Positives

• Buy groceries at a discount while you shop for other groceries

• Save food that would otherwise have to be thrown away

• Heavily discounted items available in all supermarket categories

• Easy app and shopping process

• Seamless retrieval

• No packaging waste

Disadvantages

• Only available at selected retailers

• Some stores have few items available

• Possibly damaged items

• No delivery option

If you are worried about getting up grocery pricesyou are not alone. A recent CNET survey found that 93% of Americans are concerned about inflation, with groceries causing the biggest shock.

To save on your weekly food expenses, you can switch to store brand groceries (I did the math to see how much you save) or try shopping at a wholesaler like Costco (we did the math switching to Costco for a year too.) Another option is Flash fooda mobile app that allows you to do grocery shopping as you get closer expiration dates or damaged packaging direct from local retailers at half price.

I recently tried Flashfood and saved about 50% on a range of groceries from Stop & Shop. As someone who likes to cook at home and does a lot of it, Flashfood ticks a lot of boxes.

Read more: This is what an expert told me about food expiration dates

Here you will find everything you need to know about Flashfood and how to use the grocery discount app.

Snapshot of Flashfood

• Employ: app for rescuing nearly expired food at local grocery stores. Account registration is required, but there are no subscription fees.
• Partners: Flash food retailers across the country include Dash Mart, Piggly Wiggly, Meijier, Stop and Shop, Food Lion and others.
• Regional availability: Continental US and Canada.
• Costs: There are no costs associated with participating. Available products are discounted by 50%. A small 5% service fee will be added to each order, up to a maximum of $2.99.

What is Flash Food?

Flashfood, an app for buying discounted groceries that might end up in the trash, was founded in 2016 by Josh Domingue to curb the enormous amount of waste generated by food retail companies, one of the biggest contributors to the problem. According to data from Recycle Track Systems, U.S. grocery stores are responsible for 16 billion pounds of food waste per year.

Flashfood works with specific supermarkets so that they can sell food that is approaching its expiration date or severely damaged items to consumers at a deep discount.

How does Flashfood work?

Flashfood does not require a subscription, but consumers must download the app and create an account. A simple map function shows which stores near you participate in Flashfood and you can browse through the available stock.

The original price of each item is displayed in the app, as well as the 50% discount price, and the expiration date is also indicated. For inventory purposes, each item is listed separately, so you may see multiple listings for the same item.

Flashfood shoppers can easily add items to their cart and then pay for those items in the app. Your order must be collected from the store, ideally on the same day as your purchase, but no later than the expiry date of your chosen items. Flashfood charges a 5% service fee per order, up to a maximum of $3, to cover operating costs.

Save deeply discounted food while you shop

The best thing about Flashfood is that you can browse what’s available in the app while you shop in-store, making it a one-stop shopping experience. If you’re already making the trip, you’ll notice that several things on your list are available in the store’s Flashfood inventory. This differs from several other food assistance platforms that, while offering a huge selection of rescued items on their website for national delivery, do not represent every aisle in the grocery store. It’s not a one-stop-shop situation. Flash food potentially is.

There is a lot of talk about the rising cost of groceries, so a 50% discount offered by Flashfood is really something to think about. I got a decent amount for about $30: four different proteins, generously portioned, close to their expiration date but ready to go straight into the freezer, including salmon, chicken wings, pork chops and Italian sausage.

A few stock items had damage only to the box — the kind you’d probably skip if they were on the shelves, but when they were offered at 50% off it was a no-brainer to snag them. (My 1990s Midwestern sensibility, which believed that all grains should cost no more than $3, was satisfied.)

A bag of fruit was slightly discolored, but that was it, and a few pounds of apples, pears, oranges, and clementines were offered as an assorted bag for $5. This wasn’t a guessing game or a mystery bag situation; the photo in the app showed exactly what I got.

The Stop and Shop where I purchased my order also had full bakery cookies for half off. I couldn’t justify it for my one-person household, but boy was I tempted.

Collect rescued items from the store before the expiration date has passed

The pickup process for my Flashfood order was simple: There were well-marked Flashfood cabinets and refrigerators at the register, and a manager checked my order and handed me the specific items I purchased. Since I brought my own shopping bag, this was another waste element that was eliminated by the process, and I was able to pick up my order within an hour of purchase. Some retailers can pre-pack your order, but because Flashfood inventory is not unlimited at any retailer, it was a quick process finding all my items when I arrived.

Flashfood recommends collecting your order on the same day you purchase it, but as long as you collect it before the expiry date of your chosen items, this does not have to be immediate.

Who is Flashfood good for?

If you regularly shop at one of the major retailers that Flashfood works with, such as Piggly Wiggly, Meijier or Stop and Shop, then this is a can’t-lose situation. Since there’s no membership or obligation involved at all, you might as well download the app and see what’s available in your store. You may end up leaving with a little extra money than you normally would.

Who is Flashfood not suitable for?

Flashfood has approximately 2,000 retail locations in the US and Canada. That said, if one of them isn’t in your area, Flashfood won’t do you any favors. (However, the app is currently developing a way for consumers to request Flashfood in their specific markets.) There is currently no delivery mechanism for Flashfood, so you’ll have to pick it up in store. If you rely heavily on delivery services like Instacart or DoorDash, or even companies like Misfits Market or Thrive Market that ship nationally, then Flashfood may not be a practical solution.

Final verdict on Flashfood

Flash food is the most convenient solution I’ve seen yet when it comes to finding cheap groceries and saving food that might otherwise end up in the trash. I would really encourage everyone to download the simple app and see what’s nearby. I went out of my way for 40 minutes to get to a supermarket that partners with Flashfood, but after doing it I would absolutely do it again.