Modesto-based Save Mart wants to cut food waste. New app discounts landfill-bound items

Save Mart has debuted a free app with discounts of at least 50% on many foods nearing their expiration dates.

The Modesto-based chain launched it Wednesday at 44 stores it operates under the Lucky banner in the Bay Area. It will spread as soon as summer to the 150 locations in the Central Valley and elsewhere, which are named Save Mart or Food Maxx.

The company seeks to ease climate change as well as household budgets. Waste food decaying in landfills generates methane, an especially potent gas.

The Save Mart Cos., as the parent company is known, partnered with Flashfood on the app. This is the first California grocery client for the Toronto-based tech firm.

Customers pay in advance and pick up the gathered items near the front of each store, ideally the same day. The varying offerings include fresh and frozen meat, baked goods, dairy products and more. The app also sells $5 boxes of mixed produce, enough to supply a typical family for several days.

“It’s very easy to learn, a very intuitive app,” said Jennifer Shelton, director of public relations and government affairs for the chain. She was at a sneak preview arranged for The Modesto Bee at the Lucky store in Fremont on Monday, March 18.

“The minimum (discount) is 50%, and store managers have the flexibility to discount individual items even further at their discretion,” Shelton said.

The app could start to show up in the Valley this summer and will be in full use by year’s end, she said. Each installation requires a pickup area with coolers.

What are some of the discounted brands?

Fremont store manager Aide Garcia showed off some of the items awaiting her shoppers this week: A bag of Cheez-it crackers next to oatmeal cookies from the chain’s own bakery. Jimmy Dean frozen sausage, Foster Farms deli turkey and store-brand pork al pastor for tacos. A jug of Clover milk and a carton of Dole orange-peach-mango juice.

The chain limits the app to items that come through its huge warehouse in Lathrop, so it can monitor quality. Some major outside suppliers, such as Frito-Lay chips and several soft drink brands, are not taking part.

Is expired food actually bad for you?

Flashfood is based on the idea that groceries still can be eaten even if they are close to their expiration dates.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture advises people to avoid foods that are clearly spoiled based on odor or texture, The Bee reported last year. Other items can decline in quality but remain safe beyond the “sell by” or “best by” dates and other designations.

“The safety of our customer is our No. 1 priority,” Shelton said. “If there’s any question or any doubt, it won’t go on the shelf.”

Save Mart has long donated close-to-expiring items to food banks, such as Second Harvest near its hometown. Shelton said that will continue, including still-edible items not claimed through the app.

Flashfood helps food-short households in another way: Payments can be made with either bank cards or the similar cards used by SNAP, the federal government’s main nutrition program.

Save Mart also composts excess fruits and vegetables, beyond what goes to food banks and now the app. The decomposition does not emit methane because oxygen is mixed in. The issue is with waste buried in landfills, which can leak the problem gas.

How much food goes to waste in California?

A news release about the app said California wasted about 11 million tons of food in 2022, equal to about 19 billion meals.

“No one wants to live in a world where food goes to waste, while at the same time families are forced to live with less,” said Nicholas Bertram, chief executive officer at Flashfood. “... We’re proud to partner with The Save Mart Companies, a retailer that has served shoppers in California for more than 70 years and continues to support the communities they serve.”

Save Mart was founded in Modesto in 1952 and has since become a key player in California and Nevada. Its stores in the Bay Area were purchased from Albertson’s in 2007 and rebranded as Lucky.

The new app “underscores our commitment to innovation and leadership in the industry,” said Tamara Pattison, the chain’s senior vice president and chief digital officer, in the release. “Together, we’re tackling food waste so that the bounty of California’s farms ends up on the dinner table, not in a landfill.”