New app gives Orlando residents deep discounts for restaurant dishes

ORLANDO, Fla. - It's no secret that food prices haven't been cheap, lately. A new app in Central Florida aims to help. 

It's called Too Good to Go. The app lets food sellers put together packages of good – but unused – foods that they would normally throw away, and sell those packages at deep discounts – usually about one-third of the usual price. 

The company said it was a win for everyone: the restaurant still makes some money selling the food, the customer gets a great deal, and less good food gets wasted.

The Kind Cleaver near Orlando’s Milk District is getting in on it. 

"We have a bunch of different flavors from rotisserie chicken, holiday ham, capicola, roast beef, corned beef, jerk turkey, miso ham, working on pepperoni, breakfast sausage. A bunch of different things," said owner Justin Rodriguez.

The vegan deli is one of the first Orlando businesses to list on the Too Good to Go app. Rodriguez said even selling his food at a steep discount helps his business stay afloat. 

"If you can make a little extra money off of that, help break even a little bit, or reduce losses, it's beneficial to the business, as a whole."

Below is how Too Good To Go describes the user experience:

• "Open the app and search for Surprise Bags of food from restaurants and shops near you."
• "Choose a Surprise Bag from the Discover page, reserve it, and confirm your purchase. Head to the shop at the given pick-up time to collect."
• "Take your food to go and enjoy. You've just saved a meal from going to waste and done something good for the planet!"

While users can't see exactly what they'll be buying, the app shows them which stores, groceries, and restaurants are listing packages, and allows them to sort what categories of foods they want. Once they choose their food, the store will schedule a time for the customer to pick it up.  

Overall, less food goes to waste.

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"That just ends up being landfills, adding to greenhouse gas emissions, you're wasting the energy it took to produce, to harvest, transport it, the water that was used on it, the employees' time that was used to prep it," said Rodriguez.

Every year, the government says between thirty and forty percent of American food ends up in the trash. Sarah Soteroff, a spokesperson for the Too Good to Go app said the waste takes its toll on the environment. 

"A head of lettuce, for example, will take 25 years to decompose in a landfill. So when you think of throwing that out, remember it's not just going into the garbage and disappearing, there is a huge consequence to that."

Central Florida may be the latest location for the app, but it's currently operating in other major U.S. cities, as well as in Europe and Canada. Food sellers and customers sign up to the app for free. The app makes money by collecting $1.79 from each sale.

Shoppers like Todd Brodie said that in an era of higher prices, an app like this is a good idea. 

"Giving people the opportunity that might not be able to afford full-price items is really great opportunity for people to try new food or just to be able to eat and get something for a reasonable price."