Grocery stores automate near-expiry discounts

In a bid to empower shoppers and combat food waste, grocery store chain is rolling out a streamlined system for identifying and discounting soon-to-expire items

Most grocery stores have a near-expiry discount section in their stores. Many consumers head straight for these sections when they enter the stores, say retailers. Archive photo

Marjun Dalsgaard

Ruth Winther Poulsen

21.01.2024 - 05:16

Instead of manually discounting near-expiry items, Bonus, Miklagarður and Mylnan are now automating near-expiry discounts with dedicated space, digital notifications and dynamic pricing.

“This systematic approach not only benefits shoppers with significant savings but also helps reduce food waste, a growing concern in the industry,” says Niels Mortensen, the head of the SMS consortium, which owns the Bonus, Miklagarður and Mylnan grocery stores.

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“We’re moving away from manually discounting near-expiry items. We now use a program which identifies expiring items and recommends discounts.”

The new system applies to most groceries, but it cannot be used for fruits and vegetables.

“We are looking at a separate system for fruits and vegetables. We only receive these items twice a week, so we are at a disadvantage to mainland Europe in this regard. This is a challenge we are addressing."

Read the Faroese version of this article here.

English version by prosa.fo.

More Faroese News in English.