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Abstract

It is estimated that one-third of all food produced in the world is wasted. Wasting food is equivalent to wasting water, land, energy, labor and financial resources. In addition, the decomposition of these foods releases large amounts of methane and carbon dioxide, thus contributing to global warming.

In Manaus/Amazonas the situation is also worrying. The Municipal Cleaning Department (Semulsp) reported collecting 95.4 tons of food daily from the dumps of 39 fairs and markets, but the dimension of the waste in the city is even greater. At the same time, according to the 2010 IBGE Census, the universe of poor people in Manaus corresponds to 18.6% of the total of 3.84 million inhabitants.

One of the great difficulties encountered to avoid waste is the lack of a connection between those who have leftover food (market stalls, markets, restaurants) and groups that need these foods (daycare centers, charitable organizations, among others). Besides, there is also the concern of those who donate to comply with Law 2,848 / 1940 of the Penal Code, which provides for the liability of a food donor for damage caused to the beneficiary by the consumption of the donated goods.

The main objective of this research is to create a fast, safe and easily accessible bridge between those who have a desire to donate food and those who need it. This connection would be made through a smartphone application in which this exchange can be formalized in a short time and within the reach of users' hands.

To carry out the project, we used the methodology of Project E, developed by Meurer and Szabluk. This methodology has 6 steps that work the user experience layers individually, generating a result focused on the users' needs. The steps are Strategy, Scope, Structure, Skeleton, Aesthetics, and Execution.

We started with the Strategy stage, developing the infographic of the chosen theme, design issues, applying a questionnaire to the target audience, selecting terms relevant to the project and studying similars and reference applications.

 

Infographic of the chosen theme. Source: authors.

 

Infographic of the chosen theme. Source: authors.

 

Design questions. Source: authors.

 

In the initial stages of the project, we contacted several charities in Manaus to list which ones could volunteer to participate in our research. We obtained three positive responses from institutions that could help. As for the markets, we contacted four different ones and none of them responded to us until the end of the project.

We managed to get only one of the charities previously contacted to answer the proposed questionnaire. Due to the difficulty of returning from some market, it was decided to contact a professional who has already worked in the area for the application of tests and initial research.

To build the profile of our target audience, two different questionnaires were carried out: one with charities and one with the market representative interested in participating. Both were built using the Google Forms platform and aimed to map the needs of each audience.

The questionnaire with the charities had questions about the meals offered, how often they are offered, how they are prepared, how the food is received, among others. The questionnaire with the markets asked about how the food is discarded, how the discarded food is chosen and, in the case of non-perishables, how many days before validity, the frequency of this discard, among other information.

Finally, we developed an infographic with the answers to facilitate your viewing and understanding:

 

Responses from the Associação de Apoio Lar de Vitórias and the former market employee. Source: authors.

The information presented by the Associação de Apoio Lar de Vitórias will be used in the preparation of storytellings and the definition of the app's functionalities.

In carrying out the study of similars and references, we decided to develop an infographic to demonstrate the results of the analyses. This infographic aims to facilitate the visualization of all information at the same time.

For the development of the infographic, we used the methodology idealized in the article “Infographics: concept and practice” by Juliana Carvalho and Isabella Aragão. This methodology is divided into three major groups of stages, namely Design, Execution, and Finishing.

The result was the following infographics:

 

 

Analysis of similar applications. Source: authors.

 

Analysis of reference applications. Source: authors.

In the Scope stage, we developed a checklist with the requirements, needs, and parameters of the project, based on the result of previous analyzes.

 

Verification list. Source: authors.

We started the Structure stage with the development of storyboards of how the app would work, in addition to the definition of tools, its functionalities, and content.

 

Application usage storyboards. Source: the authors.

From there, in the Skeleton stage, we developed the low complexity wireframes of the final application.

 

Wireframes for the application. Source: authors.

In the Aesthetics stage, we carry out naming, visual signature development and definition of typographic fonts and chromatic matrix. Finally, we present the final screens of the application.

 

Application naming process. Source: authors.

 

Development of the visual signature of the application. Source: authors.

 

Development of the visual signature of the application. Source: authors.

 

Choice of typographies. Source: authors.

 

Choice of the chromatic matrix. Source: authors

 

Some of the screens developed for the app. Source: authors.

With the production of the screens, it was possible to generate a prototype of the application interface to carry out tests in the Execution phase. Due to time and lack of answers, we managed to apply it only with the employee Jackeline Machado, from Associação de Apoio Lar de Vitórias. She is vice president of the institution and has worked there for 5 years. After asking the initial questions, the employee was asked to perform some tasks.

During the application of the test, the user found it difficult to identify the functions of the menus and what each icon symbolized, without being able to move naturally from one screen to the other and constantly asking how this path was done.

Despite this, the user was able to understand the screens individually. We believe that the lack of contact with applications of this type and factors such as age and familiarity with technologies influenced the difficulty of adaptation.

From these results, we have added a brief explanation of the application's functions that should appear only at the first access/use of the same. The screens with these final changes are shown below:

 

The initial tutorial added to the application as a result of the tests. Source: authors.

We concluded that Project E's contribution to the analysis of each layer of usability necessary for the application was remarkable. In addition, this methodology provides a practical way of thinking about web usability, as it allows the developer to think about each area to be designed separately

Finally, we were able to conclude that despite the great interest on the part of the charities, from which we obtained a greater number of responses and participation, the contacted markets did not present the same disposition. Although similar applications exist in Brazil, it is notable that the local market does not appear to be ready for these transactions, either due to lack of interest, knowledge or preparation. It would be necessary to foster a culture of donation and solidarity before the application is made available in Manaus.

 

 

Keywords

Food redistribution, mobile application, user experience, user interface, Project E

 

 

References

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