FAQ

Trash Panda is an independant app that empowers users to learn about the ingredients in their food.

Trash Panda is available for free on iOS via the App Store and Android via the Google Play Store.

Just locate the product’s barcode and hold your phone over it in the scanning section. If the item is in our database, the app instantly shows you what’s inside, highlights any potentially harmful or questionable ingredients, and suggests safer alternatives when available. Trash Panda makes it easy to understand food labels and helps you make informed, healthier choices in seconds.

Nutrition science is always advancing, and so are we. As new, evidence-backed research emerges, we update our ingredient classifications to reflect the most current understanding of health and safety.

Trash Panda is built on independence, transparency, and science, but it’s not a substitute for professional medical advice. If you have specific health concerns, dietary restrictions, or medical conditions, we always encourage you to consult your doctor or a licensed healthcare provider.

If a barcode isn’t recognized, the app will prompt you to take a photo of the ingredient list. Capture a clear image of the ingredients text, submit it, and you’ll immediately receive insights into any harmful or questionable ingredients. We also ask that you take a photo of the front of the package so we can accurately create the new product in our database. Once your submission is reviewed and approved, the product becomes available in the app for you and the entire Trash Panda community, helping our database grow and stay up-to-date.

There are two options to find products - by scanning the product barcode to look it up, or searching by keyword to find results. When searching by keyword, you can get results by entering the product name, brand name, or food category (cereal, pasta, etc).

Absolutely! If you're using your computer or another device, simply scan the barcode from the product image on the screen to get Trash Panda insights. Alternatively, you can search for the product by keyword.

The food scanner app is free to use for scanning up to 5 products per month, and unlimited scanning is available as part of the Trash Panda Membership. The Membership also unlocks the ability to set dietary preferences like gluten, dairy, soy, and egg, and provides access to our favorite products via curated shopping lists. This Membership helps to support Trash Panda and our mission to share ingredients information and quality food with everyone, but is not required to use the app.

When you help support Trash Panda by purchasing a premium membership, you will have access to unlimited scans, a growing library of curated clean ingredient shopping lists, the ability to select and flag your dietary restrictions, and ingredient search to help you understand what an ingredient really is. We’re continually developing new premium features to enhance your experience and bring even more clarity to your food choices.

Trash Panda’s food scanner gives you a clearer understanding of what’s really in your food, helping you and your family make more informed choices every day. By scanning products, reading ingredient insights, and exploring our article library and recommended alternatives, you can discover foods that not only taste great but also support your long-term health and well-being.

After you scan a product, you can tap the “Other Choices” section to instantly see recommended alternatives with cleaner ingredients. Premium subscribers also get access to curated clean-ingredient shopping lists, making it even easier to find healthier products for your pantry, fridge, or family meals. Shop by store to find healthy options at Costco, Aldi, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, or wherever you buy groceries.

Trash Panda’s mission is to empower you to make smarter, healthier food choices through complete ingredient transparency. As a clean-ingredient food scanner, we help you look past marketing claims and see exactly what’s in your food—every additive, food dye, preservative, and hidden ingredient included. By increasing transparency and helping shoppers choose cleaner products, we hope to encourage brands to improve their ingredients and support better long-term health for everyone.

Trash Panda’s ingredient checker allows you to scan virtually any packaged food or drink product. If it’s something you can eat or drink, and it has an ingredient list, you can scan it. At this time, we don’t provide ratings or insights for personal care items, household products, or other non-consumables.

Trash Panda Insiders are a community of people who believe in the Trash Panda mission and are interested in receiving additional content via our weekly newsletter which includes information about food quality, harmful ingredients, and living a healthy lifestyle.

Insiders get special access to Trash Panda offerings - things like first access to app updates, and opportunities to participate in giveaways and other exciting perks. Best of all, it's free to join! If you're interested, sign up here.

Trash Panda is fully independent. Our mission is to empower you to understand exactly what’s in your food without corporate influence or marketing bias. Because we don’t accept funding from food companies or advertisers, you can trust that our ingredient ratings and recommendations are 100% transparent and honest. Trash Panda is also ad-free. The app is supported entirely by our community through premium subscriptions, which allows us to stay independent and focused on bringing you science-backed, trustworthy ingredient analysis.

Please use the hovering feedback button in the app to submit your feedback along with any photos or videos that may be helpful for us to troubleshoot. Alternatively, you can reach out to support@trashpandaapp.com with any questions, concerns, or thoughts. We'd love to hear from you!

Trash Panda is a nickname for raccoons! In the wild, raccoons eat a delicious omnivorous diet of nuts, berries, worms, snails, eggs, insects and even frogs! In modern, urban environments however, they often sift through garbage.

Trash pandas represent the environmental and economic challenges at the heart of our mission. Our goal is to crowd out the garbage presented to us when we're foraging for food (aka grocery shopping) and that starts by being able to identify the trash, buy the good stuff, and as a result, make quality foods available to everyone.

Trash Panda makes navigating food allergies and dietary restrictions much easier by automatically flagging ingredients you need to avoid with our premium membership. Once you set your dietary preferences in the app, Trash Panda highlights any product that contains allergens or restricted ingredients, helping you quickly spot things like soy, eggs, dairy, and gluten.

Anytime new studies are released with updated information on any of the ingredients in our database, we will make sure to update that information and link the proper studies. That way you will stay on top of all the new news in the food industry and get the most accurate ingredient results.

Yes, your privacy is our top priority. Trash Panda uses strong security measures to protect your personal information. You can scan with confidence knowing your data is kept safe and secure. A user account is optional in the app, enabling you to save products to your own shopping lists, or customize your dietary preferences, but an account is not required for scanning or searching for products.

Memberships are managed through the App Store or Google Play Store. Here are directions for how to cancel on each platform: