Zone’s Rianna Mitchell handpicks and shares the five best new stories on digital trends, experiences and technologies…
1. IKEA cuts food waste by 54%
Ingka Group — the owner of most IKEA stores — has revealed it has slashed food waste by a whopping 54% in stores since 2017 to save money and reduce its environmental footprint. The figure translates into more than 20 million meals being saved and 36,000 tonnes of CO2 avoided.
The retailer partnered with food waste solution company Winnow for use of its AI technology. Twenty thousand IKEA food workers trained themselves on the tech to gain in-depth insight on the type of food being wasted and the reasons behind it, helping them to prevent and reduce food waste in the kitchen. Ingka Group Chief Sustainability Officer, Karen Pflug said: “The impact we can all have on preventing and reducing food waste is beneficial for both people and the planet.”
2. Energy bill discount scams
Britons are being urged to be vigilant of fraudulent emails and SMS texts claiming to offer discounted energy bills. The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau received over 1,500 reports regarding the circulation of scams, including ones purporting to be from Ofgem. Customers are being targeted with a message instructing them to apply for a £400 discount by providing their personal details and setting up a direct debit via a link, cloning the Ofgem website.
Amid the cost-of-living-crisis, scammers are taking advantage of the UK government’s pledge to provide UK households with a grant, which will reduce energy bills by £400 come October. However, this will not involve giving away personal details. Ofgem has asked energy suppliers to be clearer on potential customer fraud on their websites.
3. Asda’s GoodMaps’ app becomes more inclusive
Grocery retailer Asda has announced it is expanding its trial of the GoodMaps app to assist blind and partially sighted people navigate around stores. The supermarket plans to integrate an additional ten stores to the smartphone app, highlighting “Asda’s unrivalled commitment to breaking down barriers to inclusion”.
The new technology will feature audio, enlarged visuals, and touch commands to communicate directions to specific products and help locate key landmarks in store, such as the pharmacy, toilets, and checkouts. The app aims to pinpoint the user’s location within one metre of accuracy before providing directions, guiding them as close as possible to the desired area or item they seek.
4. Twitch bans unlicensed gambling content
Streaming giant Twitch, owned by Amazon, will prohibit unlicensed livestreaming gambling sites from 18th October. The ban was prompted following backlash against multi-million sponsorship deals and wide-ranging scandals among top Twitch streamers and personalities, where users threatened to boycott the platform.
The ban includes sharing links and referral codes to gambling content as well as users posting videos of themselves indulging in slots, roulette, or dice games. However, betting on sports and poker will not be affected. Twitch believes the new rule will “provide sufficient consumer protection” as people on the platform expose the community to potential harm.
5. How Zone apply the EX model for a happier workplace
For International Week of Happiness at Work, our Employee Experience Strategy team explores the meaning of happiness at work and shares how Zone applies an experience-led approach when creating the feel-good factor for its own employees.
At Zone, we believe that a great employee experience fosters happiness, and, as a result, a significant positive impact on productivity, creativity, and retention. Discover some of the strategies we have implemented and are working on to take the happiness of employees just as seriously as we do our clients.
