New App Launched In Baltimore Aimed To Help Reduce Food Waste
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- It may be surprising to hear, but according to the USDA upwards of 40 percent of food is wasted.
However, a new app recently launched here in Baltimore is looking to change that while providing you with a great deal.
The app is called "Too Good To Go" and it connects consumers with leftover products. Pitango Bakery and Cafe and Pitango Gelato in Fells Point use the app for their homemade pastries at the end of the day.
"Part of our job is to create a welcoming environment with lots of good options for you and so in order to do that we're always going to have some things leftover," said Emma Leibman, the General Manager of Pitango Gelato in Fells Point.
While donating the leftovers isn't always an option, "Too Good To Go" helps limit waste.
At the end of the day, businesses pack their leftover food or beverages in surprise bags which are then sold on the app at a fraction of the cost.
"We actually talk about quite a lot this win, win, win proposition," said Claire Oliverson, the US Head of Marketing for Too Good To Go. "When you reduce food waste, and you pick up a surprise bag, you are helping those local businesses reduce their food waste. The planet wins, each surprise bag is the equivalent of CO2 of charging your smartphone 422 times, and then all of us consumers, you get great food for a third of the price."
So far, more than 80 restaurants in Baltimore participate helping to save more than 4,000 meals. It's a win, win, win scenario -- fight food waste, attract customers and provide delicious creations at a huge discount.
"Every time you pick up a bag, I have to say that's when it all kind of clicks, and you have this feeling of, I just can't believe that this amazing food would have gone to waste if I hadn't been here to pick it up," said Oliverson.
Too Good to Go is constantly looking to add new businesses and expand into the surrounding counties.
