Spar has become the first major food retailer in Austria to launch a partnership with social impact company Too Good To Go. All SPAR Gourmet stores in Vienna, Lower Austria and Burgenland will now offer packages with food products nearing their sell-by date at a third of the original retail price. By ordering these packages via the Too Good To Go app, customers can take action against food waste, while benefitting from discounts. SPAR International and Too Good To Go in December 2020 also announced a global partnership to tackle food waste, which covers a total of 13 overlapping markets. After a successful trial in a SPAR Gourmet store in Vienna, all SPAR Gourmet stores in Eastern Austria are now offering the food packages filled with bread, dairy products, fresh meat, and cold cuts as well as fresh fruit and vegetables. The food packages can be ordered via the Too Good To Go app and picked up 30 minutes before closing time. A package costs €4.99, while the original retail price of the products is at least €15.
“Together with SPAR Gourmet and Too Good To Go, our customers can save both food and time”, said Alois Huber, SPAR Austria Managing Director for Vienna and Lower Austria.
Georg Strasser, Managing Director of Too Good To Go Austria, added: “Food waste is one of the greatest environmental challenges we face. Too Good To Go is thrilled that SPAR Austria is taking another innovative step against food waste.”
“After 65 years of experience in food retailing, we know exactly what we can sell every day and what to order and bake accordingly. But we cannot predict whether the last customers will purchase a pretzel breadstick or a bread roll”, said Alois Huber. “At the end of the day, a small amount of bread and pastries, dairy products, cold cuts, fresh meat, and fruit and vegetables are leftover. These products are still perfectly good for consumption but no longer sellable the next day. These products are now put into the Too Good To Go food packages.”
Customers can see the number of available packages and pick these up instore by simply showing the order confirmation on their mobile phones at the checkout. SPAR Austria has an extensive range of measures in place to avoid food waste. These vary from precise ordering and needs-based baking to charitable donations and selling products before the best-before date is reached. SPAR Austria ensures that as little as possible is left over at the end of the day. The cooperation with Too Good To Go complements the existing initiatives to avoid food waste.
