Program already live at Ohio State & Colorado State, with expansion to more campuses this year
Grubhub has partnered with reusable packaging management platform, Topanga.io, to provide a takeout container management service for college campuses. The partnership will bring Topanga.io's ReusePass program to universities across the United States, starting first with Ohio State University and Colorado State University.
The ReusePass program enables students to place a to-go order from on-campus dining locations via the Grubhub app, and then select "reusable packaging" at checkout. By selecting this option, the student's meal will be packaged in a reusable container using Topanga.io's track-and-trace technology. The system also enables students to keep track of what containers they have and when they need to be returned.
"Grubhub's campus partners have been vocal that sustainable solutions are a top priority, and we're looking forward to working with Topanga.io to support universities' sustainability efforts," says Adam Herbert, senior director of campus partnerships at Grubhub. "The campus dining world presents a large and scalable opportunity for sustainable solutions like this one, and we're excited to expand our suite of campus dining offerings to our partners."
"Grubhub is a leader in mobile ordering technology and has a great reputation among its campus partners, so we're thrilled to be working with them as we bring our mission to eliminate single-use packaging to campuses across the country," says Page Schult, CEO of Topanga.io.
Ohio State and Colorado State are just the first to adopt the solution, with Grubhub and Topanga.io already planning to expand the reach of the program to additional campuses.
"Sustainability is part of the culture for Student Life Dining Services at The Ohio State University," says Zia Ahmed, senior director of dining services at The Ohio State University. "We are pleased to work with our partners as we take key steps toward making progress in reducing waste and advancing our sustainability efforts."
"Colorado State University's residential dining services team has been eager to bring Topanga.io's ReusePass program to campus in partnership with Grubhub to expand on our sustainability initiatives," says Patrick St. Clair, assistant director, support services at Colorado State University. "It's efforts like this one that allows us to continue driving forward-thinking efforts and innovation within our residential dining program while leveraging and growing our program technologically."
Grubhub currently partners with over 270 college college campuses across the United States. The grubhub platform enables students to integrate meal plans directly into their Grubhub account, as well as access restaurants on- and off-campus for delivery and pickup.
In addition to the college campus initiative, Topanga also works with quick-service restaurants, grocery delivery, and meal prep companies to launch reusable packaging programs. To date, the company estimates that it has managed some 1.2 million reusable packaging assets.