Too Good to Go are a company that pride themselves on reducing food waste nationwide, through shops, restaurants and cafés signing up to give away food that is about to expire at amazingly discounted prices. This sounds like student heaven, with it being a great way to get a large amount of food for a great price. However, it can be a mixed bag (pardon the pun), so, this week, I ordered some bags from local businesses and chains to see if the Too Good To Go bags are worth the money for students.
Too Good to Go has been fighting food waste since 2016, and they are on a mission to inspire and empower people to do the same. Now, more and more businesses are signing up to Too Good To Go to help tackle food waste; Aldi, Costa, Starbucks, Marks and Spencers, Café Nero, Spar, Pizza Express and Chop Stix are just some of the businesses now available. As a uni student who has a passion for environmental issues, it can be hard to buy sustainably grown or produced products while on a budget.
This makes Too Good To Go an affordable option for doing your bit for the environment while being cost effective. Firstly, I ordered a Too Good To Go bag from McSims in the Students’ Union. As it was only 10 minutes away from where I live, this was a great option for me, and I got to collect it early at 16:30.
I paid £3.50 and was pleasantly surprised how much food I got. Overall, I got pasties in different flavours, one steak and cheese pie, two croissants, one pain au chocolat, and two sausage and cheese rolls. The collection process was simple and some of the food was still warm when I collected it.
The great thing about ordering Too Good To Go food from bakeries is that the food can be frozen, giving me an easy, quick breakfast, snack, or meal. The second Too Good To Go bag was from Pizza Express in St Davids. I paid just under £5 and I got two white chocolate blondies, a garlic and mozzarella bread and a portion of chocolate fudge cake.
All these items would have been more expensive than what I paid all together, so was quite happy with what I got. My only criticism would be that unlike McSims, the cakes don’t freeze as well, meaning I would have to eat them the next day or within the next few days. But like most food, you can usually push it a few days after its sell-by date.
While the sentiment of Too Good To Go is excellent, the only problem I have is the late pick up times. Because all of the food given away is what is left at the end of the day, you have to wait for a restaurant or shop to close before collecting. This meant I had to walk into town by myself at 20:30, which was fine, and worth it for those blondies, but some pickup times were as late as 23:00, which is not ideal.
The only problem I have is the late pick up times
Secondly, obviously you can get quite a lot of food for your money. However, in spite of these negatives, I do think Too Good To Go bags are worth the money; they are a great way to not only do your bit for the environment, but you get so much food for your money, with all the items being more than half price off. You can share the food with housemates if you have too much of it, and most food, like baked goods can be frozen.
In my opinion, Too Good To Go bags are a great way to save some money at uni.