One of our favourite things to do at Future Food Movement is find out what you, our community members are doing! Meet Matt Wampler, CEO & CoFounder of ClearCogs, a solutions provider to the restaurant community that harnesses the latest technology to demand forecast, avoiding food waste.
Why have you joined Future Food Movement at this point?
ClearCOGS is looking to engage with the restaurant and sustainable food community as we are a solution provider for the modern restaurant. The Future Food Movement’s mission and focus is a great way to help us achieve that goal.
What does sustainable food look like to you?
ClearCOGS’ goal is to be part of the solution addressing food waste and its global impact. It’s estimated that one-third of the world’s food ends up in landfills. All that food is not only wasted from a production and consumption standpoint but as it decomposes food waste, produces methane and other harmful greenhouse gasses.
Today there are some amazing companies addressing this problem from the redistribution, reuse, and recycle perspective.
At ClearCOGS, we’re addressing food waste with a different approach. We are a pro-active, preventative solution for food prep that gives clarity and authority to the restaurant operator. Using machine-learning and data science, we provide daily forecasts regarding the amount of food prep needed each day. Tailored demand forecasts minimize stress, waste, and ultimately give clarity around all prep decisions.
By combining ClearCOGS preventative tools with other redistribution, reuse, and recycling efforts, we’ll begin to see a decrease in the amount of food in landfills and create a more sustainable food system.
What is your biggest climate-smart food win to date?
ClearCOGS is still a young company and we’re thrilled every time we chat with a potential new customer. But the real reward comes when they understand what we do and realize how we can be of value to their restaurant. Seeing the relief in their eyes that ClearCOGS can take the worry and uncertainty of prep off their plate and provide an automated, systemized solution is gratifying.
What do you wish people knew more about, and where could they read up?
Food waste is a massive issue. More than ⅓ of all food produced in the world ends up in trash bins. Just knowing that and keeping waste in mind when cooking at home, shopping at the supermarket, or eating out can encourage folks to think about the food in front of them differently.
What do you hope to achieve in your career?
In five years I want ClearCOGS to be an integrated part of restaurant management around the world, providing clarity and efficiency.
What’s the biggest benefit of FFM to the food sector?
At this stage, we’ve found numerous resources focused on education and awareness regarding our food system. What is rare, and that Future Food Movement brings to the table, is community. A thoughtful, welcoming place to connect, support, and ideate with other passionate individuals about our food system.
Matt Wampler, CEO & Co-Founder, ClearCOGS
