Spar Austria has launched a partnership with social impact company Too Good To Go, becoming the first major Austrian retailer to collaborate with the firm.
Shoppers at Spar Gourmet outlets in Vienna, Lower Austria, and Burgenland will be able to avail of packages with food products nearing their sell-by date at a third of the original retail price, which can be ordered through the Too Good To Go app.
Food Packages
The partnership underwent a trial in a Spar Gourmet store in Vienna, and its success has led to the rollout of the service in all Spar Gourmet outlets in eastern Austria.
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 therein is at least €15.
Customers can view the Too Good To Go packages through their mobile phone, and then show their purchase number at checkout.
Too Good To Go Austria's managing director, Georg Strasser, was pleased with the partnership, saying that “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.”
Read More: A Practical Solution – ESM Meets Mette Lykke, CEO, Too Good To Go
Alois Huber, Spar Austria managing director for Vienna and Lower Austria, believes the partnership will help the retailer reduce food waste, saying “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.”
The retailer has implemented other methods of preventing food waste, such as precise ordering, needs-based baking, and charitable donations.
The collaboration is an extension of the previously existing relationship between Spar and Too Good To Go, as the two companies announced a global partnership to tackle food waste, covering a total of 13 markets, in December 2020.
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Conor Farrelly. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
