Can sharing food change the world? Here’s why Olio believes community holds the solution
Liam Jones is Head of Revenue at Olio—the world’s first peer-to-peer sharing app that’s redefining how we think about waste, community, and connection. At this year’s EarthFest, we sat down with Liam to explore what “good food” really means in an age of abundance and inequality. From building trust between neighbours to shifting cultural mindsets around waste, Olio’s solution is radically simple, and deeply human.
Key Insights
👤 1 in 9 people in the UK report feeling always or often lonely – Olio aims to reduce food waste and loneliness through hyper-local connections.
🌱 Olio follows the food waste hierarchy, with human consumption as the most sustainable use of surplus food.
🤝 The platform has enabled not just food exchanges, but real friendships and even marriages.
📉 Olio is supply constrained, not demand constrained – people want to receive food, but getting them to share is the challenge.
🍞 UK households waste 800 million slices of bread a week – and Olio believes that is far weirder than giving your neighbour a lasagne.
An Interview with Olio — Your Local Sharing App
Tell us about you and what you do.
My name is Liam Jones. I’m Head of Revenue for Olio, which is the world’s first—and still only—peer-to-peer food sharing app. And I’m here today for Earthfest.
What’s your interpretation of “good food”?
Good question! There’s something called the food waste recovery hierarchy, which outlines the best way businesses—and to some extent individuals—can approach food waste. At the top is prevention: don’t over-order, only take what you need. Then, if you're a business, sell surplus food, ideally at a discount. If it still can’t be sold, donate it to charity—or to someone like us at Olio. Below that, you’ve got options like animal feed or anaerobic digestion. At the very bottom is landfill.
What we focus on at Olio is getting surplus food to people, because human consumption is the most sustainable use of food.
What have you learned along the way?
Here’s a slightly different stat that sticks with me—it’s about loneliness. One in nine people in the UK report feeling often or always lonely.
While Olio’s primary mission is tackling food waste and the climate crisis, I think what touches me most personally is the impact we have on social isolation. We help people connect in real life. You hear these stories: people getting out of their homes, meeting their neighbours, making friends. That’s the work I’m proudest of.
So the tech is really about enabling human interaction?
Exactly. Olio uses technology to facilitate real-life interactions. Our app brings people together to share food safely. But the magic happens on the doorstep—real people meeting, sharing, talking.
We put a lot of effort into making sure those interactions are positive. Unlike other platforms—Facebook, Twitter, for example—we take responsibility for the atmosphere we create. We use star ratings, ban bad behaviour, and focus on building trust so people feel safe and welcome.
It’s almost like there’s a code of behaviour built in.
Yes! Exactly. That’s what sets us apart. Other platforms can allow toxicity to spread because it drives engagement—and you can sell that data to investors. But we think long-term, and we believe kindness and trust are more sustainable business models.
If you’re choosing between Olio and, say, Facebook Marketplace to give away a loaf of bread, our pitch is simple: you’ll have a better experience on OLIO. Our community is friendlier, our trust ratings are higher, and people enjoy the interactions.
Sounds like there’s a lot of storytelling waiting to be told.
Oh, absolutely. I can personally think of so many examples: people being grateful, friendships forming, even relationships. We’ve actually had a number of Olio marriages—people who met through the app and went on to get married. We love that. [laughs] That might be the next product—an Olio matching service!
What would you say is Olio’s biggest challenge right now?
We’re supply constrained, not demand constrained. Free food is popular—especially among people experiencing food insecurity. So we don’t struggle to find people who want to receive. The challenge is encouraging people to share.
That’s why we have a B2B arm—we partner with supermarkets like Iceland, Sainsbury’s, Tesco. If someone picks up food from their neighbour that still had a price tag on it five minutes ago, it feels more “legit.” And once they’ve had that good experience, they’re more likely to share food from their own fridge next time.
Our biggest work is focused on triggering that first share—because once they do, they experience the OLIO magic and want to keep coming back.
So is it about reach? Or changing behaviours?
Both. But mostly, it’s about behaviour change. That’s the hard part. The most innovative companies aren’t just selling things, they’re changing the way people behave.
We once had a Tube campaign around “being a weirdo.” It asked: What’s weirder? Wasting 800 million slices of bread a week, or giving a lasagne to your neighbour? The point is, the real weirdness is the waste—not the sharing.
Looking ahead, what’s your prediction for Olio’s space?
Depends how you define the space. In terms of the sharing economy, I think it’s looking healthy. Just look at Vinted - it was recently ranked one of the top two retailers in France. That’s incredible. Ride-sharing and second-hand platforms are booming.
When it comes to food sharing, though, it’s a slower burn. I’ve been with Olio for seven years, and every year we think, this is the one, where food waste becomes the headline issue. But it doesn’t happen overnight.
That’s why we need organisations, campaigns, and education—to keep raising awareness and pushing for systemic change.
Any final words on food sharing?
Just that changing behaviour is hard—but it’s also the most worthwhile thing we can do.
To learn more about how Olio is tackling food waste and loneliness through real-life human connection, visit olioapp.com.
Follow them on Instagram @olio.app for inspiring stories, community highlights, and ways to get involved.
