(Almost)Too Good To Be True?
During the past few years, I was fortunate enough to spend a considerable amount of time in the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Despite its amazing architecture, scenery, and “hygge” coffeehouses, it also serves as a stage for creative social innovation. Due to the high prices throughout the city, my fellow university classmates and I were always on the lookout for ways to get the most for our buck. About 2.5 years ago, a friend introduced me to a new app that would become a staple part of my weeks for the rest of my studies.
Originally from Copenhagen, Too Good To Go is a mobile app that connects users with local restaurants, bakeries, supermarkets, and other food businesses to purchase surplus food at discounted prices before it goes to waste. Besides browsing nearby enterprises offering surplus food, users can also purchase a “surprise bag” or specific items at a reduced price and then collect the food within a specified time frame.
The primary issue Too Good To Go addresses is the staggering amount of food wasted globally, while simultaneously tackling food insecurity. In the 21st century, food waste remains a significant problem, with billions of tons of food wasted each year, massively contributing to environmental degradation and economic losses. The simple idea of connecting surplus food with interested people allows Too Good To Go to help reduce food waste by ensuring that edible food doesn’t end up in landfills. Additionally, by offering affordable options to consumers, it addresses food insecurity by providing access to nutritious meals that might otherwise go unsold and wasted.
The initiative that Too Good To Go represents is innovative, as it is driven by contemporary technology. The mobile app allows convenient access to the platform for both consumers and businesses to participate in reducing food waste. Furthermore, the use of discounted pricing incentivizes consumers to purchase surplus food, thus creating a dynamic pricing system that also allows businesses a way to recoup some of their costs. The initiative mainly focuses on local businesses, creating a sense of community by connecting consumers with local businesses, creating a win-win situation for all involved. Lastly, there is a considerable long-term impact, as users start to rethink their consumption habits and raise societal awareness about food waste.
The hands-on experiences I had as a frequent user of the app inspired me. After the first few uses, I remember thinking “How did I not know about this before?”. During my time in Copenhagen, I primarily used bicycles for transportation, and Too Good To Go often provided offers that suited my needs, allowing me to pick up food on my way home from classes or work. The wide accessibility of nutritious food at affordable prices, coupled with the reduction of food waste and potential greenhouse gas emissions from landfills, really makes using the platform an exhilarating experience. For me, Too Good To Go demonstrates brilliantly how technology can be harnessed to address pressing social and environmental issues.
Now, enough praise for Too Good To Go. Let’s look at some of the challenges the initiative might face in the future: As of February 2024, the company serves more than 10 nations within the European Union, as well as the United Kingdom, and the United States. Notably, all these places enjoy excellent quality foods and hygiene standards. Expanding the initiative to new regions and markets, particularly outside of the EU and North America, while maintaining quality control and user experience can be challenging. Consequently, coordinating pickups successfully and ensuring that food safety standards are adhered to can prove challenging. Lastly, encouraging consumers and businesses to adopt new habits and embrace surplus food purchasing is an ongoing long-term process and requires continuous education and awareness-building efforts.
Overall, Too Good To Go serves as a powerful example of how social innovation can leverage technology and community engagement to address complex issues such as food waste and food insecurity, ultimately creating a more sustainable and affordable food system.
