Mealshare
Mealshare was a Canadian social enterprise that operated a Buy One, Give One model connecting 1,200+ partner restaurants with youth-hunger charities, donating roughly $1 per branded menu item sold; founded in 2013 in Calgary, it closed in June 2023 after the pandemic disrupted its dine-out donation engine.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersSherwood Park, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Mealshare does
Mealshare was a Canadian social enterprise founded in 2013 in Calgary, Alberta by Jeremy Bryant and Andrew Hall to address youth food insecurity in Canada, where approximately 2.5 million children lived in food-insecure households. The organization operated a Buy One, Give One model in which partner restaurants featured Mealshare-branded menu items and contributed approximately $1 per item ordered to youth-hunger charities; diners paid regular menu prices with no surcharge, and Mealshare routed the donated funds to vetted charity partners (including BB4CK, Breakfast Club of Canada, Calgary Drop-In Centre, The Stop Community Food Centre, Eva's Initiatives and Save the Children) that delivered actual meals to food-insecure youth.
The product was not a technology platform; Mealshare was a bridge organization with no proprietary software, app, or API, and its underlying 'technology' consisted of operational workflows for onboarding restaurants, tracking menu-item sales, and disbursing funds to charity partners. Go-to-market was entirely channel-driven: the organization grew from a Calgary grassroots initiative to 1,200+ partner restaurants in 450+ Canadian communities, with a 2021 A&W Canada partnership adding 1,000+ locations at once - the largest single expansion in the company's history. The business model was a pass-through donation mechanism rather than a revenue-generating enterprise, and the only externally recorded capital event was a StartUp Health accelerator engagement in 2018 with a disclosed value of $0.
COVID-19 dine-out disruption collapsed the donation engine while demand for youth food support rose, and Mealshare announced its closure in June 2023 after nearly a decade of operation. Cumulative impact included approximately 3.8 million meals provided and roughly 6 million young people reportedly reached across the program's lifetime. The Buy One, Give One model continues locally through BB4CK's Feeding Futures successor program in Calgary.
Mealshare firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Mealshare
- Legal name
- Mealshare
- Website
- https://mealshare.ca
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Closed
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Mealshare was a Canadian social enterprise that operated a Buy One, Give One model connecting 1,200+ partner restaurants with youth-hunger charities, donating roughly $1 per branded menu item sold; founded in 2013 in Calgary, it closed in June 2023 after the pandemic disrupted its dine-out donation engine.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Mealshare industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Charitable Giving / Social Enterprise
- NAICS
- Community Food Services (62421)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Food Assistance & Food Banks (BPAGAEAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Meal Program Compliance & Administration (NSLP/SBP, Reimbursements) (EDAEAEAC), School Feeding & Child Nutrition Programs (BPADAJAD)
Keywords
Where Mealshare is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Sherwood Park
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Mealshare business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Restaurant donations (Buy One, Give One): Mealshare did not generate traditional revenue. Instead, restaurants contributed approximately $1 per Mealshare menu item ordered. Mealshare collected these funds and distributed them to vetted charity partners who delivered actual meals to youth in need. The organization was a pass-through entity connecting restaurant donations to youth hunger charities.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Free for diners - no added cost |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels2 records
Mealshare product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Mealshare operated a restaurant-based charitable giving program where partner restaurants featured Mealshare-branded menu items; when diners ordered these items, the restaurant contributed approximately $1 to fund a meal for a youth in need. Mealshare acted as a bridge organization that collected these contributions and routed them to vetted local and international youth-hunger charities that delivered the actual meals.
Product overview
Mealshare operated as a single unified social enterprise product—a restaurant partnership program that connected diners, restaurants, and youth-hunger charities through a 'Buy One, Give One' model. There were no platform modules, add-ons, or separate product tiers; the offering was the Mealshare program itself, which facilitated charitable meal donations via participating restaurant menus. The program closed in June 2023 but its model continues locally through BB4CK's Feeding Futures successor program in Calgary.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mealshare Buy One, Give One Program
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 3.8 million meals provided to youth in need over the program's lifetime
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Mealshare
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Mealshare technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Mealshare partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
20 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- A&W CanadacoreIn 2021, Mealshare announced a partnership with A&W Canada that put the program in more than 1,000 restaurant locations at once - the largest single expansion in the company's history. The partnership came at a hard time as restaurant closures during COVID-19 had cut deeply into the dine-in donations the model relied on. A&W gave the program a way to keep going when its core funnel had collapsed.
- Brown Bagging for Calgary's Kids (BB4CK)flagshipBB4CK was a long-time Mealshare partner and has committed to carrying the work forward through Feeding Futures, a program that keeps the restaurant-and-charity model alive locally in Calgary. This successor program continues the Mealshare approach of partnering with local restaurants where a designated menu item directs $1 or more from each purchase to lunches for kids in need.
