Using the too good to go app in Athlone
Saving money and reducing food waste, what’s not to like?
I started using the Too Good To Go app in September 2022 after seeing a TikTok of a woman in Athlone who got a generous bag of baked goodies from Cafe Nero, so I wanted to give it a try, too.
For the price of 4.99 euro you would get several pieces of cakes and pastries at the end of the working day, which is basically what you would have paid for one individual pastry. The goodies come in a surprise bag so you never know what’s inside and you are not allowed to choose what you want.
The concept is that retailers make some products available at reduced price to consumers (often 70% off) instead of throwing perfectly edible food away.
What I bought through Too Good To Go
Over the course of two years I bought nine Too Good To Go bags, which really isn’t much. Then again, the choice of participating retailers in Athlone is very limited: currently, I counted only 11 participating establishments and three of them haven’t made anything available in a long time.
Internationally, Too Good To Go offers a variety of foods from cafes, supermarkets, delis and restaurants.
In Athlone the current offering includes Cafe Nero, a couple of independent bakeries, a couple of cafes, a convenience store and a supermarket (Aldi).
I bought from the same places a few times as they had more availability: in fact, once the app displays available offers they get snapped up very quickly.
I did get a lot of baked goods and cakes, especially from an independent shop called O’Heirs. Sometimes I got donuts, other times pastries, a couple of times bread and a hot dish such as curry with rice. Definitely I got my money’s worth each time as the bags were generous.
When it comes to Too Good To Go bags from Aldi it’s really pot luck. You never know what you are going to get, so one time during the Christmas holidays I got a whole box full of vegetarian Christmas foods and another time lots of vegetables that quickly started rotting in my fridge (I am particularly referring to three bags of whole celery sticks).
That’s the problem with fresh produce: unless you can store it in the freezer or cook it in bulk either on the same day you bring it home or the following day, you end up throwing away a portion of it.
Some critics have commented on the fact that retailers are simply shifting the responsibility to dispose of excess food to the consumer.
In Ireland you get charged by the weight for the waste you produce, which includes fruit and vegetables. I am lucky that I can make my own compost in the garden, but if you like in a block of flats you get charged to have your bin containing compostable items emptied.
Shops I haven’t tried yet
Even though we have a limited selection of shops, there are still a few that I haven’t tried yet. For example, there’s a new cafe that also sells ice cream that opened recently in Athlone and it has started offering Too Good To Go bags through the app. This shop sells coffee, pastries and donuts. I doubt I would be able to get ice cream, though!
Frankly, the thought of getting yet another bag full of cakes is not very appealing because it takes me a few days to eat my way through it, although my dog sometimes “helps” me, i.e., he steals a piece of cake when I’m not looking!
I have also shared some of the contents of my surprise bags with friends, but at times it’s difficult to share cakes and pastries if your friends are on a diet!
Potential savings: money and environment
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