Problem
Climate change is a major concern in our world today, and the production and use of food are significant contributors to this problem. This case study will take a deep dive into analyzing the impact of our food system, and impulse buying on the environment and explore potential solutions to address it. The study published in Nature magazine suggests that to prevent dangerous climate change, there need to be substantial reductions in meat consumption, particularly in Western countries, which will require a decrease of 90% in beef consumption, and replacing it with five times more beans and pulses. Additionally, the study stresses the importance of reducing food waste and how shifting to a 'flexitarian' diet could be beneficial in controlling global warming within the 2C limit.
Managing finances can be challenging, particularly during holidays like Christmas and Black Friday, often resulting in overspending and impulse buying, which can lead to financial stress and guilt. Additionally, individuals are often unaware of how much they spend on food, which also contributes to food waste. A banking app with a function that allows users to monitor and control their card transactions history, which includes food expenses, will enable them to make more thoughtful and sustainable purchasing choices, ultimately reducing financial stress and encouraging an eco-friendly lifestyle.
Challenge
Design a card spent history for a banking app to help people avoid wasted food in the fridge.
Research and background
Climate change is a pressing issue and we all want to do our part to help combat it, but often it can feel like the biggest changes are out of our control, like how electricity is produced or products are manufactured. However, there is one area where we have a lot of power to make a real difference: our diets.
As it turns out, the food we eat is responsible for a large proportion of our greenhouse gas emissions. According to Project Drawdown, one of the most effective ways to reduce emissions and fight climate change is by adopting a diet that is high in plants and low in animal products. This can help reduce land clearing, fertilizer use, and emissions from livestock.
But the benefits of a plant-based diet go beyond just reducing emissions. These diets are healthier for individuals and can lead to lower healthcare costs on a national level. Additionally, shifting towards plant-based diets is more achievable and equitable for developing nations, as they already consume fewer calories and less meat than developed nations.
The article discusses the impact of animal agriculture on greenhouse gas emissions and presents the potential of reducing emissions by increasing the consumption of plant-based foods as a solution.
The study estimates that if 50-75% of people adopt a healthy diet of an average 2,300 calories per day and reduce meat consumption overall, it could avoid at least 54.19-78.48 gigatons of emissions from dietary change alone.
The study also highlights the potential of reducing meat consumption by reducing tropical deforestation and associated greenhous. The solution of plant-rich diets also tend to be healthier than animal-rich diets and can be adopted incrementally with small behavioral changes. The study suggests that promising strategies for bringing about dietary change include making plant-based options more available, visible and enticing, and ending price-distorting government subsidies. The study estimates the total human demand for food up to 2060 in kilocalories per capita per year, using data compiled by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for 2013, and presents Adoption Scenarios in which it calculates the impact of increased adoption of plant-rich diets from 2020 to 2050 by comparing two growth scenarios with a reference scenario.
Early ideation phase and possible list challenges to face:
Difficulty in tracking food expenses.
Difficulty in identifying patterns in food spending and waste.
Difficulty in creating a food budget and sticking to it.
Difficulty in planning and organizing meals to prevent food waste.
Lack of awareness or motivation to make changes to food consumption habits.
Difficulty in finding affordable and sustainable food options.
Difficulty in remembering to check and use the food tracking feature.
Summary
From our research, it appears that one of the main problems individuals face when it comes to food consumption is impulse buying and food waste. This can have both financial and environmental implications. Our research has also highlighted that people can be motivated to make changes in their food consumption habits if it helps them save money and reduce their carbon footprint. To help address this problem, we have proposed a card spent history feature for a banking app. This feature would help users track and budget their food expenses, plan their meals and help reduce food waste. Additionally, we suggested providing options for plant-based meals and delivery options, as well as price comparisons to help users make more informed decisions.
Who could be the audience?
Categories of people:
1. People who are environmentally conscious and looking to reduce their carbon footprint
2. Individuals who are interested in a plant-based diet for health or personal beliefs
3. People who are financially motivated to reduce food waste and save money on groceries
Motivations and fears: wanting to reduce environmental impact, improve personal health and save money concerns about lack of availability and variety of plant-based options, difficulty sticking to a plant-based diet, lack of knowledge about healthy plant-based options
Potential situations: When deciding what to purchase for meals, at the grocery store. At home, when trying to plan meals or use up food before it goes bad. When eating out, when limited options for plant-based meals are available.
Digital Solutions
In this part we list all the possible features of the app that will be beneficial for both user.
Spending tracker: Allows users to track their food expenses by recording the amount spent and where they spent it. Users will benefit from this feature by being able to see where their money is going and identify areas where they may be able to save. The bank/app company may benefit from this feature by providing users with a better understanding of their financial situation, which may lead to increased usage of the app and more customer loyalty.
Budgeting tools: Users will benefit from this feature by being able to set a budget for specific categories of spending and receive alerts when they are approaching or exceeding their budget, which can help them better control their spending. The bank/app company may benefit from this feature by providing users with tools to help them better manage their money, which may lead to increased usage of the app and more customer loyalty.
