On September 29, the World Day against Food Waste reminds us of the high consumption of resources worldwide. In Austria, too, data shows that around one million tons of food end up in the bin every year. Yet much of it would still be edible. A year ago, BIPA therefore launched a cooperation with Too Good To Go to save food in its stores that is close to its best-before date but can no longer be sold in time from being thrown away. Today, the company is taking stock: with over 22,700 bags sold, over 61 tons of CO2 equivalents and more than 18 million liters of water have been avoided. On average, an agricultural area of around 64,000 square meters is required to grow this amount of food.
BIPA Managing Director Andreas Persigehl: “As a large Austrian company, we are aware of our responsibility to use resources sparingly and avoid waste. We have been implementing a wide range of measures in the non-food sector for many years, so I am all the more pleased that we have found a great partner in Too Good To Go to make a valuable contribution to saving food.”
Food rescue is that easy
Around 600 BIPA stores throughout Austria offer Too Good To Go bags. Each bag costs 2.99 euros and has a minimum value of 10 euros. The surprise bags can be reserved and paid for in the Too Good To Go app and collected from the respective store within a defined period of time. Users can choose between four options - Food Mix (healthy (organic) food, bars, snacks), Baby Mix (baby snacks such as squeezies, baby jars, porridge), Fitness Mix (protein powder and bars, various fitness shakes) and Drinks Mix (ready-to-drink beverages, tea, mineral water) - the contents are put together in the stores depending on availability. Incidentally, the offer has been particularly well received in Lower Austria, where 5,400 bags have been saved. The favorite among the surprise bags is the BIPA food mix.
Georg Strasser-Müller, Country Director of Too Good To Go Austria and Switzerland: “We are delighted that the issue of food waste is attracting more and more attention - from companies and the general public. With BIPA, we were able to win over a pioneer in the drugstore sector and thus expand our mission to new areas. The results of the first year show impressively that more impact can be achieved together.”
Cosmetic and household products are donated
Cosmetic products, washing, care and cleaning products are excluded from the Too Good To Go cooperation. BIPA has been cooperating with various charitable organizations and social markets throughout Austria in these product categories for many years. In the last 12 months alone, goods with a retail value of 1.7 million euros have been donated. “In order to conserve resources in the non-food sector as well, we provide our social partners, such as Caritas and the Red Cross, with various items. In this way, we want to support people who cannot afford regular shopping or who find it very difficult to do so,” says BIPA Managing Director Andreas Persigehl.
Numerous other measures within the company also help to prevent the waste of resources and thus reduce the environmental impact, such as modern forecasting systems for needs-based ordering and campaigns for products at risk of expiring. “We are constantly analyzing our processes in order to further avoid waste and conserve resources. With Too Good To Go, we were able to reduce our food waste by 33% last year. I am therefore looking forward to continuing our collaboration. This is an important step in our efforts to help shape a sustainable future,” concludes Persigehl.
Further information on the collaboration can be found at https://www.bipa.at/cp/toogoodtogo
About Too Good To Go
Too Good To Go is the world's leading marketplace for surplus food. The social impact company with B Corp certification connects users with partner businesses to reduce food waste. With over 2.2 million registered users and more than 7,600 partners, more than 13 million surprise bags from bakeries, supermarkets and restaurants have already been saved in Austria.
The Danish company, headquartered in Copenhagen, is active in 19 countries in Europe, North America and Australia, has over 100 million registered users worldwide and works with 170,000 partner businesses. Since its launch in 2016, Too Good To Go has saved over 350 million meals worldwide. According to Project Drawdown (2020), tackling food waste is the key to solving the climate crisis.
Further information at www.toogoodtogo.at or under presse@toogoodtogo.at.
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