The José Andrés Group (JAG) officially announced on Wednesday its partnership with Copia, a technology platform that helps combat food insecurity and reduce food waste by distributing excess prepared foods to local nonprofits.
The global restaurant group, founded by celebrity chef and restauranteur José Andrés, is the first Michelin-starred group to partner with Copia. The move aligns with the restaurant collective’s mission “to change the world through the power of food.”
What does Copia do?
Copia simplifies the logistics behind the surplus food donation process. The tech platform enables businesses such as restaurants, corporate dining brands, and hospitality companies, to easily request pickups of excess prepared food. Partners are matched with local nonprofits to ensure the safe delivery of food donations.
Food waste has long been a problem. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, an international environmental advocacy group, up to 40% of the U.S. food supply is wasted.
That’s enough food to fill the 90,000-seat Rose Bowl Stadium every day. Meanwhile, data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that more than 47 million Americans live in food-insecure households.
Nearly 4,000 pounds of food waste have already been donated
The partnership between JAG and Copia has already proven to be successful.
Restaurants at three locations—the Ritz-Carlton South Beach in Florida, the Ritz-Carlton in New York’s NoMad neighborhood, and Mercado Little Spain in New York’s Hudson Yards—have been using Copia to distribute excess food to those in need.
Nearly 4,000 pounds of food have been redirected since the José Andrés Group started using Copia’s platform.
This has resulted in the distribution of 3,292 meals, the prevention of 12,165 pounds of CO2e emissions, and the conservation of more than 900,000 gallons of water, the companies said. Additional JAG restaurants in Washington, D.C., will soon begin redistributing excess food through Copia.
“Restaurants have the power to do more than feed people—they can fight hunger, fight waste, and fight climate change,” Sam Bakhshandehpour, CEO of JAG, said in a statement. “Partnering with Copia lets us turn that power into action.”
On Wednesday, Bakhshandehpour will lead a discussion at The Bazaar by José André in NoMad as part of the Fast Company Innovation Festival.
The discussion will explore how the restaurant group continues to innovate on its mission and how other restaurant groups and food businesses can make a difference, such as creating menus that minimize food waste and partnering with services like Copia.
Paige Lowe, vice president of customer success at Copia, will also join the event.