Grubhub Tackles Campus Waste

As many of the country’s students go back to school, attention returns to the shift in waste from home to school, as well as to sustainability efforts on campuses.

Grubhub wants to satisfy students’ appetites for sustainability and has ramped up its efforts.

In partnership with Topanga.io, Grubhub has launched a new option this semester for students on campuses at Virginia Tech and State University of New York at New Paltz. When ordering food and beverage deliveries, customers can now choose reusable packaging. The goal is to dramatically cut down on single-use packaging waste.

These two new colleges join those already in Grubhub’s ReusePass program: California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, The Ohio State University, Colorado State University, Boston University, The University of Delaware, and Brandeis University.

Last school year alone, those universities saw 40,000 students divert more than 758,000 single-use containers by choosing to reuse — proving the positive impact of these initiatives.

Topanga.io

How does ReusePass work?

Here’s how the program works:

• Students receive a personal ReusePass Quick Response (QR) code when they sign up for the program.

• They then select reusable containers when placing an order from on-campus dining locations via Grubhub.

• The student’s ReusePass QR code is scanned at checkout.

• Containers are tracked using Topanga.io’s technology through the ReusePass program. Students can monitor their usage with their smartphone.

• Students return the containers to a designated location on campus within three to five days.

The program is similar to borrowing and returning library books.

Reusable packages are due back in three days. Will college students do the responsible thing and return them in time? In time for another order??

What happens if students don’t return the reusable packaging by the deadline?

A Grubhub spokesperson explains, “Students have a certain amount of time to return the containers and they will receive SMS [text] messages to remind them of that return window. The length of the return window varies by school, but is typically between three and five days. If a student doesn’t return the container by the deadline, a campus can choose to assess a late fee. Each school has their own policy for late and unreturned containers after the designated return window. If a school charges a late fee, students will be able to see it in their ReusePass app. It is typically a few dollars.”

Mobilizing robots, too.

Grubhub is also expanding its robot delivery services on college campuses this school year. Nearly a dozen more schools have been added this semester to the more than 20 campuses currently served.

Grubhub partners with Cartken, Kiwibot, and Starship to provide robot delivery on college campuses. Hundreds of thousands of orders have been delivered via robots since its inception in 2022.

Is the reusable packaging also available to be delivered by robot? The Grubhub spokesperson says, “Currently no. But in a future iteration of the program, we plan to make reusable containers available for robot delivery.”