Convenience-store company Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. and Too Good To Go, a marketplace for surplus food, have expanded their fight against food waste in North America and Europe. More than 9,000 Circle K and Couche-Tard c-stores across the United States, Canada, Ireland and Poland will be available on the Too Good To Go app by the end of the year, marking Too Good To Go’s most extensive rollout to date.
Through the Too Good To Go app, customers can contribute to reducing the significant climate effects of food waste.
Store staff will inspect their food inventory daily for items nearing expiration and pack them into “Too Good To Go Surprise Bags,” adapting to the fluctuating surplus. Directly from the free mobile app on their phones, more than 95 million Too Good To Go registered users across the Circle K and Couche-Tard geographic footprint will have the opportunity to save good food from going to waste by purchasing it for half of the original price or less.
“On top of saving good food from going to waste at a great value for the money, our customers can now leave our stores knowing they’ve made a positive impact in the efforts to reduce the impacts of climate change,” said Ina Strand, chief people officer and leader of sustainability efforts for Alimentation Couche-Tard.
“As we expand and refine our food offering globally, minimizing food waste is a priority for us—and the right thing to do both economically and environmentally,” said Strand. “This partnership with Too Good To Go is a great complement to our continuous improvement efforts in our foodservice operations. Not only does it bolster our global sustainability commitments, but it’s also an innovative way for our customers to try our delicious food at a great price.”
Couche-Tard and Circle K stores throughout the United States, Canada, Ireland and Poland will join the Too Good To Go Marketplace in phases by geographic business unit over the remainder of 2024.
Too Good To Go’s partnership with Couche-Tard started in 2018 in Norway, expanding in the years that followed to Denmark, Sweden and select markets in the United States, Canada and Poland. Since then, Circle K and Couche-Tard customers have been significantly reducing food waste, saving approximately 1.3 million Surprise Bags, the equivalent of avoiding 3,510,000 kgs of CO2e and the unnecessary use of more than 1 billion liters of water.
“Our collaboration with Couche-Tard has already made significant strides in the fight against food waste. This expanded partnership elevates our ability to impact to unprecedented levels, reinforcing the crucial role of businesses in addressing global challenges,” said Mette Lykke, CEO of Too Good To Go.
Too Good To Go operates the world’s largest marketplace for surplus food, with 95 million registered users and 160,000 active partners across 17 countries in Europe and North America. It partners with some of the industry’s biggest players across grocery retail, foodservice, catering, bakery cafe, fast-casual and quick-service restaurant (QSR), manufacturing and wholesale, including Carrefour, Aldi, Unilever, Starbucks, Spar, Costa Coffee, Paul Group and Biedronka.
- Alimentation Couche-Tard is No. 2 on CSP’s 2024 Top 40 Update to the 2023 Top 202 ranking of U.S. c-store chains by store count. Watch for the full 2024 Top 202 ranking in the June issue of CSP magazine and in CSP Daily News.
Laval, Quebec Couche-Tard operates in 29 countries and territories, with more than 16,700 convenience stores. Its network includes more than 7,100 c-stores in the United States, primarily under the Circle K banner.
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