GrocerEase

🧠 Inspiration

Each year, over 120 trillion pounds of food are wasted globally, and the average U.S. household throws away 140 pounds of food per year, translating to nearly $1,500 in lost groceries. For college students on tight budgets and busy families trying to stay organized, this waste adds up fast. We wanted to create a tool that helps people keep track of their groceries, reduce food waste, and save money—all by simply uploading a receipt. That’s where GrocerEase comes in.

🥕 What it does

GrocerEase turns grocery receipts into actionable insights. Upload a picture of your receipt, and the app transcribes the items, calculates their expiration dates, and provides a visual timeline of when your food is likely to expire. You’ll know which items need to be used soon, helping you reduce waste and save money effortlessly.

🛠 How we built it

Frontend: Built with Next.js for a fast and user-friendly interface.
Receipt Processing: Initially tried using Tesseract for text recognition, but inconsistent fonts and faded receipts made it unreliable. We switched to Open AI, which provided accurate transcription of receipt data.
Backend: Created with Python Flask, which handles expiration date calculations and shelf-life predictions. Also used MongoDB for receipt and item inventory storage.
Data Source: Used food shelf-life information from the Farmers Market Association (FMA) to provide accurate estimates for fresh produce.

😅 Challenges we ran into

Receipt readability: Tesseract struggled with receipts that had small, faded, or skinny fonts. Switching to ChatGPT required retraining for accuracy.
Dynamic timelines: Building a shelf-life tracking system that adapts to various food types while remaining simple for users.
Seamless integration: Ensuring smooth communication between the frontend and backend without creating delays in processing.

🏆 Accomplishments that we're proud of

Successfully implemented a high-accuracy receipt transcription system.
Created an intuitive timeline that helps users track and plan around expiring items.
Developed a solution that addresses food waste, a pressing issue for both individuals and the environment.

🤓 What we learned

The limitations of OCR tools like Tesseract for real-world applications with variable input quality.
How to design an app that works for users with varying levels of tech familiarity.
The scale of food waste and how small tools like GrocerEase can make a significant impact.

🚀 What’s next for GrocerEase

Mobile App: Launching a mobile version for greater accessibility and ease of use.
Meal Planning Integration: Adding features to suggest recipes based on items nearing expiration.
Expanded Compatibility: Improving receipt recognition across more stores and regions, with support for multiple languages and currencies.

GrocerEase simplifies grocery management while helping users save money, time, and food—one receipt at a time.