Manchester Arndale to host anti-food waste event where you can get Greggs food cheaply

Manchester Arndale is hosting an anti-food waste event with Too Good to Go, the app that lets you buy sacks of unwanted food from Greggs and Costa for just a couple of pounds.

This weekend, food experts will be coming to the Arndale to teach shoppers about making their food last longer and prevent waste.

The Too Good to Go app, founded in 2016, partners with food retailers to help them sell bags of their unsold food, which would have otherwise ended up in the bin at the end of the day.

Food waste accounts for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions globally and is a growing problem in the UK. Around 20 million slices of bread and 3.1 glasses of milk are thrown out in the country each day.

As well as promoting the environmental benefits of reducing food waste, the app also aims to help people eat for less as the cost of living crisis worsens.

For around £3 or £4, app users get a Magic Bag filled with a random selection of items. Each bag costs about one third of their original retail price. Users reserve the Magic Bags in the app and then go and collect it the time stated.

In the Arndale, there are currently 17 participating outlets, including Greggs, Costa, Starbucks, Caffe Nero, Krispy Kreme, Millie’s Cookies, Tim Hortons and Yo! Sushi.

The company has 22,000 retail partners nationally, including restaurants and supermarket chains, and 10 million users who have purchased a total of 14 million Magic Bags.

Too Good to Go food experts will be in the Arndale’s Exchange Court from 11am to 7pm on Friday 16 and Saturday 17 September, talking to crowds about food-wasting tips such as how to keep vegetables fresher for longer and how to refresh stale bread.

They will be bringing with them a 10ft sack of potatoes and loaf of bread for passers-by to take selfies with.

More information about the app can be found on the Too Good to Go website and there is also more information about the participating Arndale food retailers on the shopping mall’s website.