Uber Eats and Visa support greener packaging

Uber and Visa have launched this new initiative in Davos, Switzerland, where the companies are highlighting impact from their shared 2022 Grants for Growth programme that has supported US small business owners still recovering from the pandemic and other unexpected events. Merchants received microgrants of USD 10,000, used for payroll, paying outstanding debt to vendors, upgrading payment technology infrastructure, and other immediate operational costs.

Plans for a greener future

A 2022 study by the US National Restaurant Association indicates that while the transition to sustainable packaging is a priority to many restaurants, the cost—and continued supply chain issues faced by the hospitality industry—make it difficult. It's the hope of Uber Eats and Visa that this new programme is a small step in a positive direction for small business owners. Details of the new partnership, including how restaurants can qualify and apply for funding will be shared in the coming months.

In 2020, Uber made the ambitious commitment to be a zero-emission mobility platform by 2040. Visa has committed to net-zero emissions by 2040, and in 2020 achieved carbon neutrality and transitioned to 100% renewable electricity across its operations. 

Officials from Uber said that building on the success of their shared support for small and medium-sized businesses, they’re happy to be sharing efforts with Visa towards how they can help restaurant owners reduce packaging waste and contribute to the fight against climate change. Single-use packaging is used in nearly every takeout order worldwide. With Visa and their restaurant partners they can work towards reducing waste and helping small businesses thrive.

Also commenting on this development, Visa’s representatives noted that with consumers continuing to express desires to live more sustainably, businesses across sectors have an opportunity to adopt more sustainable practices to meet this demand. Visa is excited to expand on its partnership with Uber Eats to help small businesses to not be left out of the sustainable business transformations this moment requires.