App Enables Sale of Leftover Food From Grocery Stores, Restaurants at a Discount

Surprise bags. Courtesy of Too Good To Go

Finding access to food at a lower cost can help relieve stress on the pocketbook, and one company named “Too Good To Go” is focusing on helping people do just that, while saving leftover food.

In order to offer food at lower prices, “Too Good To Go” has created an app that lets local restaurants, grocery stores, cafes, and bakeries sell leftover food at a discount.

Customers can purchase food through the app, with the food contained in bags called Surprise Bags, for $2.99 to $9.99. Customers then pick up the bags from the participating business at the specified pickup time.

“Food waste is unpredictable,” Chris MacAulay, vice president of Operations for Too Good To Go North America, told The Epoch Times in an email. “What you see on the app today won’t be what you see on the app tomorrow. The Surprise Bag is our proprietary product, it reflects that unpredictability and gives businesses an opportunity to ensure the food they lovingly create does not go to waste while also helping consumers get great food at a lower cost.”

Chris MacAulay, VP of Operations for Too Good To Go North America. Courtesy of Chris MacAulay

The bags may contain anything from fresh produce to ready-to-eat foods like pizza, ice cream, or baked goods, depending on the businesses they come from. The company says customers can expect to get a range of products at a third of the retail price.

“We have more than 20K partners on the app across the country, with more added every day. This includes everything from grocery partners to bodegas to convenience stores. Consumers can save food from national brands like Krispy Kreme, Circle K, IKEA ,and many others as well as local, independent stores in their cities and towns,” Mr. MacAulay said.

On July 17, Too Good To Go announced that it had begun to collaborate with Whole Foods Market to offer Surprise Bags at 450-plus locations across the country.

A man showing his proof of purchase within the “Too Good To Go” app while picking up his surprise bag. Courtesy of Too Good To Go

The front entrance to a Whole Foods Market. Helen Billings/The Epoch Times

Mr. MacAulay says while consumers may get food that is at or past its best-before date, people can trust their senses if the food is still fine.

To try out the app, we purchased two different Surprise Bags at the cost of $9.99 each.

The front entrance to the restaurant Pizza Twist. Helen Billings/The Epoch Times

Surprise bag contents from a Pizza Twist restaurant. Helen Billings/The Epoch Times

One order was from a pizzeria called Pizza Twist; in that bag, I received a 12-inch combo pizza and a large Caesar salad valued at $27. The second order, which was from Whole Foods, included three containers—one each of prepared chicken cutlets, buffalo chicken wings, and fresh green beans valued at over $30.

According to the USDA, up to 40 percent of the food supply in the United States is wasted.

Surprise bag contents from a Whole Foods Market. Helen Billings/The Epoch Times