Waste not, want not: Cheap eats coming to Auckland with new food app Y Waste

Y Waste founder Ian Price is launching his food surplus app, Y Waste, in Auckland this week. Photo / Supplied

A new food surplus app promising cheap eats up to 80 per cent below retail price will launch in Auckland this week.

Y Waste started in Australia last year and launches on this side of the Tasman later this week.

The app works by allowing member retailers to post deals on unsold food - otherwise destined for the bin - just before closing.

Customers then buy the discounted food via the app and collect it using an e-reciept direct from the retailer.

Y Waste director Ian Price, who founded the app with business partner Donny Chien, said 1000 tonnes of food had been sold since the app launched in Sydney and Melbourne last October.

There were now 250 member retailers spread from Townsville, in northern Queensland, to the South Australian city of Adelaide.

Auckland had been a natural next step and he was talking to more than 20 retailers, including some large chains. The Herald on Sunday was not able to confirm this week which retailers had signed up.

"It's a win for everyone. The retailers get a little revenue and save on food waste and [customers] get an up to 80 per cent discount on their food ... you can feed a family of four for $20."

Australian retailers which had signed up included Caltex, 7/11 and Brumby's Bakery chains.

The plan was to eventually expand beyond Auckland, Price said.

Food safety was not an issue as customers collected their orders from the retailer direct — exactly as if they had bought during peak retail hours.

Some retailers gave unsold food to charity, but that could be problematic if the economics of charities picking up food didn't work.

"It's also not very popular to feed the needy with donuts and cakes."

The jump across the ditch was a natural progression, as New Zealand was even more eco-conscious than Australia and only a three-hour flight away, Price said.

In-person negotiations had been important but 99 per cent of retailers approached loved the idea, he said.

"It takes time, but nobody is interested in throwing food away."

A donation tab would also be added to the app, as in Australia, so people could buy meals for others.

This would work by providing charity recipients with a promo code they could then redeem, he said.