If inflation holds you back from dining out, an app could help slice that bill into a fraction of the cost and reduce your carbon footprint.
At the end of the day, most of the food that goes unsold at restaurants or grocery stores gets thrown in the trash.
Business aren’t the only culprits. People do it at home as well.
According to the American Dairy Association, the average family wastes nearly one third of the food they buy, or 250 pounds of food each year.
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The Too Good To Go app helps households cut down on food waste, allowing people to buy unsold food at local restaurants, grocery and convenience stores, and food trucks.
The app showcases a list of participating businesses with a wide variety of foods available and the number of bags remaining at each place.
What’s in the bag is a surprise, but whatever it is costs at least one third of the original price.
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News4 used the app to purchase from three different businesses. First, a huge bag of frozen empanadas for $5.99. Next, a huge container of hibiscus tea for $3.99 from a food truck. Finally, a whole meal, including rice and chicken, for only $4.99.
District Taco, one of the participating restaurants on the app, said since it signed up in April 2022, it’s bagged up more than 16,000 meals that would have gone to waste otherwise.
“We want to be environmentally conscious and we want to help, and, you know, you guys being able to get on the platform and getting the bags, they’re $3.99, but nothing in our bags are valued, you know, under $11. So, you're getting some good stuff in there,” District Taco Senior Regional Manager Keela Young said.
Zero-waste shop offers household goods without wasteful packaging
Just down the road in Takoma Park, Maryland, another business works to diminish food waste, allowing customers to buy household goods and personal care products with reusable or biodegradable packaging. FullFillery's mission is to shift consumers’ thinking from throwaway society to one where nothing is wasted.
“We sell soaps, detergents and personal care products, and … people can bring in their own container to weigh and fill off our refill station,” co-owner Rini Saha said.
“Our laundry powder is exponentially cheaper,” she added.
Customers who frequent FullFillery say it feels good to know they play an important role in a cleaner, more sustainable environment.
“This was a whole new concept for me," customer Evan Baach said. "Really fantastic to be able to come shop with reusable containers and able to use products that are great for the environment as well.”
A truly zero-waste lifestyle is almost impossible to maintain, but every effort counts to make our world a bit more sustainable. Reducing waste or living plastic free can be overwhelming at first, but small steps will help build a good habit.
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