22,700 kilograms of rescued food: BIPA and Too Good To Go celebrate successful partnership

On September 29, World Food Waste Day, we are reminded of the high resource consumption worldwide. Here in Austria, data shows that about one million tons of food end up in the trash each year, much of which is still edible. For this reason, a year ago, BIPA started a partnership with Too Good To Go to save food in its stores that is close to its expiration date but cannot be sold in time before disposal. Today, the company is presenting its first report: with over 22,700 bags sold, more than 61 tons of CO2 equivalents and over 18 million liters of water have been saved. An average 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 handle resources gently and avoid waste. In the non-food sector, we have been implementing a variety of measures for many years, and I am especially pleased that we have found a great partner in Too Good To Go to contribute to the valuable task of saving food.”

Food rescue made easy

Approximately 600 BIPA stores across Austria offer Too Good To Go bags. Each costs €2.99 and has a minimum product value of €10. The surprise bags can be reserved and paid for in the Too Good To Go app, and pickup takes place within a defined timeframe at the respective store. Users can choose between four options – Food Mix (healthy (organic) foods, bars, snacks), Baby Mix (baby snacks like purees, baby food jars, cereals), Fitness Mix (protein powders and bars, various fitness shakes), and Drinks Mix (ready-to-drink beverages, tea, mineral water) – with contents arranged based on availability in the stores. The offer is 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 pleased that the issue of food waste is receiving increasing attention – both from companies and the general public. With BIPA, we were able to partner with a pioneer in the drugstore retail sector, thus expanding our mission into new areas. The results from the first year impressively show that more impact can be achieved together.”

Donations of cosmetic and household products

Excluded from the Too Good To Go partnership are cosmetic products, washing, care, and cleaning items. BIPA has been collaborating for many years with various charitable organizations and social markets across Austria in these product categories. In the past 12 months alone, goods worth €1.7 million have been donated. “To take a measure for resource conservation in the non-food sector, we make various items available to our social partners, such as Caritas or the Red Cross. With this, we aim to support people who cannot afford or struggle to make regular purchases,” says BIPA Managing Director Andreas Persigehl.

Numerous other initiatives within the company also contribute to preventing resource waste and reducing environmental impact, such as modern forecasting systems for demand-oriented ordering and promotions on products nearing expiration. “We continuously analyze our processes to further avoid waste and conserve resources. With Too Good To Go, we were able to reduce our food waste by 33 percent in the last year. I therefore look forward to our continued collaboration. This is an important step in our efforts to shape a sustainable future,” concludes Persigehl.

For more information on the collaboration, visit: 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 B Corp-certified social impact company connects users with partner businesses to reduce food waste. With over 2.2 million registered users and more than 7,600 partners, over 13 million surprise bags have already been saved in Austria from bakeries, supermarkets, and hospitality businesses.

The Danish company, headquartered in Copenhagen, operates in 19 countries across Europe, North America, and Australia, counting over 100 million registered users worldwide and collaborating with 170,000 partner businesses. Since its launch in 2016, Too Good To Go has saved over 350 million meals globally. According to Project Drawdown (2020), combating food waste is key to solving the climate crisis.

For more information, visit www.toogoodtogo.at or contact presse@toogoodtogo.at.