Creating an Airbnb for the food industry

Thanks to a grant from the U.S. Agriculture Department (USDA), Professor of Agribusiness Tim Richards is set to lead a two-year investigation on solutions to fruit and vegetable waste.

Tim Richards, who is also the Marvin and June Morrison Chair in Agribusiness, will head research to test online marketplaces and mobile apps to help farmers, restaurants, retailers, and households manage problems with food waste.

Richards, who teaches economics and the economics of the food industry, was interviewed by 91.5 KJZZ on July 27, 2017:

"The industry [sharing economy] is so young at this point," says Richards. "That's the value of the research we're doing for the USDA, and I think where they see the value, too. We're looking at whether these things are going to be viable, and whether that kind of business model can be extended not only to the obvious thing — taking the surplus produce from the field into a warehouse — we eventually want to look at whether this is going to be a solution for where most of the food waste is: in restaurants, in households."