Charting feature: Allows users to see their spending habits in a visual format, making it easier to identify patterns and areas where they may be overspending.
Spending goal setting feature: Allows users to set a spending goal for themselves and track their progress towards achieving it.
Suggestions/Tips feature: Gives users suggestions and tips on how to save money on food expenses, such as finding less expensive places to eat out or bringing more food from home.
Reminder feature: Reminds users to track their expenses, helping them to stay on top of their spending habits.
Progress tracking feature: Allows users to see their progress over time, motivating them to continue to make changes in order to achieve their savings goals.
Sharing feature: Allows users to share their spending data with other family members, friends, or financial advisors, making it easier to get support and advice on how to save money on food expenses.
concept design for introducing new feature inside the app
Holidays and impulse buying
The article "HOW TO AVOID HIGH CONSUMPTION AND FOOD WASTE 2022-12-06" is discussing ways to alleviate financial and environmental stress during the holiday season, specifically focusing on the issues of consumption and food waste. The author suggests skipping consumption that does not result in well-being, making note of which foods are often wasted in the household, and creating clear plans and budgets in order to avoid impulse buying. They also mention the importance of communicating with guests about food preferences and finding strategies that suit individual needs. Additionally, the article also mentions using a shopping list and waiting a few days to make a purchase to be more conscious of our actions. Researchers from Karlstad University share research on ways to reduce waste and save money during the holidays.
A budgeting tool integrated in a banking app could aid in preventing impulsive food purchases. Users could set a designated budget for food expenses and track their spending in real time, which could increase awareness of their spending habits. The app could also have notifications or alerts to remind users to stick to the budget or inform them when they are close to or exceeding it. The app could suggest alternative options or give the user a certain cooling-off period before completing the purchase. Another feature could be integrating a wishlist or cart functionality, where users can save the items they want to buy and track the total cost before checking out. Furthermore, the app could include reminders for meal planning, grocery shopping and other related tasks to help users plan in advance and minimize impulsive buying. Additionally, providing users with information about food deals, discounts, and sales that align with their budget and preferences could help them make more informed purchasing decisions.
Questions to ask before you make purchase:
Is this purchase necessary or am I buying it on impulse?
How will this purchase impact my budget in the short and long term?
Do I already own something similar or can I make do with what I have?
Can I wait to make this purchase or is it urgent?
Have I done enough research to ensure that this is the best option for me in terms of value and quality?
How will this purchase align with my values and goals?
Can I find a more sustainable or eco-friendly alternative?
Am I being influenced by sales or promotions?
How does this purchase fit in with my current needs and priorities?
How will this purchase impact my budget in the short and long term?
Do I already own something similar or can I make do with what I have?
Can I wait to make this purchase or is it urgent?
Have I done enough research to ensure that this is the best option for me in terms of value and quality?
How will this purchase align with my values and goals?
Can I find a more sustainable or eco-friendly alternative?
Am I being influenced by sales or promotions?
How does this purchase fit in with my current needs and priorities?
Personas
Based on the anonymous interviews we've conducted with 15 people, we created two personas.
Persona 1: Sarah, 25. Sarah is a 25-year-old working professional with a full-time job in a marketing firm. She has a busy schedule and tends to rely on eating out for convenience. She is aware of the environmental and financial implications of her food consumption but finds it difficult to make significant changes to her diet. She is motivated to reduce her food expenses and would appreciate a feature that can help her track and budget her food expenses. She is also motivated to reduce food waste and would appreciate a feature that can help her plan and organize her meals. Sarah is likely to be interested in a feature that can track her expenses, suggest plant-based meals, gives her options for food delivery, and enables her to compare prices and deals at different restaurants and stores.
Persona 2: John, 35. John is a 35-year-old father of two with a full-time job as an accountant. He has a busy schedule and likes to eat out with his family, but he's become conscious of the financial burden eating out puts on him. He would like to spend less money on eating out and more on family activities. He would like to be more conscious of the food he is buying and how much he is wasting. John would appreciate features that can help him plan his family meals, and track the food they eat. He would also like to have a feature that can help him to stick to a budget and suggest more affordable options for eating out with his family.
Competitive Background
Chase bank app has a budget tracking feature that helps users avoid impulse purchases by setting spending limits and tracking expenses in real-time. Neo Payment app also offers budget tracking and bill/subscription reminders. Google Pay, Apple Pay, and Revolut allow users to track spending by category. Flashfood, Foodeducate, Too Good to Go and Olio: Food Sharing apps all aim to promote a healthy diet and lifestyle, and reduce food waste by connecting users with discounted surplus food items or redistributing surplus food.
Affinity Diagram
Prioritization Matrix
Storyboarding time
Journey Map
A sample journey map for Sarah, after we revised features
🔜Early prototypes, designs... stay tuned!