How to use OLIO to get FREE food!
- SuperSavvySavers
- May 1, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 6
Ever heard of Olio? Wondered what its's all about? Well here's our run down of what it is, how it works and why we think you'll like it!
You may have heard people talking about the OLIO App or heard us mentioning OLIO on the SuperSavvySavers Facebook Page but what it is?...
OLIO is a Free App you can download to your phone (download here). Olio connects neighbours with each other and with local businesses so surplus food (and other non-food items) can be shared, instead of being thrown away.
Listed food items could be food nearing its sell-by date in local stores, spare home-grown vegetables you or a neighbour might have, bread from your local baker, or even the groceries left in your fridge when you go away. Olio can also be used for non-food household items too.
To access all the free food listings in Olio, you'll need to download the app to your mobile phone. Download here.
Download the Olio App from the App Store here - Apple App Store (iphones and ipads)
Download the Olio App from the Google Store here - Google Play Store (Android)
Once the app is installed on your phone, you will need to create an account which is easily done by following the prompts and providing the necessary information.
During the account setup process, you will be prompted to input your location details. This helps to connect you with other nearby users, businesses and food waste heroes for item sharing.
How does OLIO work?
There are a couple of different ways to use Olio. You can use the App to request items that you can go and collect to use for yourself, or you can share items that you want to share or give away to someone else.
Most people of course use it to Request items, then go and collect the FREE FOOD!
Requesting Items
You can 'Request' any items you like direct from the OLIO App but it's important to note that you will need to collect these items, usually that same day, so ideally try to find a volunteer in your local area.
As a lot of food items are collected from the supermarkets in the evening, much of the food items need collecting before the food dates expire that same evening. But if you're happy to head out in the evening to collect free food, it can definitely be worth your while and could save you a lot of money!
Quite often here in Guernsey, when there is a lot of surplus food, the Food Waste Heroes (FWHs) who collect from our local supermarkets will often list items as FREE TO COLLECT - JUST TURN UP! These items will be left outside a food waste heroes house for you to simply turn up and collect what you need - there is no need to actually use the Olio App other than to read the listing! Please do be mindful that other people will be on their way - so only take what you will actually use!!
Other items are available for free too, it's not just food. If someone in your area is having a clear out, you might see free items popping up, so keep an eye out for the non-food items too! You can turn on notifications so your phone pings when there are new listings in your area 👍
Sharing Items
To give away an item of food or a non-food item you can share the item with your local community. Simply take a photo of your item/s on your phone. Select Add within the Olio App, then select the Type of listing you want to do add. It will prompt you to add a Photo (you can add up to 10 images) and a Title and a Description and the Quantity of how many of the items you have available. You can include pick up instructions, your location and the area you live in, then select Submit. Well done, you've just posted your first Olio listing!
Once the items are listed, they become visible to other Olio users in your area. Interested users can browse through the available items and send requests to pick them up.
Food Waste Heroes
Olio needs volunteers to collect food items from local supermarkets and other local food retailers, that would ordinarily be thrown away. These volunteers are known as Food Waste Heroes!
Food Waste Heroes collect items from local food retailers (collections are often made in the evenings) and when a collection has been made, the Food Waste Hero photographs all the items they have collected and then posts them to the OLIO App where anyone can then Request to collect any of the listed items.
You can volunteer to become a Food Waste Hero yourself direct in the App. Volunteers are allowed to keep up to 10% of any of their collections. The remaining items of the collections must be photographed and listed within the Olio App. You simple need to register in the App and you will be asked to complete some basic food hygiene training which is all provided for free and can be completed online. All quite straight forward!
You can watch a video here on How to Become a Food Waste Hero
Support Olio!
Olio is FREE to download and use but they need to bring in an income somehow to pay for the App! So the people over at Olio have introduced advertising within the Olio App. You can choose to upgrade your account and become an OLIO Supporter for a small cost of just £2.99 per month or £17.99 per year which removes all the advertisements. A small cost for such a huge amount of FREE FOOD!! We covered the cost of the annual fee in just 2 weeks in what we saved on our usual food costs!!
More Information about Olio
More info on how to use Olio is available here - How to Use Olio. There is also an Olio Guernsey Facebook community page where I'm sure local volunteers will happily answer any questions you may have.
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