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2018 Sharing Green Economy Company of the Year is the BITES foodie app!

After a comprehensive analysis, The Sharing Green Economy Company of the Year award for 2108 goes to the BITES foodie app!

https://www.bites.mobi/

Congratulations Roza Ferdowsmakan, founder of BITES.

This is a true self-sustaining ecosystem of foodie –> chef –> farm –> chef –> foodie –> farm

There are lots of shared resources within the BITES sustainable business model, leading to a greener planet, while generating revenue.

Well done!

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Bites Foodie App (www.bites.mobi) is a Sharing Green Economy business

Please allow us to introduce the Bites Foodie App (www.bites.mobi) as an example of a Sharing Green Economy company. Here is a description of this business followed by our assessment matrix.
Foodies + Chefs + Farms = Bites Foodie App 
So, what is Bites Foodie App? it’s a free mobile app for foodies…think Airbnb for farm-to-table dining experiences in your own home.
Here’s how it works: The Bites foodie app connects foodies with local chefs (professional chefs, culinary students, and home cooks) for in-home, farm-to-table dining experiences. These chefs support local growers by sourcing fresh ingredients from these local growers and then taking these ingredients into the home of the foodie to create a complete dining experience from scratch.
As part of the sharing green economy, the Bites Foodie App seeks to do good for people and the planet at three levels:
For Foodies: The people at Bites believe in making culinary adventures available at all budgetary levels so that more socio-economic levels can participate – inclusivity; the app is also about celebrating diversity through various people and cuisines that enter the foodie’s home – they seek to represent all cultures and ethnic backgrounds on this app through their cuisines; and the app is also about community building – neighbors cooking for one another; foodies connect with culinary talent in their communities and locally sourced foods, over meaningful, memorable, intimate dining experiences in their own homes.
They’re interested in getting more people to participate in becoming part of the sustainability solution. That’s why their app is designed to provide culinary experiences for all socio-economic levels. Bites wants to make farm-to-table a regular, normal way of life for everyone, at all budgetary levels. Many modes of thinking about how to change the food landscape are built on the “education” model of educating people about why sustainability is good for people and the planet. They take an entirely different approach. they want to engage people in the solution itself, making it fun and easy to support localized sourcing of our food. When people have farm-to-table dining experiences in their homes, they are giving jobs to people (professional chefs, culinary students, and home cooks) in their communities and they are also supporting local farms (because the ingredients for these farm-to-table meals are sourced from local farms by the chefs). So, people are becoming part of the solution without even knowing it. That’s the beauty of it. Once they become part of the solution, they are incentivized to continue on that path without separately being “educated” about it, as these intimate farm-to-table dining experiences are more memorable, meaningful and cost-effective for the foodies who are getting the ball rolling in this self-sustaining ecosystem of foodie –> chef –> farm –> chef –> foodie –> farm. You see, when a foodie reserves a chef’s services through they’re app, the chef goes to a local farm and sources ingredients and then takes those ingredients into the foodie’s home and cooks from scratch…during this dining experience, the chef talks about where he sourced his ingredients, designed to organically both educate the foodie and peek the interest of the foodie to go to that farm and source directly from that farmer. 
For Chefs: Bites believes in economic empowerment – jobs; professionals, students, and homemakers all generate an income with zero overhead, doing what they love doing – cooking – and sharing that with the community; these chefs set their own pricing, availability and dishes they want to offer — this is essentially, Airbnb for chefs. Chefs share revenue with Bites Foodie App as follows: 80% to chef / 17% to app / 3% to credit card processor.
Bites is interested in empowering the 99% to become masters of their own destinies. Bites believes in empowering the 99% with the freedom to work for themselves, generating an income for themselves with zero overhead, on their own terms…setting their own pricing, availability and menus. When people are powerful in their own lives and can take control of their own schedules and work, they are happier people and better with their own families, have improved mental and emotional health, and are better for society as positive, contributing members. Moreover, food is the most fundamental, most primal source of connection we have with other human beings. From an evolutionary perspective, we’ve always come together as families, as tribes, as villages, as communities, over shared meals. It’s how we bond most organically. This bond can be instrumental in helping our communities’ building efforts, and it can also be instrumental in sharing our stories, our recipes, our vulnerabilities, our concerns as human beings. Beyond that, chefs are the initial bit of glue between foodies and farms, helping foodies understand why it’s important to source locally – for flavor and nutrition, but also for stronger communities. When we eat farm-to-table, we are promoting seasonal, more nutritious, more flavorful sensory experiences, better health, and stronger communities from an economic standpoint, as our dollars are going to support local growers in our own communities, rather than going to someone growing produce in Chile, Mexico, or California. 
 
