Kigali, Rwanda
Good food,
smart savings,
zero waste.
Ibiryo byiza, ibiciro bijyanye nawe, nta gupfusha ubusa.
Never past its use-by date. Nta biribwa byarengeje igihe biba kuri OKOA.
Fresh, in-date groceries from Kigali shops, distributors and producers, marked down because they are closer to their best-before date than a shop wants to stock.
You keep RWF 2,600 on one bag.
Near the end of its window, stock a seller has chosen to donate goes to a verified school or shelter instead of a bin.
Still good on the last day. That is what the date means.
What we guarantee
Cheap because of the date.
Not because of the food.
Nothing is ever listed past its use-by date. That is a hard stop in the system, not a policy someone has to remember. Frozen and chilled stock is held to the stricter rule.
Every listing carries its date. You see exactly how long an item has before you pay for it — and the discount tells you the same thing.
Yours from the moment you pay. The stock comes off the shelf count immediately, so it is there when you arrive.
Best-before is about quality — the date until which the shop guarantees food is at its best. Use-by is about safety, and OKOA never crosses it.
How it works
Three steps, no queue.
Everything is reserved before you leave the house, so what the app says is on the shelf is actually held for you. Pay by Mobile Money and collect when it suits you.
Find it near you
Browse what the shops around you have marked down today, with the price and the date on every item before you decide.
Reserve and pay
Your basket is held for 15 minutes while you pay by Mobile Money or card. Nobody else can buy the same tin out from under you.
Collect or have it brought
Show the code at the till, or choose delivery inside the district and watch the rider come to you on a map. Frozen goods are collection only, for obvious reasons.
A first name and how far off they are — not a phone number, and nothing once the delivery is done.
For anyone holding stock
Stock that was a write-off becomes revenue.
You already know what is sitting there getting closer to its date. OKOA turns that into a price that moves it, without anyone re-labelling a shelf by hand.
Supermarkets and shops, wholesalers and food logistics companies, factories and processors, farms and co-operatives, hotels and caterers with surplus. If you hold food with a date on it, the same tools apply.
What you get
- We agree the discount with you once. After that the stock lists itself and the price is settled — nothing to re-mark, nothing to watch.
- Stock is never oversold. A reserved item is off the count the moment it is held.
- Commission only on completed handovers. Nothing is owed on stock that never moves.
- Weekly payouts by Mobile Money or bank, with every order on the statement.
- Bulk pricing for restaurants, hotels and caterers buying by the case.
Getting your stock on
Three ways in. No re-typing.
Scan it
Scan the barcode, then quantity, price and date. For the pallet somebody spotted on a walk round the store.
Upload what you already have
Your own stock export, unchanged. You tell us once which column is which and which date format it uses.
Let it send itself
Your stock system sends whatever matches the criteria you agreed, on a schedule. Nobody opens the app at all.
Nothing reaches a buyer unreviewed unless you ask for that. Every import shows what it would do first — what it would list, what it would reprice, what it would take down — and sending the same file twice changes nothing.
What a verified institution can do
- Buy discounted stock like any other buyer, including case prices — no verification needed for that.
- To claim donated stock, upload your registration documents. An administrator reviews them first.
- Once verified, you see batches entering the donation window at shops near you.
- The food is free. You pay only a small handling fee on what you claim.
- Every collection is receipted, so you have a record for your own reporting.
For schools, hospitals and shelters
Buy at a discount.
Claim what is left.
Feed more people for the same budget: the whole marked-down market is open to you, by the case where it makes sense. Then in the final days before its date, stock a seller has chosen to donate stops being for sale and becomes available to verified institutions instead.
Fatanya natwe kugabanya gupfusha ibiribwa ubusa, bihahe bikiri byiza ku giciro gito!
The app
Android, in English and Kinyarwanda.
OKOA Food is in closed testing. If you have been invited, the build is below; otherwise tell us and we will add you.
Requires Android 7.0 or newer. An iOS version is planned.
If you are testing
- Allow installs from unknown sources when Android asks — the build is not on the Play Store yet.
- Orders are real, but no money moves. Payments are in test mode.
- Verification codes arrive by SMS, and may show a sender other than OKOA while ours is approved.
- Tell us anything confusing, not just anything broken.
Questions
Frequently asked.
Is food near its best-before date safe to eat?
Best-before is about quality, not safety — it is the date until which the shop guarantees the food is at its best. Use-by is different and is a hard stop; OKOA never lists anything past its use-by date, and frozen and chilled goods are held to the stricter rule.
Why is it cheaper?
Because of the date, and only because of the date. Stock closer to its best-before than a shop wants to carry is worth less to the shop and no less to you. The price you see is the price you pay — it does not move while the item is listed, so there is nothing to wait for.
How do I pay?
MTN Mobile Money, Airtel Money or a card. You pay in the app when you reserve; the seller is paid after you have actually collected.
What if I do not collect in time?
A pickup code is good for 48 hours, or 24 for frozen goods. After that the order lapses and the stock goes back on sale. Get in touch and we will sort out the refund.
Can I see where my delivery is?
Yes — while it is actually on its way, your order shows the rider moving on a map, with a first name and how far off they are. It stops when the delivery does. OKOA tracks the delivery rather than the rider: there is no screen anywhere that shows where somebody was last Tuesday.
Which areas does it cover?
Kigali first — Gasabo, Kicukiro and Nyarugenge. Delivery runs inside a store's own district; elsewhere in the country it goes by parcel. Other cities follow the sellers.
Can a restaurant or hotel buy in bulk?
Yes. Register as a business and you will see case prices alongside the single-item ones, which are set by the seller rather than derived from the shelf price.
How does an institution get verified?
Register in the app, upload your registration certificate and any supporting letters, and an administrator reviews them. You can browse and buy before that; what the review unlocks is claiming donated stock.
Get in touch
Seller, institution or tester?
Or reach us directly
- support@okoafood.rw Anything at all
- +250 786 400 052 Calls and WhatsApp, 08:00–18:00 CAT
- Kigali, Rwanda Gasabo, Kicukiro and Nyarugenge first
If you have stock to sell, tell us roughly how many sites and what you do with near-expiry stock today — and what system it lives in, if you know. That is usually enough for a first conversation.