- Breakfast Club of CanadacoreNational school breakfast programs charity partner. Mealshare routed funds to support breakfast programs reaching schools nationwide.
- Calgary Drop-In CentreminorEmergency shelter and meals charity partner in Calgary.
- The Stop Community Food CentreminorFood access and community meals charity partner in Toronto.
- Eva's InitiativesminorServices for homeless and at-risk youth in Toronto.
- Save the ChildrenminorInternational child nutrition programs charity partner for international efforts alongside local Canadian charities.
- Terroni AdelaideminorIndependent restaurant partner in Toronto.
- Milestones CambieminorChain restaurant partner.
- Trattoria Caffe ItaliaminorIndependent restaurant partner.
- Pho Dau BominorIndependent restaurant partner in Toronto.
- Vista 18minorRestaurant partner.
- Wellington GastropubminorRestaurant partner.
- Una Pizza SaskatoonminorRestaurant partner in Saskatoon.
- Floyds DinerminorRestaurant partner.
- Blarney StoneminorRestaurant partner.
- Bridgette BarminorRestaurant partner.
- 4th SpotminorRestaurant partner.
- Street MonkeysminorRestaurant partner.
- Shy's PlaceminorRestaurant partner.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights3 records
Mealshare competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Feeding America: The largest hunger-relief organization in the United States, operating a national network of food banks. A broad incumbent in the food assistance space comparable in mission but operating at much greater scale and with a different distribution model.
- Warby Parker: Buy One, Give One-style social enterprise operating in eyewear. Similar cause-marketing approach where each purchase triggers a donation, though in a different product category and at much larger scale.
- TOMS Shoes: Iconic Buy One, Give One consumer brand that pioneered the same cause-marketing model Mealshare applied to restaurants. Comparable as a for-profit social enterprise using purchase-triggered donations, though operating in footwear rather than food services.
Regional players
- No Kid Hungry (Share Our Strength): U.S.-based national campaign against childhood hunger that connects restaurants, corporations, and donors to school meal programs. Comparable in connecting restaurants to youth hunger relief but operates in the United States rather than Canada.
Direct peers
- Brown Bagging for Calgary's Kids (BB4CK): Calgary-based children's food charity and the direct successor to Mealshare's model through its Feeding Futures program. Provides school lunches to 7,800+ kids daily and now operates the Buy One, Give One restaurant partnership concept Mealshare pioneered.
- Food Banks Canada: National umbrella organization for Canadian food banks. Comparable as a Canadian food assistance network addressing the same hunger problem Mealshare targeted, though operating through food bank distribution rather than restaurant donations.
- Breakfast Club of Canada: Canada's largest school food charity and a Mealshare charity partner. Reaches 880,000+ children through school breakfast programs - directly comparable mission addressing Canadian youth food insecurity.
- Second Harvest: Canada's largest food rescue charity, redistributing surplus food to non-profits. Operates a different distribution model (food rescue vs. restaurant donations) but addresses the same Canadian food insecurity problem at large scale.
- The Food Sharing Project: Kingston-area food charity delivering fresh food to 88 schools weekly. Comparable as a school-based Canadian food charity addressing youth hunger, similar to one of Mealshare's charity partner categories.
- SHARE Family & Community Services: British Columbia-based food bank and community services non-profit operating food assistance and Backpack Buddies programs for children. Comparable in mission and Canadian food security focus, though locally focused in the Tri-Cities area.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Mealshare social profiles
Digital presenceMealshare financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Mealshare leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Mealshare funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Mealshare M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Mealshare
What does Mealshare do?
Mealshare operated a restaurant-based charitable giving program where partner restaurants featured Mealshare-branded menu items; when diners ordered these items, the restaurant contributed approximately $1 to fund a meal for a youth in need. Mealshare acted as a bridge organization that collected these contributions and routed them to vetted local and international youth-hunger charities that delivered the actual meals.
Is Mealshare a public or private company?
Mealshare is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently closed.
When was Mealshare founded?
Mealshare was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Mealshare based?
Mealshare is headquartered in Sherwood Park, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Mealshare make money?
One revenue line is on record: restaurant donations (Buy One, Give One).
Who are Mealshare's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Feeding America, Warby Parker and TOMS Shoes. No Kid Hungry (Share Our Strength) is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Brown Bagging for Calgary's Kids (BB4CK), Food Banks Canada, Breakfast Club of Canada, Second Harvest, The Food Sharing Project and SHARE Family & Community Services.
Does Mealshare have an API?
No public API is recorded for Mealshare.
What industry is Mealshare in?
Mealshare's product category is Charitable Giving / Social Enterprise. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAEAA, Food Assistance & Food Banks, with a secondary code of EDAEAEAC, Meal Program Compliance & Administration (NSLP/SBP, Reimbursements). Its NAICS code is 62421 and its SIC code is 8300.