For Local Farms: Bites supports local growers by giving them visibility and encouraging chefs and consumers to source directly from these local growers. These farms include urban farms, micro farms, co-ops, backyard gardens, community gardens, organic, family-owned small farms, and Arizona wineries. Right now, the vast majority of local growers are not in any directory and they are not on anyone’s radar. As the vast majority of populations live in urban settings, it makes a lot of sense to give visibility to small local growers within urban communities, in a move toward sustainability and reduction of food waste, so that we can move away from globalized, commercial food production, which has no upside for people in terms of nutritional content and only adds to the global carbon footprint. By sending chefs and foodies direct to growers, Bites can increase growers’ profits and decrease their waste (in metro-phoenix, they currently spend upwards of $2,000/yr just to participate in farmer’s markets, and yet they end up not selling more than 50% of the produce that they harvested and took to these local farmers markets). Bites has made it easy for farms to participate: Farmers simply need to go to the Bites website (www.bites.mobi) and click on “farms & wineries” to create a free grower profile. They keep 100% of their profits. no one takes a cut from them. Bites wants to incentivize locally sourced food and support local farming. Food that is grown locally gets picked ripe, and thus develops its full potential for nutrition, flavor and texture, in contrast to food that is flown in, shipped in, or trucked in from anyplace else – fruits and vegetables that are brought in from out of state had to be picked unripe to make the journey, or they’d rot in transport. Thus, they actually have very little to zero nutritional content in them when you buy them at the grocery store. There is something very wrong with that model.
With the Bites Foodie App, the people behind Bites are injecting money and support into their own communities, into their own economy, making their communities stronger, more vibrant, healthier, more economically empowered, and culturally inclusive. To join their tribe as a foodie or chef…download “Bites Foodie App” on the App Store or Google Play, or visit their website: www.bites.mobi to participate as a local grower. Bites Foodie App is available within the entire USA.
They’re interested in giving visibility and support to local growers. Why? Because the future of our health as human beings is dependent on it. Right now, produce and fruit that is grown conventionally and/or has to be transported from location X to location Y, has hardly any nutrition in it. Why? Because it failed to grow in nutrient healthy soil and it failed to go through the full photosynthesis cycle. Additionally, food that’s brought in from elsewhere only adds to the global carbon footprint. Food that’s sourced locally is green and sustainable in that it doesn’t have to travel and it doesn’t have to get stored anywhere. Local farms can help us get healthier in sustainable ways…when Bites sends chefs and foodies direct to growers, those growers know that there’s a financial upside for them through the demand for their produce. They become incentivized to grow more locally for local consumers. This is designed to move us away from globalized, commercial food production toward localized sourcing of our food.
Our Sharing Green Economy assessment matrix for Bites Foodie:
Is it Green? Yes.
How so?
– Less transportation costs to ship commercial food production to local communities
– Less food waste
Is it Sharing? Yes
How so?

– The local gardens and farms that are utilized wouldn’t normally be ‘shared’; such as urban farms, micro farms, co-ops, backyard gardens, community gardens, organic, and family-owned small farms. Right now, the vast majority of local growers are not in any directory and they are not on anyone’s radar.

– Chefs bring their own personal pots and pans and cooking tools. They share their own personal schedule, their own pricing, their own menus they want to offer, and their expertise that wouldn’t typically be tapped into outside of their regular job.

– The Foodie shares her home, kitchen, stove, counter top and sink with the chef who uses those to do the meal prep & cooking.

