Cork’s food waste is Too Good to Go
Alex O'Sullivan
The world’s largest surplus food app Too Good To Go has reported a surge in demand amidst the cost of living crisis.
Too Good To Go has a simple mission: to make sure all food gets eaten, not wasted.
In 2016, a group of entrepreneurs witnessed restaurant staff throwing away fresh food. The food’s only problem? It hadn’t sold in time, and no one was around to take it off the restaurant’s hands. The group pioneered a seamless solution: an app that lists businesses’ unsold food so local diners can find, buy and enjoy it.
Jamie Crummie, Co-founder of Too Good To Go, said: "We like to think of Too Good To Go as a win-win-win solution. Food businesses can recover sunk costs, meet new customers and reduce their environmental impact, while consumers can buy and eat great food for a great price, and together we can all prevent food from going to waste and do something great for the planet."
Too Good To Go lets people buy surplus food and drink from restaurants, grocery stores, pubs, cafes and producers to stop it from going to waste.
Consumers can simply download the free Too Good To Go app and search for their nearby store with unsold food. They then purchase a Surprise Bag at a fraction of the original retail price, collect it at an allotted time and enjoy it.
Globally from March to May 2022, Too Good To Go has witnessed a 15% increase in the number of registered users saving a Surprise Bag, when compared to the previous three month period.
Since then, the app has also seen a continuous increase in the amount of new users who save their first Surprise Bag within their first 30 days using the app. This figure is now at an all-time high for the company, suggesting new users coming to the app are more motivated to start saving food than ever before.
Jamie said: "Right now, our focus is on growing our presence across our existing 17 markets. We've saved over 100,000 Surprise Bags in Ireland but that's only scratching the surface when you think of all the food that goes to waste each day!
“I'm really excited to see even more partners and consumers come on board across Ireland and join us in this mission to combat food waste."
"Alongside helping our planet, we know that tackling food waste is good for people and businesses at the same time. I’m proud to see our app helping more people access delicious food from some of Cork's best foodie spots for an affordable price, in a way that does right by our planet too," Jamie added.
The latest popular Cork food businesses to go live on the app include:
• Saturday Pizzas - Pizzeria serving delicious handmade premium pizzas
• Alternative Bread Company - Offering a range of top quality, organic artisan bread from sourdough, to soda bread, to spelt and rye bread from the English Market
• Ballyseedy - Family-run and award-winning cafe group with delicious pastries available
• Sage Restaurant - A creative East Cork restaurant offering both vegetarian and regular Surprise Bags