It’s a common sight — food thrown out at the end of the day in food outlets and grocery stores across Australia.
But one business is making its mark on reducing that waste.
Too Good To Go launched in Denmark in 2016 and has since expanded to 19 countries.
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After launching in Melbourne in August, Sydney is the newest target for the food waste-tackling business.
Too Good To Go addresses food waste by connecting consumers with stores that offer discounted unsold food.
The Melbourne operation now involves 250 stores and more than 130,000 locals — saving more than 25,000 meals.
The app launched in Sydney on Tuesday — with major chains such as Harris Farm and Bakers Delight on board, as well as smaller businesses including It’s Recess, Cross Section, Sweet Chick and Cherry Moon General Store.
“It’s gone really well above our expectations,” Too Good To Go country director of Australia Joost Rietveld told 7NEWS.com.au of the Australian launch so far.
“The receptiveness of stores about the concept of what it can do for them has been really positive.
“That’s also a lot more than we expected, which is great because it means people want to do something.
“It means that people have this topic in their mind, and that’s exactly the recipe that we need.
“People want to engage, whether they’re owning a store or whether they are a consumer willing to pick up, and it’s an important enough topic to make that step and get that first surprise back.
“So, it’s very encouraging … we’re very excited about what’s going to come in the next couple of months.”
Too Good To Go is free to download, and businesses set their own prices for “surprise bags” of food left at the end of the day.
However, every bag must be worth at least three times what the customer pays for it.
“The upside for the consumers is it’s always the same,” Rietveld said.
“The price is different, but the times three (value) is always the same.”
Rietveld said there is novelty in the surprise element of the bag but, amid a cost-of-living crisis and rising concerns about waste, there is plenty to be motivated by.
“For the consumers, they actually have to make an effort, … they have to get out of the house, go to the location, pick it up, and they don’t know what they’re getting … that’s the concept,” he said.
“In the end, it helps them to actually contribute to a more sustainable lifestyle which we know from research, (from) a lot of our users, that’s actually the reason they want to do it.
“For the stores … this was food that normally they were throwing away.
“They have costs for buying or producing or cooking the food … and normally they would have just discarded it and said: ‘Well, too bad, you know, we’re not selling that today.’
“And instead of that, they’re actually giving it to people … who have paid for it.”
The app aims to expand across Australia in 2025, focusing on popular food categories such as bakery and sushi.
“Our ambition is definitely to be present across the country,” Rietveld said.
“We’re excited to work with our partners and with the team to make this happen.”
The support in Melbourne, and initial reaction in Sydney, are encouraging for the team, Rietveld said.
“We don’t have it planned out yet which city is next but I think what’s most important is we see the excitement,” he said.
“We see that it’s working for stores, and consumers are excited about it. So … we’re committed to continue.”
Rietveld is confident the Sydney offerings will be a hit with users.
“What we’ve seen so far in Australia is that when a bag is specific — so if a bag says it’s a bakery bag, so you know you’re going to get bakery items — then they get very popular because people have a bit more of a sense of ‘what am I going to get’,” he said.
“Same as if it’s a sushi bag … you don’t know exactly which sushi, but you know you’re going to get sushi.”
He also said people were more inclined to buy a bag from a popular outlet they know, such as It’s Recess sandwich and salad bar in Sydney.
“A lot of people know it — it’s not a big chain but just a known name,” he said.
“People really love those kind of locations.
“We don’t discriminate on food waste, we welcome all partners, but we definitely see a preference for those kind of stores.”
Following its ‘North Star’
The so-called “north star” or guiding light for Too Good To Go is the number of meals saved, or of bags picked up.
“Right now, we are trending above 25,000 meals saved so far in Australia,” Rietveld said.
“By getting engaged with more consumers and more stores we can, of course, increase that number.”
The problem of food waste is much larger and Rietveld said Too Good To Go views itself as one part of the solution, rather than the entire solution.
“We think if we invest in getting this solution out further into Australia, with a lot more people, a lot more stores, it’s going to be a positive response to the challenges we currently have,” he said.
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