This Tool Can ‘Look Inside’ Fresh Produce to Cut Food Waste

The Ripeness Checker scans fruit and vegetables, testing their freshness without squeezing them, avoiding damage to softer produce such as avocados and pears. The scanner combines AI with a near-infrared laser which does not harm the food. It enables producers to give accurate best-before dates so distributors know which items to sell to stores and which to divert to food banks or sauce manufacturers. The Ripeness Checker was invented by OneThird, a tech company founded to reduce food waste. Globally, one-third of all food grown is wasted. That's around 2.5 billion tonnes of food waste every year. By 2030, this will amount to $1.5 trillion worth annually. 40% of the waste is fresh produce. One of the main causes is problems in predicting shelf life which can differ hugely between batches and harvests. The Ripeness Checker eliminates up to 25% of food waste along a supply chain. Watch the video to learn more about how we can reduce food waste using the Ripeness Checker tool.