SPAR Ireland has launched a new partnership with pioneering food waste app Too Good To Go, making it the first retail network in Ireland to sign up to what is expected to be a game-changing solution in addressing food waste at the retail level.

The new partnership, which will start in Dublin, will mean that participating SPAR stores will have the ability to select a range of short shelf-life products that remain in perfect condition but are unlikely to be sold on the day, package them into ‘Surprise Bags’, place the bags for reservation via the Too Good To Go app, and ultimately sell the bags in-store for a third of the original value.

From a user perspective, customers can log onto the app and browse stores that have ‘Surprise Bags’ available for reservation on any given day before picking them up in-store.

Complete solution

Products that are likely to feature regularly in the ‘Surprise Bags’ include fruit, vegetables, salads, prepared meals, bread, and pastries. The products included in the package will be carefully selected to provide maximum value for money from a shopper experience perspective, whereby stores will seek to provide complete meals to customers.

The introduction of the ‘Surprise Bag’ initiative adds to SPAR’s existing food waste management programmes, including the contribution of food waste from its distribution operations to produce biogas fuel for its fleet of biogas vehicles in place of traditional diesel fuel, resulting in a fully circular solution. SPAR also has a long-term partnership with social enterprise group FoodCloud whereby surplus foods are redistributed to a number of local charities and food banks across Ireland.

The ‘Surprise Bag’ solution is expected to be popular with sustainability focussed consumers that are passionate about reducing their impact on the environment, value focussed customers, and time-poor customers that are driven by hyper convenience.

Commenting on the new partnership, Colin Donnelly, SPAR Sales Director, said, “Research shows that food waste is estimated to account for approximately 8 percent of global greenhouses gas emissions, making it a key issue that the retail sector as a whole must tackle head-on. SPAR’s partnership with Too Good To Go marks another step in our own journey towards stronger sustainability while also providing a quality tool for our retailers to better manage short shelf-life products. This solution is a win-win from every perspective.”

Milestones

Internationally, SPAR recently achieved a significant milestone through SPAR International’s global partnership with Too Good To Go when it reached one million meals saved across 13 markets (equivalent to 2,500 tonnes of C02 emissions worldwide at the end of September, just nine months into the new partnership.

Source: SPAR Ireland

Read more about SPAR in Ireland

About SPAR Ireland

SPAR Ireland was established in 1963. It is operated by a leading wholesale and retail company, BWG Foods, now a subsidiary of SPAR Group Ltd Southern Africa.

With a presence across the Republic of Ireland, SPAR is one of the country’s largest convenience retail groups. In developing the business, SPAR Ireland has a long track record of recognising the strategic importance of new retail concepts. It operates three of the four SPAR formats: SPAR, EUROSPAR, and SPAR Express. These three formats bring consumers a comprehensive range of innovative products and instore offerings.