operational efficiencies that would be impossible to achieve through alternative measures such as composting and food donations.
In Q3 2019, Sodexo Middle East launched a pilot phase of WWxLP in the UAE, which recorded 11 tons of total food wastage across five sites over six months.
