You already know that I’m a foodie - and I not only love dining at restaurants or trying out the best local eateries and street food trucks. I also love cooking and trying new recipes at home. And like many others out there, I often find myself throwing out food. Way more than I’m comfortable with!
Did you know that every year, 700,000 tons of food are thrown out in Denmark alone? That’s such a huge amount – the same weight as over 1,300 Airbus A380s or 70 times the Eiffel Tower!
In German, we have a word called “Wegwerfgesellschaft” - the direct translation would be “throwaway society”, but it basically describes a society that produces incredible amounts of garbage without actually realizing it. And food is one part of that.
If you, like me, find yourself throwing out old veggies, the sad remainders of leftover meals, or half-eaten cups of yogurt or pouring out sour milk, you might find these three resources interesting. A physical supermarket, an app, and a meal delivery service that can all help you reduce your food waste, right here in Copenhagen.
WeFood
WeFood are two supermarkets in Copenhagen that sell goods that normal supermarkets would throw out – because they’re nearing the best-before date, are not labeled correctly, or have damaged packaging. In other words: perfectly good food that shouldn’t go to waste! And the best part – it’s about 20-30% cheaper than what you’d normally pay. Win-win!
WeFood is a project started by Folkekirkens Nødhjælp and run by volunteers, with all proceeds going to charity projects. They opened the first store on Amagerbrogade early 2016, and the second one on Nørrebrogade in November. They are also looking to open a store in Århus soon.
Too Good To Go
“Eat Well. Save Money. Save the planet.” Can you say triple win?!
Too Good To Go is a nifty little app that you can download to your iPhone or Android and that will help you find restaurants, take-away spots, cafés, and bakeries close to you that offer food that’s “too good to go” at discounted prices.
On the app, you’ll find “magic boxes” or “magic bags”, containing e.g. a mix of bread and other baked goods from your local Emmery’s for DKK 29-39. You order via the app and pick up your food shortly before closing time.
Aarstiderne
I live in a two-person household, and it can sometimes be difficult to shop groceries in the right amounts. Take meat, for example, which usually comes packaged in 500g units, usually, or something like sour cream, which I buy because I need 2 tablespoons of it, and usually ends up going bad in my fridge. A service like Aarstiderne can help with that – it’s a meal delivery service that brings all the ingredients you need for cooking 3-5 dinners a week. Neatly, that also eliminates all the thinking and planning around what to make for dinner!
There are different boxes available based on your preference: a veggie box, a low-carb box, or a box with Danish classics. They use organic ingredients and deliver right to your doorstep. We’ve been using the 3-day box since the beginning of the year now, and we really enjoy it.
Do you have any other resources to add to the list; or any other great tips to combat food waste? Let me know in the comments below!
