foodpanda publishes Social Impact Report, highlighting initiatives taken in Asian operating markets, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines and the company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility.
“Since foodpanda was founded in 2012, we have been driven by our value to ‘get 1% better every day’, rolling out technical features that make millions of lives better. Technology has been an especially powerful tool to help sustain livelihoods, preserve business legacies, tackle environmental challenges, and build an inclusive platform for our community of merchants, riders, and customers to thrive,” said Jakob Sebastian Angele, Chief Executive Officer, foodpanda.
People: Championing community growth
foodpanda believes that building a thriving society involves creating a conducive ecosystem for local communities to grow, thus cooperating with governments, merchants, riders and other resources in response to impacts of the pandemic. In 2021, foodpanda dedicated US$29 million to support Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) across the Asia Pacific region, like wet market vendors in Thailand and Taiwan, local mom-and-pop shops in Malaysia and Philippines and hawkers in Singapore. This comprises new digital tools to help merchants expand revenue streams and connect with new customers online, as well as fee waivers and other relief initiatives.
Since the escalation of the COVID-19 outbreak in Taiwan in May of 2021, consumers have become less willing to go out, leading to severe impacts on traditional market sales. In July 2021, foodpanda Taiwan and Taipei City Government jointly launched “traditional market grocery delivery”, aiding the digitalization of traditional markets. As of the end of 2021, the delivery has reached 90 percent of Taipei City’s population. Some of the vendors shared that after joining foodpanda, their sales have increased by 30 to 40 percent. foodpanda’s efforts not only help traditional market vendors weather through the pandemic but also allays consumers’ concerns about infection risks associated with shopping at markets.
While many workers were displaced by the pandemic, the foodpanda platform provided a crucial lifeline that created earning opportunities for more than 370,000 new riders in 2021. An additional US$6 million was invested in providing riders’ welfare and benefits, such as safety training, insurance and financial support for the purchase of bicycles or motorbikes. foodpanda Taiwan also created the “360 Safety program” for riders, which provides 24-hour insurance and arranges regular road safety training courses to ensure a safer environment for our riders and all road users. In 2021, foodpanda held 33 rounds of the road safety training course, which was attended by more than 650 riders. foodpanda also worked with 12,000 merchants to provide complementary drinking water, charging station, restrooms and special discounts to riders. During the outbreak of pandemic, an online “restroom map” was launched to further improve the work environment for our riders.
foodpanda also spent more than half a million US dollars to support local governments and communities in the fight against COVID-19, with the distribution of food, essentials and medical supplies to healthcare workers and people in need. The platform also spearheaded a vaccination awareness program to amplify local vaccination information in partnership with health ministries. foodpanda Taiwan has also enlisted riders to contribute to society through action, by delivering daily meals to the solitary elders in areas affected by the pandemic while easing the workload of social workers.
Progress: Driving digital empowerment and inclusion, Taiwan tech talent shines on international stage
foodpanda is a strong advocate of building an inclusive platform. In 2021, foodpanda raised the level of economic participation from women across Asia, tripling the number of female riders in its fleet and financially empowering women MSME entrepreneurs on the platform. In addition, nearly 60 percent employees at foodpanda Taiwan’s corporate office are women, as well as 50 percent of the senior management team and nearly 30 percent of our riders, as part of the company’s efforts at building an inclusive working environment for women.
At the same time, foodpanda is committed to talent cultivation and has built a comprehensive training program spanning across language, professional capabilities, and career development. Seeing potential in Taiwan’s technology talent pool, the company in 2021 announced the establishment of Asia tech hub in Taiwan, and this year, an additional NT$600 million was invested to expand the tech hub into a global innovative application R&D base , providing opportunities for Taiwanese talents to shine on the international stage. Currently, several new applications are being planned for development, which are anticipated to further optimize the user experience.
Planet: Building a new generation of eco-heroes, Taiwan kicked off Green Vendor program
With an expansive reach across different markets in Asia, foodpanda launched tech-enabled initiatives to help merchants, riders and customers adopt a more sustainable lifestyle. To tackle environmental sustainability challenges in the food delivery industry, foodpanda worked with local partners to improve food sustainability and reduce plastic waste for a low-carbon future. In 2021, foodpanda saved over 900 million pieces of single-use plastic cutlery through its cutlery opt-out feature, while more than 25,000 sustainable products (such as plant-based food) were made available on pandamart and foodpanda shops. To lower the carbon footprint of deliveries, foodpanda encourages the use of greener transportation options – more than 20 percent of its fleet across Asia deliver on foot, bicycles or e-bikes.
foodpanda Taiwan is also first in the
industry to launch a “Green Vendor program”, which encourages merchants to
reduce food packaging materials and to use more locally grown ingredients to
lower environmental impact. Currently, more than 300 vendors have been
certified for “Green Vendor” selection. foodpanda also partnered with the governments
and the company, Good to Go to deploy reusable food containers delivery in
Tainan and Taipei to cut down the packaging waste at source. As of the third
quarter 2021, the plan has prevent 3,000 pieces of single-use food containers
from being used. foodpanda will continue its sustainability initiatives by
working with riders, merchants and consumers to create a green delivery value
chain.