Is it Profitable? Yes
How so?
– Local growers receive 100% of their produce sales (with less overhead from a food-to-table process)
– For the profit on cooking events, Chefs receive 80% of the profits, Bites Foodie App receives 17%, and 3% for credit card processing
We wish Bites Foodie much success with their business!

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Sustainable Triad

The Sharing Green Economy model is structured for sustainability by combining three attributes: Green Technology, Social Sharing, and Profitability. The combination offers triangular stability. Without profitability or some sort of funding, movements fail. Without society movements have no meaning, and without advancing a clean and sustainable environment movements lead to doom. If business entities, social movements and environmental campaigns include all three elements of the triad they have a higher probability of success and a greater value to all.

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The Sharing Green Economy Introduction

The rumblings of a movement are around us. It is the confluence of two well established initiatives: the sharing economy and the green economy. Startups that combine these two economies reap the advantages of market efficiency, environmental sustainability, low barriers to entry, agile development schemes, and social attractiveness. Sharing Green businesses bring together environmental responsibility, social connectivity, and high profit potential.

The Green Economy grew out of the ‘60s and ‘70s from authors and activists such as John McConnell, US Senator Gaylord Nelson, Dennis Hayes, Lester Brown, and Paul Hawken. It is the connection between business and protection of the environment. Businesses that embrace the green economy are said to be, “doing well by doing good,” a saying often attributed to Benjamin Franklin. It’s not a new idea, but it is an increasingly important one for the future of human existence on this planet. Initially, companies that embarked on green strategies did so at their own expense. They reduced energy usage by installing and paying for conservation measures such as energy efficient lighting, insulating buildings from exterior weather conditions. They recycled packing materials and office paper rather than sending them to the landfills. They encouraged employees to use public transportation or bicycles to commute to work. But rather than being an expense, these actions lead to an improved bottom line for many companies by improving their constituents’ attitudes toward them, by reducing costs, and by improving the health, welfare and retention of their employees. Amory Lovins coined the term ‘negawatts’ in his presentation to energy utility companies that they could make more money by selling less energy and incentivizing their customers to conserve peak energy by insulating their homes, using solar energy and buying energy efficient appliances. Today, programs such as LEED certification offer incentives for companies to conserve energy. Truly green companies weigh every aspect of activity and throughput against environmental impact always striving for a positive impact.

The Sharing Economy also has a long history, but has only recently been identified as such. Agricultural industry co-ops are a longstanding and worldwide practice. Farmers pool resources to optimize mutual benefit. They share machinery, bulk purchase inputs such as seed, fertilizer and livestock, and establish credit unions to finance their operations. Whereas conventional business models strive to maximize profit, cooperatives strive to optimize participant benefits. Agricultural coops are just one example. Sharing initiatives have exploded with the dawn of the Internet.

The driving force of the sharing economy is peer-to-peer communication and activity without, or with very minimal filtering through, intermediaries. Craigslist is a prime example of a sharing business model that has revolutionized peer-to-peer sales and communications that had been the realm of classified advertising, a key profit center for local newspapers. Craigslist allows sellers to post ads and buyers to search for things they want to buy. The service is free to most sellers and all buyers and is financed by charging for employment ads in some metropolitan areas. Craigslist was started as an electronic bulletin board in 1995 by founder Craig Newmark. It was started as a list sent out to some of his friends in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has since morphed into the the leading classified ad resource with more than 20 billion page views per month. Peer-to-peer sharing enabled by the Internet has forced the redefinition of almost every industry. The music and entertainment industry initially only fought peer-to-peer sharing such as LimeWire and Napster, but has now added its own instant sharing mechanisms to retake some of the profits lost through illegal sharing. Craigslist has crushed newspaper classified advertising.

Other key aspects of the sharing economy are collaborative consumerism, the concentration of diffuse markets, immediate reporting of negative and positive performance, rapid expansion of business models to new markets, and crowdsourcing.

