Aldi shoppers will be able to bag a bargain at their local store when a pilot project is rolled out to cover every area.
The German discounter is offering surplus food bags in partnership with the world’s largest surplus food platform, Too Good To Go, in every one of its 990 stores following a trial last year.
The ‘Magic Bags’ will contain a range of grocery products that are approaching their sell-by or use-by dates at less than a third of the price, so £3.30 to purchase for at least £10 worth of food. Shoppers will have to pre-order the bag through Aldi's app, and will have no choice in what goes into the bag.
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Originally conceived as a way to prevent food waste, Magic Bags have become popular during the cost of living crisis as a way to save money on food costs. Other retailers taking part include Greggs, Costa and Toby Carvery, with customers often sharing the contents of their surprise haul on social media.
Liz Fox, corporate responsibility director at Aldi UK, said: “Rolling out our partnership with Too Good To Go is another way of allowing us to cut down on food waste, while also offering customers the opportunity to pick up our food at even lower prices. With the rising cost of living impacting so many, Too Good To Go offers a simple and accessible way for consumers to save money and reduce waste.”
To get a Magic Bag, shoppers need to download the Too Good To Go app and search for their nearby Aldi store, before reserving a bag to collect from the store at an allotted time. The nationwide roll out is expected to save a further 4,000 tonnes of food from going to waste annually and will form a key part of Aldi’s ongoing commitment to cut food waste. All of Aldi’s UK stores already donate surplus food to local causes, and since 2019, the supermarket has donated more than 30m meals via its partnership with Neighbourly.
Too Good To Go was founded in 2016 in Copenhagen, and now in 17 countries. According to its website, it saves more than 250,000 meals every day, and has so far arranged 196m Magic Bags to be collected by 71.6m people.
Sophie Trueman, managing director of Too Good To Go UK and Ireland, said: “We’re thrilled to be rolling out our partnership with Aldi nationally. Having already had fantastic feedback during a successful trial period, I know our Too Good To Go community is going to jump at the chance to save Magic Bags from their local Aldi and prevent even more good food from going to waste.”
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