The government of Ontario announced today it is investing $1.5 million on the Carrot Rewards mobile app, which tracks a user’s activity and promotes healthy living, in exchange for real-life rewards.
The app was developed by Toronto developer Carrot Insights back in 2015 and launched in B.C. in March 2016 (3 per cents of residents use it daily). The app launched in Newfoundland and Labrador shortly after B.C. and saw 5 per cent of residents use the app.
Carrot Rewards launched in Ontario less than three months ago, and since then it already has over 200,000 active daily users, about 1.5 per cent of the province’s population.
Eleanor McMahon, Ontario’s minister of sport, told CTV News the government plans to use the app to assist people in making the right choices for healthier lives, saying “It behooves us to think about how we can motivate people, because we need to. We need to live differently.”
“Ontario is happy to support the Carrot Rewards app,” says Dr. Eric Hoskins, Ontario’s Health Minister. “It’s an innovative platform that encourages people to be active and eat healthy. Our government is committed to help Ontarians manage their own health through the use of new, user-friendly digital tools like this one.”
Carrot Insights developed the app with funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada and the British Columbia Ministry of Health, along with participating from the BC Alliance for Healthy Living Society. In 2015, it was announced $15 million would be poured into Carrot Rewards over a five-year period.
Users of the app can collect SCENE points, Aeroplan, Petro-Points and More Rewards by completing quizzes, surveys and more, while also connecting the app to Apple Health to get steps data.
Click here to download Carrot Rewards for iOS in the App Store—It also supports Apple Watch (use my referral code garyn1465 and we both get bonus miles/points when you sign up).
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I feel like I got scammed. I only received 25 points for using your code but it looks like you get 500.
I only started using Carrot Rewards today. I see some of my referrals got 500 and then some got 50. Not sure what is up with that. We could try contacting them to fix this!
I think it depends on the rewards card.
You are correct!
It seems that the bonus goes down from 1000 Scene points to 100 Scene points after 6pm the first day of use.
1.5 million dollars for 1.5% of the population… man these Liberals really have to take a course on ROI. Geez this is just as bad as the giant rubber duck.
1.5% of the population of Ontario is over 200,000 people. I don’t think it’s terrible to invest a million bucks on an app that already has 200,000 users and could easily grow even more with a bit of help.
To what purpose? I rather them use that money to more purposeful things that appease more than 1.5% of the population. This is an absolute waste of money and it is what the Liberals have been doing for nearly two decades. There’s no benefit here.
If you want to scrutinize every item in the Liberal budget, I’m pretty sure you would find stuff a lot worse than investing 1.5 million on people’s health.
I totally respect what you’re saying about wasting money, but it’s not fair to say that there’s no benefit. They’re giving a subsidy to a business, so the taxpayers are definitely going to see a return on that.
Two decades of this party wasting taxpayers money every little missused cent becomes aggravating.
Toronto taxpayers have subsidized private golf courses to the tune of tens of millions of dollars – this is nothing compared to that and more people benefit. Same goes for the duck – 200 grand is nothing compared to what what the government gives out in corporate welfare. At least the duck can be viewed for free by people that can’t afford tickets to the ROM to see a $200,000 painting on the wall.
This government has wasted Billions of taxpaying dollars and to say that two hundred grand isn’t a lot is exactly why these thieves remain in office.
eHealth
Gas Plant cancellation
ORNGE
Green Energy Act
Hydro Prices
This list goes on. This money will NEVER be recovered and us Ontarians pick up the bill. You complain about corporations getting tax breaks? It’s all we can do to keep them here providing jobs. All our manufacturing has left the province because it’s a financial burden. Energy prices and over regulation has made several business set up shop elsewhere… and who can blame them after all we are a have not province.
I totally agree that the government is mispending money and I will never forgive the PM for breaking his promise on electoral reform, so I am no fan. As for handouts to corporations – “Oh, a tax break! I will go out and hire more staff!” said no CEO ever. If it’s ten times cheaper to produce something overseas, no amount of handouts is going to cover that. Those jobs are lost unless the government flat out makes it illegal to manufacture overseas – and that’s never going to happen and I wouldn’t want it to happen.
You actually don’t have to make it illegal to manufacture overseas– what you do is tax them heavier for importing. We’ve just seen a version of this tactic used on foreign house investors. The only problem is the taxes would have to be very heavy or else the companies would pay it and pass it on to the customer. The real solution is to find a way to cancel the Green Energy Act and bring hydro prices back to realistic rates.
We agree on a lot – I think electicity rates are artificially high – previous rates prove it. But I still think the duck was worth it 🙂
Hahaha quack quack then! ????
Pimping your own referral Gary 🙁 Kinda disappointed.
Using Gary’s code helps both the user and Gary, what’s wrong with that? This website helps both the user and Gary, and you wouldn’t accuse him of “pimping” iPhoneinCanada, right? Let’s call it, “win-win”
It’s just my opinion, that’s it.
Funny how all the reviews in the App Store say “great app, use my code to get more points!” ????
Until this article, I hadn’t heard of this app.
wilistonm2007