Start-up pitch: How Senoptica Technologies is fighting food waste with smart packaging

From farms and factories to supermarkets and households, food waste is a major issue at all stages of the supply chain. In fact, the United Nations (UN) estimates that around 13% of food produced globally is lost between harvest and retail, and a further 17% is wasted in households, food service and retail.

“Food loss and waste undermine the sustainability of our food system,” said a spokesperson for the UN. “When food is lost or wasted, all the resources that were used to produce this food – including water, land, energy, labour and capital – go to waste. In addition, the disposal of food loss and waste in landfills leads to greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to climate change. Food loss and waste can also negatively impact food security and food availability and contribute to increasing the cost of food.”

What’s more, food waste is extremely costly, with the World Food Programme (WFP) estimating the total cost of food loss and waste to be around one trillion USD annually. This places a huge strain on the global economy.

It’s vital then that solutions are found to the many factors contributing to food waste. And one of those factors is ‘use by’ dates.

Senoptica Technologies has created optical sensors, which monitor the in-pack atmosphere. This allows food manufacturers, retailers and consumers to monitor the freshness of food within its packaging, without having to rely on pre-determined ‘use by’ dates. This technology will also help to improve food safety as the packaging will clearly display when food is no longer suitable for consumption.

“Senoptica Technologies is a sensor technology and analytics company on a mission to reduce global food waste,” says co-founder and CEO, Brendan Rice. “Optical sensors created from patented food-safe ink that are easily printed into packs to non-invasively monitor in pack atmosphere.”