FoodWise Privacy Policy

1Overview & Scope

FoodWise is a digital platform designed to bridge surplus edible food from commercial kitchens, hotels, banquet halls, and households with verified non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and community relief partners.

This Privacy Policy explains what personal and organizational details are collected, how they are utilized to coordinate food rescue operations, how data is stored, and your rights concerning your information.

2Information Collected by FoodWise

FoodWise collects only the information necessary to authenticate users, list surplus food donations, match relief partners, and coordinate physical handovers:

• Donor Account Data: Establishment name (restaurant, hotel, banquet, or household residence), designated contact person name, telephone number, pickup address, email address, and authentication credentials.
• Relief NGO Partner Data: Organization name, registration identification (e.g. 12A/80G or local operational ID), authorized representative name, contact telephone, service radius, and distribution facility address.
• Food Donation Listings: Food category (Cooked, Raw Ingredients, Packaged/Bakery), estimated quantity or servings, preparation time, safe consumption window, storage requirements (Ambient or Refrigerated), and dispatch notes.
• Handover & Dispatch Coordination Data: Claim status timestamps, driver/volunteer assignments, vehicle identifiers (where submitted), and one-time 4-digit verification passcodes (OTPs) used to validate physical handovers.
• Quality & Discrepancy Reports: Feedback ratings, notes on packaging integrity, temperature observations, and photographic evidence submitted through the Food Issue Reporting module.

3How We Use Operational Data

Information collected through FoodWise is used exclusively for platform operations:

• Facilitating surplus food donation listings and matching nearby relief NGOs based on proximity and vehicle capacity.
• Transmitting pickup instructions, contact details, and route timing to assigned recovery personnel.
• Verifying chain-of-custody at handover through single-use OTP validation.
• Maintaining an auditable history of redistributed meals and food-waste diversion metrics.
• Dispatching operational alerts regarding pending expirations, accepted claims, and driver arrivals.

4Data Persistence & Storage Mechanisms

FoodWise employs standard multi-tier data storage:

• Server-Side Database (MongoDB): When connected via environment configuration (MONGODB_URI), donation records, user profiles, claims, and notification states are persisted securely in a MongoDB database cluster.
• Browser Local Storage: For demonstration workflows and offline resilience, client browsers store active role identifiers (foodwise_user_role), active profile keys, read notification states, and local demonstration logs. No tracking cookies or advertising identifiers are placed in local storage.
• Web Push Notifications: If you explicitly grant browser push permissions, push subscriptions are saved solely to deliver time-critical food claim notifications.

5Third-Party Services & AI Integrations

FoodWise does not sell, lease, or monetize user data. External services are integrated strictly for core technical capabilities:

• Foodie AI (Groq SDK): FoodWise includes an interactive guidance assistant powered by Groq. When users submit inquiries to Foodie AI, message prompts and current user role context are transmitted securely to Groq APIs to generate context-sensitive guidance. Prompts are not used to train proprietary third-party commercial advertising models.
• Hosting & Edge Infrastructure: Application front-end and serverless API endpoints are deployed on Vercel.

6Information Sharing Between Donors & NGOs

To complete physical food handovers, specific operational data is shared directly between the matched donor and recipient organization:

• When an NGO claims a donation, the donor receives the claiming organization's name and assigned volunteer details.
• The claiming NGO receives the donor's pickup address, contact person phone number, and special gate/kitchen instructions.
• Public visitors cannot view donor telephone numbers, exact street addresses, or individual contact details.

7Data Retention & User Rights

Donors and relief organizations may inspect, correct, or request deletion of their profile records at any time:

• Profile Updates: Organizations can adjust their addresses, contact details, and category configurations directly within platform settings.
• Account & Data Deletion: You may request the deletion of your account and un-linked operational logs by contacting the platform operator at the designated support channel.
• Browser Storage Clearing: Users can clear local browser data at any time via browser settings or the platform reset option.

8Operator Contact & Governance Details

For privacy inquiries, data deletion requests, or technical governance questions regarding FoodWise, please reach out via: