Leftover blind box saves food

A Beijing girl surnamed Zhou gave herself the perfect birthday gift in February. The Beijing-based internet company employee got a 200-yuan ($27.59) cake for half the usual price. The 30-year-old said the cake happened to be of her favorite matcha flavor, which is sweet but not overly greasy, and she feels it was the most exceptional find in her year-and-a-half-long tryst with "leftover blind box" purchases — or randomly packed boxes of unsold food and beverages available at discounted rates.

Zhou is one among many middle-aged and young people who are increasingly using WeChat's leftover blind box mini program Cherish (Xishi in Chinese) Magic Bag, which caters to consumers' needs while advocating a low-carbon, low-waste lifestyle.

Introduced three years ago in Changsha, Hunan province, the program is helping ensure surplus food in first-tier and emerging first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Hangzhou does not go waste.

After paying online through the program, consumers can collect the randomly packed boxes of leftover food during designated time slots, typically just before closing time, between 8 and 10 pm.

"The original price is generally two to three times the price on the program," Zhou said, adding that by placing 194 such orders, she ensured that food worth 5,700 yuan, accounting for 520 kilograms in carbon dioxide emissions, did not go waste.

Zhou came to know about the program through someone's post on Xiaohongshu, a Chinese social media platform, sometime in late 2022.

"I appreciate the environmental concept of the initiative. In addition, I'm curious and open to trying out different cuisines and new approaches," she said, adding that she regularly checks for new additions on the program and tries them out.

Despite the discounted prices, Zhou said the quality of the service remains good, encouraging her to make more purchases using the program.

She said that someone from the matcha cake shop called her in the afternoon to remind her to pick up her order. Another time, when she had gone to pick up food from a baozi (stuffed bun) shop, the packer, hearing her whisper that she liked pies, was kind enough to add one to her box.

"I have recommended the program to my colleagues. Although they aren't as enthusiastic as I am, it has been well-received by everyone," she said, adding that as the program becomes increasingly popular, there are times when people have to set their alarms to remind them they have an order to pick up.

Apart from freshly made and sold products such as bread, cakes and buns, the program has expanded to include sectors that necessitate substantial food preparation, such as hot pots and buffets, as well as non-catering industries such as flowers.

Yi Ming, a 40-year-old from Changsha, said that being a meat lover, he is forever looking for good buffet or hot pot deals on the program.

Yi said he once landed a good deal for a snail noodle hot pot. He visited the restaurant during off-peak hours, around 3 pm, to enjoy "exceptionally delicious" noodles, meat and fried eggs. "I think the initiative also serves as a tool for brand promotion," he said, adding that although the hot pot restaurant has not provided discounted deals for some time now, he is toying with the idea of going there to enjoy a meal at full price.

Yi said even his wife loves the program, particularly for the bakery products it offers. "She always looks forward to seeing what delight or surprise a leftover blind box will throw up." Not surprisingly, the family has always taken part in activities that benefit the environment, occasionally even participating in mountain clean-up activities.

"The initiative conforms to the development trend of Internet Plus, aligns with the sustainable development concept and provides a simple approach to addressing food wastage by actively engaging with the public," said Luo Xueming, chief expert at the Guangdong Modern Urban Industrial Technology Research Institute.

However, Luo also flagged food quality and safety issues concerning perishable products, and emphasized the need to increase consumers' awareness about food resources, which is vital for expanding the user base and ensuring the long-term viability of the initiative.

"Once it moves into a large-scale mature implementation phase, this initiative will hold significant importance for China's food security strategy," he said.