The Sharing-Green Economy is the combination of environmental protection and peer-to-peer collaboration in businesses that create value for their owners. When we deliberately impart the green and sharing premises on the strategy of a business startup we get an environmentally sustainable company that is enabled by peer-to-peer transactions by engaging the efficiency of social media. These companies are a win-win for society, but they do have the potential to be disruptive to incumbents.

Ride sharing companies such as Uber and Lyft could be considered sharing-green companies. Uber and Lyft match partner-drivers with riders. Partner-drivers using their own late-model vehicles are hailed via a smartphone app. One of the hailed partner-drivers accepts the hail and the rider is notified. The match is made. Uber riders remark that Uber wait times are often only one tenth of that for traditional cabs. The standard rates are less, and the cars are newer, cleaner, and smell better. A few environmentally sustainable aspects to Uber is that Uber cars are required to be relatively new, and that translates to better emissions and fuel consumption. While cab companies lease their vehicles to their drivers on a daily basis, they have no great incentive to provide newer vehicles. The cabbies pay for the fuel they use. Traditional cabs and Uber are single-rider rides that require not only the point-to-point automobile miles but also the miles to the rider pickup point and home port for the cab or Uber driver at the end of the shift. These extra miles add to the carbon footprint of each ride and therefore have a negative impact on the environment relative to the rider instead driving his or her own car. UberPool, a newly implemented program,  in some large metro areas matches riders by pick up locations and destinations so that they can share a ride and decrease their individual costs, decreasing traffic, and decreasing environmental impact.

Sharing-Green companies reduce environmental impact, optimize social involvement and create a vein of profit for the business owners. A few examples of green-sharing companies are NearBuyer.com and CloserOffice.com. These companies were deliberately cast in the mold of green sharing. Their ultimate goal is to help individuals reduce driving miles and commuting time by helping them work closer to where they live. NearBuyer matches home-owners who currently work far from where they live, requiring long commute times, with homeowners going in the opposite direction. In most large metropolitan areas, residential areas and commercial areas are interspersed, but many people don’t work near where they live. They commute across town to their jobs. NearBuyer matches homeowners who could trade homes to be closer their respective jobs. Home owner A lives across town from his office at Business A, and homeowner B lives across town from his office at Business B, but Homeowner A lives close to Business B, and Homeowner B lives next to Business A. If Homeowner A and Homeowner B traded homes, they could both walk to work. The probability of this situation is relatively small, but that is where the marketing potential of the Internet shines its brightest: the concentration of diffuse markets, bringing together participants who would not otherwise be able to find each other. Using big data tools like Zillow.com and the matching of peer provided criteria, these low probability situations can be a very valuable win-win for the participants, and it doesn’t only work for two-party matches, it could also for 3 or 4 party matches as well. Once the match is made, the homeowners decide whether or not to ‘trade’ homes. These transactions still required title companies and real estate professionals to complete the transactions, and it’s these stakeholders who are expected to fund the operations of NearBuyer.

CloserOffice is a similar concept that matches surplus office space with workers who are looking for a temporary place to hang their hats and get to work. Due to greater efficiencies or other downsizing efforts many companies are left with empty offices. Individuals who need a temporary office or are self-employed and don’t want to work from home need office space and resources like conference rooms, copiers, even receptionist services. Again, the key is matching diffuse resources with those who could best use them. Say, for instance, that a local newspaper company that expanded operations just before the Internet boom has since laid off half of its staff. It has dozens of empty offices that it could lease out to individuals or even to nearby companies.

This also has potential for lean agile scrum teams that need to separate from their parent companies so that they may remain independent of traditional institutional resistance.

CloserOffice and NearBuyer have the potential to decrease traffic, save time and energy, and provide income to their implementation teams. They are driven by community involvement and protect the environment by decreasing the carbon footprint of commuters.

Today’s chaotic political climate with its attack on environmental regulation, the efficiency of social media, and crowdsourcing make this a time rife with opportunities to expand on these doing-good ideas, drive profits locally, and protect our ecosystem without relying on the government to do so. Sharing Green companies don’t need government direction or energy utility incentives to be successful. These lean organizations focused diligently on doing good can be successful and profitable and inspire others to do likewise.

 

Contact: mikeduwe@gmail.com