A mother from Scarborough has revealed how she saved an estimated £2,340 on food during lockdown by using the Too Good To Go app. Sarah Colley, 41, a head of finance for a menswear retailer, started using the app during the pandemic and now regularly purchases 'magic bags' of surplus food from retailers.
Too Good To Go partners with chains such as Greggs, Marks and Spencer and Costa, as well as independent shops, to sell bags of food that would otherwise be thrown away. Prices start from around £3, and Sarah says she has received boxes worth up to £50 for just £3.09. The catch is that customers cannot choose what they get.
Sarah told LatestDeals.co.uk she was initially dubious but soon became a regular. 'I bought my first bag from a local One Stop Store and went to pick it up at 9:15pm. It was a carrier bag full of random items, such as sandwiches, crisps, fruit, cakes all dated that day. It was worth the £3.09 I had paid,' she said.
During lockdown, she relied on the bags weekly, using them for her husband's lunches and quick meals for her son. As she has coeliac disease, she particularly appreciated fruit and vegetables. One standout bag included four packets of chicken slices, two sandwiches, mashed potato, a pork pie, two chicken chow mein ready meals, three punnets of strawberries, six apples, blueberries, butter brioche rolls, mince pies, a Cornish pasty, cottage pie, celery, Mr Kipling's fondant fancies, salad leaves, hot dog rolls, Warburtons thins, mushrooms, egg custards, brioche burger buns and red velvet cupcakes – all for £3.09.
Sarah estimates she saved around £30 per week over 18 months, totalling £2,340. She recommends checking the app a couple of times daily and saving favourite shops, but warns that some bags may disappoint. Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, said food waste apps like Too Good To Go offer a win-win for everyone.
