Norway’s leading retailer of surplus food items
Holdbart at a glance
Holdbart is Norway’s leading retailer of surplus food items, saving excess products that suppliers are unable to sell to conventional grocery chains and retail outlets. Products that are discontinued, overstocked, nearing their expiry date or have old or faulty labels can be sold in Holdbart’s physical stores or on their website. These products are offered at a 20 – 90% discount compared to their original prices. This offers a sustainable solution for end-customers, as well as suppliers who would otherwise have to dispose of excess and/or expired produce.
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Impact dimensions
The challenges we face
Food waste is a significant and growing global issue. In Norway alone we wasted 400 000 tons of food in 2020, representing 1.3m tons of CO2e. Globally, food waste represents 8-10% of global GHG emissions.
of food wasted in Norway in 2020.
of CO2e emissions from food waste in Norway in 2020.
What is the outcome?
Holdbart provides a distribution outlet for products which otherwise would have been wasted, allowing for more efficient use and distribution of food which is already produced and ready for human consumption.
Who are the stakeholders?
Key stakeholders are end-consumers, who get a more affordable shopping basket while helping reduce food waste. Suppliers get a practical distribution channel, while reducing waste and economic loss.
How big is the effect, and does it last?
In 2021, Holdbart saved ~7 100 tons of food waste, implying ~20k tons of CO2e saved. Furthermore, it conducted ~1.5M transactions, supporting families, students, and other consumers in reducing their spending levels on groceries. Holdbart itself had internal waste levels of only ~0.5% during the same period.
If Holdbart didn’t exist...
Without Holdbart, a significant amount of food and retail products would go to waste which otherwise could have been sold to the consumer. As a result, individuals and families would spend significantly more on their regular grocery shopping.
Impact risk: what can go wrong?
Through its website, Holdbart manages personal data and contact details which must be safeguarded. Additionally, store employees engage in physical work and heavy lifting in the warehouse. To mitigate this, Holdbart continues keeping a strong focus on HSEQ routines and guidelines. Lastly, Holdbart does operate multiple physical stores with a respective carbon footprint but are deliberate in minimizing their environmental impact.
