Collectiv Food, the food supply business, has teamed up with location app what3words to help reduce delayed deliveries and cut down on carbon emissions.

The delivery business currently works with Apex, DHL, AnyVan, and soon EcoFleet, who use its app to collect food supply from the company’s warehouses and points of distribution (POD.)

The PODs are chilled units using under-utilised spaces in urban locations.

There are currently four of these buildings in London that can store more than 40 tonnes of fresh products. The business has plans to open 25 more across the capital.

what3words has divided the world into a grid of 3x3 metre squares and given each square a unique combination of three random words: a what3words address. For example, the best viewing point at the top of Primrose Hill in London is ///hiking.rating.late.

Collectiv Food said that it now provides its delivery partners with the what3words addresses of their hospitality customers and the PODs where they’ll be collecting the food supply.

“We’re very proud to be the first wholesale food supplier to integrate the what3words location finder into our delivery process, enabling more efficient deliveries to our customers,” said Lucas Dawe, vice president supply chain at Collectiv Food. “The partnership marks another exciting step in our mission to revolutionise how food is accessed and distributed within cities.”

Dawe added: “The most polluting segment of the food journey is often the last-mile, as diesel-powered, refrigerated trucks enter our congested city centres. At Collectiv, we’re already tackling this with our innovative, asset-light logistics model and PODs (Points of Distribution) - partnering with what3words enables us to make the journey even leaner.”

Chris Sheldrick, chief executive and Co-founder of what3words adds, “In this day and age, reducing your carbon footprint is something at the forefront of everybody’s mind. By helping delivery drivers find precise locations with just three words, we’re also supporting Collectiv Food’s commitment to creating a more sustainable food supply chain. Our partnership with Collectiv Food means that customers will enjoy fresh food supply, while delivery drivers will be able to navigate with increased efficiency.”

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