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> Hahahaha. That would never happen. The optics would be horrible, both domestically and internationally. Such a good deed could never go unpunished. This is,

> Hahahaha. That would never happen. The optics would be horrible, both domestically and internationally. Such a good deed could never go unpunished. This is, I will point out, the same reason "expired" or almost "expired" produce and groceries get destroyed or thrown away instead of donated. In almost all cases the food is still perfectly safe, and most stores assume (incorrectly) that they would be liable for any illness caused by "expired" food. But the optics would also look terrible because most people just don't realize that food doesn't magically go from perfectly safe to toxic the instant it does beyond the date written on the package. I have a friend who runs a homeless charity and she tried to get the (many) grocery stored to donate constantly. Almost all of the chains have corporate policy against it for liability reasons.

newshorts 7y ago
I used to work at a shelter. We had an “in” with a local grocery store. They would throw the leftover food out by placing it in nicely on the back dock instead of the dumpster.
- tialaramex 7y ago
  Places that forbid this tend to do so because it's the only way to cure rampant theft. "Oh, I thought that £500 of fresh rump steak was expired. Whoops. No, I have no idea how my old school friend happened to know I'd made that mistake so as to arrive in a truck less than a minute after I carefully stacked the boxes of steak in the disposal area". For stuff with a Best Before rather than Use By tag all the cheaper stores I use just mark it down. Crisps that "expired" two months ago probably aren't as crisp as they intended (moisture in the outside air will very slowly penetrate even the metalized foil container) but they're not dangerous, if your budget is tight maybe 50% off is a good deal on those crisps. For Use By stuff yeah, probably eating these cooked chicken slices on Tuesday after they expired on Monday won't kill me, but I get where they're coming from. It's about margin, just like on aircraft. If you're on a twin-engine jetliner and it loses the left engine in cruise, that plane is still fine, it was designed to handle the stress of maximum power take-off on a single engine every time. It could definitely still go to your destination. But it won't - it's completely understandable that we always treat that plane as an emergency and try to get it down immediately for the sake of safety margin.
pbhjpbhj 7y ago
Cannibalising you're own sales is an issue too - high street bakeries in UK won't sell off for cheaper at the end of the day, they throw it out; otherwise they're lose full price sales because poor people would come and buy the goods at the end of the day.
- himlion 7y ago
  A lot of bakeries around here (The Netherlands) now use TooGoodTooGo to offload stuff at the end of the day. I think it cannibalizes less on normal sales as you can't choose what you get and you have to order your "magic box" a day in advance. I personally love the concept and use it a lot at both supermarkets and bakeries.

newshorts 7y ago

I used to work at a shelter. We had an “in” with a local grocery store. They would throw the leftover food out by placing it in nicely on the back dock instead of the dumpster.

tialaramex 7y ago
Places that forbid this tend to do so because it's the only way to cure rampant theft. "Oh, I thought that £500 of fresh rump steak was expired. Whoops. No, I have no idea how my old school friend happened to know I'd made that mistake so as to arrive in a truck less than a minute after I carefully stacked the boxes of steak in the disposal area". For stuff with a Best Before rather than Use By tag all the cheaper stores I use just mark it down. Crisps that "expired" two months ago probably aren't as crisp as they intended (moisture in the outside air will very slowly penetrate even the metalized foil container) but they're not dangerous, if your budget is tight maybe 50% off is a good deal on those crisps. For Use By stuff yeah, probably eating these cooked chicken slices on Tuesday after they expired on Monday won't kill me, but I get where they're coming from. It's about margin, just like on aircraft. If you're on a twin-engine jetliner and it loses the left engine in cruise, that plane is still fine, it was designed to handle the stress of maximum power take-off on a single engine every time. It could definitely still go to your destination. But it won't - it's completely understandable that we always treat that plane as an emergency and try to get it down immediately for the sake of safety margin.

pbhjpbhj 7y ago

Cannibalising you're own sales is an issue too - high street bakeries in UK won't sell off for cheaper at the end of the day, they throw it out; otherwise they're lose full price sales because poor people would come and buy the goods at the end of the day.

himlion 7y ago
A lot of bakeries around here (The Netherlands) now use TooGoodTooGo to offload stuff at the end of the day. I think it cannibalizes less on normal sales as you can't choose what you get and you have to order your "magic box" a day in advance. I personally love the concept and use it a lot at both supermarkets and bakeries.