Too Good To Go, the world’s largest B2C marketplace for surplus food, is officially launching in Canada.
The initiative empowers the public and local businesses to fight food waste by offering ‘Surprise Bags’ of surplus food at the end of the day to stop it from going to waste.
Toronto is the first city in Canada to join the movement. Ontario’s capital is launching with nearly 100 partners, including local businesses like Eataly, Greenhouse, and Fresh City.
Toronto’s launch follows successful entries into nine U.S. markets and will expand throughout Canada in the coming months.
Anyone with the Too Good To Go app is able to purchase a ‘Surprise Bag’ of food at one-third of retail price from diverse local restaurants, bakeries, cafes, stores, and other food sellers. The Surprise Bag addresses the unpredictable nature of food waste and allows businesses the flexibility to save any and all food, including prepared food and beverages, that would otherwise go to waste.
Too Good To Go is based on a model that helps businesses reduce waste and generate income on food that would otherwise have been thrown out, helps food lovers discover new businesses and delicious food, and aims to address the fact that food waste is responsible for eight per cent of all greenhouse gases.
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Canada is a leading culprit when it comes to the global issue of food waste is a global issue, ranking third in avoidable food waste, ahead of the United States. According to a press release, more than 50 per cent of all food produced in Canada goes to waste, higher than the global average of one-third. The amount of food wasted is enough to feed every Canadian for five months.
“There’s a natural alignment for our app in Canada,” said Lucie Basch, Too Good To Go Co-Founder. “We’re excited about the potential the app has to make an immediate impact among Canadians, who pride themselves on being environmentally -and food waste-conscious, but who may not have access to the tools that help them be part of the solution. We know that the enthusiasm we’re feeling from our amazing partners in Toronto is just the beginning and we can’t wait for Torontonians to start discovering Surprise Bags and leading the movement in Canada.”
Indeed, Canadians are eager to join the food waste movement. 75 per cent of Canadians believe that minimizing food waste should be a top priority, 94 per cent cite reducing avoidable waste at home as a primary motivator, and 84 per cent agree that food waste is an important issue that demands national attention.
Toronto Mayor John Tory added: “Too Good To Go is the perfect solution to the massive food waste problem in our country. By connecting businesses to customers to help minimize food waste, we can all do our part and get great food from local companies. We’re thrilled Too Good To Go has selected Toronto as their first Canadian city and welcome them into our vibrant community.”
The Too Good To Go app already has more than 40 million active users in 15 international markets. In 2020 alone, the program welcomed over 50,000 new partners and saved more than 28 million meals from going to waste.
