Problem Statement: Tackling Food Waste in Restaurants
Every day, many restaurants dispose of unsold but still edible meals, leading to enormous food waste and environmental harm. Studies show that restaurants waste between 4% to 10% of their prepared food.
This issue reflects a larger global crisis:
One-third of all food produced (1.3 billion tons) is lost or wasted yearly.
This costs the global economy around $940 billion.
Nearly half of all fruits and vegetables go uneaten.
Saving just a quarter of wasted food could feed 870 million hungry people.
Food waste emits more CO2 than aviation, plastic production, or oil extraction.
Despite the potential to recover value from surplus meals, existing platforms fail to fully meet user needs for trust, transparency, and usability.
Solution Overview: Rescuing Meals Before They're Wasted
I designed an app that connects consumers with nearby restaurants offering discounted leftover meals. The app aims to:
Help restaurants reduce food waste and recover costs.
Provide consumers with affordable, high-quality meals.
Empower users with transparency, choice, and a simple buying experience.
My Design Process
I applied the design thinking process. I conducted competitive analysis, surveys, and persona creation to understand the problem space, then developed the user flow, wireframes, and final UI.
Competitive Analysis
I evaluated three existing apps (two global, one local) and analyzed their features and user reviews. While they offer leftover meals
Users reported major issues:
Lack of notifications or irrelevant alerts
Unclear ordering process and poor navigation
No user reviews or photos to build trust
Stock running out quickly with no alerts
Poor quality control and lack of refund mechanisms
These gaps informed the key opportunities for a better solution.
User Research
I surveyed users to explore interest and concerns about leftover meal apps:
50% had never tried such an app but were open to it
82.4% were motivated by preserving food and grace
88.2% worried about food quality
94.1% valued meal transparency
Features users wanted:
Meal photos and buyer comments
Clear info on ingredients, quantity, and prep time
Order tracking
Persona
Iman (21, Student & Part-time Worker)
Goal: Save money, eat healthy, reduce food waste
Needs: Trustworthy info, fast ordering, allergy transparency
Frustrations: Time limits, rising food costs, food safety worries
Mohammed (35, Environmental Researcher)
Goal: Reduce carbon footprint, support sustainability
Needs: Environmental impact data, trusted sourcing, quick access
Frustrations: Lack of transparency, unsustainable food systems
These personas informed all design decisions.
User journey
To better understand real use cases and identify emotional highs and lows, I mapped out Iman’s journey as she looks for a nearby meal through the app.
Task: Find and buy a meal to pick up from a nearby restaurant.
Ideation
After understanding the needs of users, their goals, and the difficulty points of competing applications, work was done to produce the ideas necessary for the application to achieve its purpose.
Information Architecture & User Flow
I mapped the IA and user flow to ensure intuitive access to meals, filters, and order info.
Design System & Visual Identity
I created a brand identity emphasizing sustainability and gratitude. The Arabic logo includes a plant sprouting from the letter “ة”, symbolizing food preservation and eco-impact.
Conclusion & Lessons Learned
Food waste is a solvable challenge. Through this project, I learned:
Empathy and real-user data lead to better design decisions
Transparency builds trust, especially with food
A good user experience is rooted in clarity, speed, and purpose
This app is more than a marketplace—it's a step toward a sustainable food system, making it easy and rewarding for users to do the right thing.
