Too late, too far, too little choice: Why surplus food apps face challenges matching meals with takers

Onboarding larger chain outlets and franchises proved to be a challenge, as they often needed the app to integrate their systems and workflows. But this also meant options around customers were limited, leading to fewer transactions.

Timing and distance were also issues – users were less willing to travel far for food available later in the day. 

“If it’s 9pm, you would only go somewhere like downstairs, right? Like very close, you wouldn’t travel. You won’t go beyond one bus stop. Our golden mark is one bus stop,” he said. 

“So that was where we found that users start dropping off.”

A similar platform that has achieved more scale is Yindii, which was founded in Bangkok and launched in Singapore in August 2024. 

Businesses list unsold food in surprise bags at discounted prices and customers can pick them up during a collection window. 

The app had around 250,000 users by the end of 2025 and close to 400,000 by September this year, head of partnerships Terry Quek said. About 60 per cent of users place repeat orders, with such users accounting for around 95 per cent of all orders.

Despite this, it has also faced the challenge of matching supply with demand in certain areas.

“The better locations are the ones that are in convenient locations, that are near MRT (stations). That will definitely have a higher chance of a higher sell-out rate. 

“The ones that are in more (secluded) areas, you require a user to have a car to drive to, then of course the sell-out rate is lower,” Mr Quek said. 

Yindii is piloting a new delivery service, called Yindii Drop, where surplus products with long shelf lives would be sent to customers. 

James Cook University’s Professor of Strategy and Sustainability Adrian Kuah said convenience and the need to achieve sufficient scale and network density were among the key challenges faced by the platforms. 

While Singapore has a high population density that can support efficient transportation, the domestic market remains small, so a platform needs substantial participation from merchants and consumers to generate sufficient transaction volume, he added. 

While consumers may support reducing food waste, they could still be unwilling to travel far, accept inconvenient collection times, tolerate uncertain product availability, or purchase food perceived as less fresh, he said.

“Consumer convenience – particularly location, collection time, choice and perceived food quality – is therefore an important determinant of consumer demand,” said Prof Kuah.