There’s a bit of our planet in every bite: how OurCoop is helping prevent food waste with Too Good To Go
Today, 29th September, is the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, and we’re shining a light on something that matters every day: making the most of the food we have.
Food waste isn’t just about the food itself. Behind every meal are the land, water and energy that helped bring it to our shelves. When good food goes to waste, so do the resources that went into producing it.
That’s why OurCoop has been working with food waste partners like Too Good To Go to give surplus food a second chance - helping good food stay in circulation while making the most of the resources behind it.
Through the Too Good To Go app, customers can buy Surprise Bags containing surplus food from participating OurCoop stores that might otherwise go unsold.
It’s a simple idea, but one that can make a real difference. Since launching our partnership with Too Good To Go in2021, customers have helped save more than 900,000 Surprise Bags across our estate. Together, this is estimated to have avoided a whopping 2.4 million kg of CO₂e.
The theme of this year’s International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste campaign is simple: there’s a bit of our planet in every bite.
Every item of food represents something much bigger than what we see on the shelf. It represents the land and water used to grow it, the energy involved in producing and transporting it, and the people who helped bring it to our stores.
Giving surplus food a second chance means making better use of all those resources.
According to Too Good To Go’s environmental impact methodology, on average, each Surprise Bag saved helps avoid:
- 2.7kg of CO₂e
- 2.8m² of unnecessary land use
- 810 litres of unnecessary water use
These figures help illustrate why preventing food waste is an important part of creating a more sustainable food system.
Food waste can feel like a huge challenge, but there are simple things all of us can do, choosing a Surprise Bag is one of them. By using the Too Good To Go app to rescue surplus food, customers can enjoy great-value while helping to prevent perfectly good food from going to waste.
And with more than 900,000 bags already saved through our partnership, we can see what happens when thousands of small actions come together.
This International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, we’re celebrating the colleagues, customers and partners helping to make that happen, and continuing to find ways to make the most of the food we sell.
Because there’s a bit of our planet in every bite, and every bite is worth protecting.