Shoprite Group has revealed that it uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to predict sales at its stores.<\/p>\n
Replenishment orders are placed automatically to manage stock levels, simultaneously reducing food waste.<\/p>\n
The group includes retailers such as Checkers, Shoprite, OK, and Usave.<\/p>\n
Shoprite sustainability manager Sanjeev Raghubir said that the AI model uses various parameters.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor example, a store close to the finish line of an annual sporting event will automatically be replenished with additional convenience meals for that single day of the year,\u201d said Raghubir.<\/p>\n
He said that the best way to reduce food waste is to avoid it to begin with.<\/p>\n
Citing CSIR research<\/a><\/strong>, Shoprite noted that South Africa wastes up to 10.3 million tons of food each year.<\/p>\n \u201cFood waste is not just an affront to the hungry in a country where 2.5 million people experience hunger weekly. It also has significant environmental and economic implications,\u201d the company stated.<\/p>\n \u201cFood is wasted across the supply chain, from farm to fork. It is a complex issue, which is why Africa\u2019s largest food retailer has adopted systematic and comprehensive plans to address it.\u201d<\/p>\n Raghubir said that by optimising the product range in its delis, the group reduced food waste by 11% in that department.<\/p>\n Salvaging and rescuing food is a popular process seeing increasing use abroad, and it\u2019s another critical piece in preventing food from being wasted, he said.<\/p>\n For example, blemished bananas can be used in a banana-bread recipe.<\/p>\n Not all surplus food is fit for human consumption.<\/p>\n Every week, Shoprite sends around 44 tons of food waste, such as dried goods like pasta, cereals, and flour, to be converted to animal feed.<\/p>\n Last year, the group recovered 904,479 litres of used cooking oil from Shoprite and Checkers delis. This is used for industrial applications, including conversion to biodiesel.<\/p>\n Shoprite Group is using machine learning in its South African stores. It helps reduce costs and food wastage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":443234,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,16],"tags":[24178,35,12679,69020],"class_list":["post-443232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-software","tag-checkers","tag-headline","tag-shoprite","tag-shoprite-group"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443232"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=443232"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443232\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":443236,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443232\/revisions\/443236"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/443234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=443232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=443232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=443232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nNow read: Pick n Pay asap! vs Checkers Sixty60 \u2014 grocery delivery showdown<\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"