"Today's happiness is given by the leftovers blind box."
"Opening a leftover blind box in Shanghai feels like I have made 100 million."
For 11.9 yuan, you can buy bread worth 35 yuan, and 15 yuan buy 11 cakes with different tastes... In this era of "everything can be blind box", even leftovers are also labeled as blind boxes.
Recently, a way to package leftovers into blind boxes and then sell them at a discount has been sought after by many young people, on social media Xiaohongshu, "leftovers blind box" related content has been thousands of articles, the topic has been read by millions, many young people issued a rush to buy strategies, teaching workers how to set an alarm clock to grab leftovers blind box.
It is understood that the "leftover blind box" originated from overseas, which does not refer to leftover dishes, but merchants sell advent food or inventory that has not been sold out before closing on the same day at a discount in the form of blind boxes.
With the launch of various leftover blind box platforms in major cities, leftover blind boxes blessed by the advantages of "fun, money saving, and environmental protection" have received widespread attention, and many young people have joined the "leftover blind box" rush to buy the army.
But it is worth noting that "leftover blind boxes", like blind boxes, can not satisfy all consumers, on social media, some people successfully pick up leaks, some people crazy thunder, and food safety issues have been mentioned many times, is the leftover blind box worth buying? How should I buy it? Zhengguan News reporters conducted investigative interviews.
The popular "leftover blind box": you can't grab the alarm clock
"It's been a year since I saw others buy leftover blind boxes abroad, and now there are leftover blind boxes in Beijing that can be opened, so I quickly placed an order." The post-90s Hu Paipai is a native of Beijing who first came into contact with leftovers blind boxes on video sites.
As he mentioned, leftover blind boxes are nothing new, this consumption model is actually an "imported product", which has long been popular abroad.
The "leftover blind box" originally originated in the software "Too Good To Go" developed by a Danish company. With environmentalism at its core, the software aims to reduce food waste for merchants and businesses by building a trading platform that sells unsold food at a discounted price.
On the official website of the software, it is marked with "one-third of the food is wasted by us every year" and other related popular science information.
Screenshot of the official website of Too Good To Go
Since its launch in 2015, "Too Good To Go" has 12.6 million users and more than 25,000 partners in 17 countries. According to the company's 2021 impact report, more than 52 million food servings were saved in 2021 alone.
"Leftover blind box" has also caused a boom in the mainland, and since last year, similar platforms have appeared in China, such as food-wise magic bags, fun bags, rice grain boxes, and ZFW after eight o'clock. Taking the earliest food-wise magic bag as an example, it has now covered Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Chengdu, Changsha, Zhengzhou and other cities.
Zhengguan news reporters opened this kind of leftover blind box platform and found that the food sold was mostly bakery such as bread and pastries, and some regions also launched simple meals, drinks, sushi, marinated and other convenient foods to carry.
In the Food Wise Magic Bag mini program, the price of leftovers blind boxes ranges from 10 yuan to 30 yuan, taking Beijing as an example, the reporter's search page on the day showed that the most expensive leftovers blind box was priced at 39.9 yuan, from a light food restaurant, and the cheapest was a bakery, priced at 5.9 yuan a random taste toast.
Food Wise Magic Bag page
Environmental protection is one of the sales concepts of "leftover blind box". Similarly, the food-wise magic bag that writes "save food" into the promotional slogan also sets up environmentally friendly science information on the mini program page.
Screenshot of the Magic Bag Mini Program page
Fun, money-saving, environmentally friendly, more and more young people join the "leftover blind box" rush to buy the army.
"I will set an alarm clock to grab it, but I can't grab it every time, and it depends on some luck!" Living quietly in Shanghai, a warm recommendation from a company intern opened the door to a "new world". Since May this year, she has purchased leftover blind boxes 10 times, "I bought bread, I am quite satisfied with these 10 times, almost 5% off the original price, I also recommend it to many friends, they have also ordered." ”
Hu Paipai, who lives in Beijing, started buying leftover blind boxes in June, and his purchase process went smoothly, sharing a snap up tip on social media platforms. "The above release time can basically be ignored, as long as you click on the appointment and other reminders to come up and buy it as soon as possible, it will generally be updated around 8 pm."
On Xiaohongshu, there are more than 2,300 articles related to "leftover blind boxes", and nearly 7 million people have read related topics. "Today's happiness is given by the leftovers blind box!" "As long as you buy a surplus of vegetable blind boxes, it will be difficult to buy things at the original price, and the wool of the shire will be reared." "The leftover blind box is too fragrant, I feel that I have earned 100 million" Many netizens expressed their love for the leftover blind box on social software.
Set an alarm clock to grab too? Why are leftover blind boxes so popular among young people?
Zhengguan News reporters interviewed several young people living in different cities and engaged in different occupations, and they talked about the reasons why they chose to buy leftover blind boxes.
Fruity, novel, environmentally friendly? The choice of different young people
In June last year, Xiaohui graduated from a 211 university with a master's degree, and she returned to her hometown to prepare for the exam, with the goal of getting a prepared job. With her family's wishes, for nearly one year, she has been cycling in the process of registration, study, and examination.
Unfortunately, Xiaohui could not wait for the smooth "landing", and anxiety came to the door. "I don't want to take exams anymore, and I don't want to stay at home anymore." Thinking of the many opportunities in the provincial capital, she submitted many resumes, and after a while, received a reply from a state-owned enterprise. Looking forward to working and living independently away from her family, she got on a bus away from her hometown in April.
But life in big cities is not as smooth as expected, "a month rent of 1,000 yuan, parents pay, internship period 2,000 yuan per month subsidy." As a student who has just stepped into the society, Xiaohui does not have a high income and no savings, and the leftover blind box is more like a way to solve the problem of food and clothing for her, "The bread blind box for me is to fill the hunger, I can eat enough, I don't mind very much whether it is delicious." ”
The leftover blind box purchased by Xiaohui
"3 or 4 loaves of bread is only a dozen yuan, which is very cheap, suitable for a recent graduate like me." In Xiaohui's view, cost-effectiveness is the biggest advantage of leftover blind boxes.
Unlike people like Xiaohui who choose cheap leftover blind boxes because of financial pressure, Hu Paipai and Momo buy leftover blind boxes "simply for fun."
"It captures the curiosity of young people about blind boxes, and it is fun for me, watching others buy leftovers blind boxes abroad for a year, and I want to try it myself." In June this year, he bought the leftover blind box for the first time, and in the next half a month, he bought it three more times, and in Xiaohongshu, he also summarized a set of rush tips to teach the "wool technique".
"The process of opening the blind box is wonderful, if I grab the leftover blind box, I will look forward to it from the end of work, the process of opening the blind box is like opening a gift, I don't know what will be, will there be my favorite walnut Mario? Will there be a new cake that I haven't eaten? In Momo's eyes, buying a leftover blind box is a wonderful and healing process, "like surprising yourself in an ordinary life." ”
On the Internet, cheap and fun are the main reasons why many young people choose leftover blind boxes, but there are also some young people who are concerned about environmental protection, they put aside price and fun, and become supporters of leftover blind boxes with the original intention of not wasting. Bags are one of them.
The bag's social media account homepage
Baobao, who lives in Beijing and is an environmentalist, has been insisting on a minimalist life in recent years – living a simple life, discarding items that are no longer needed, participating in second-hand recycling markets and environmental activities. A few months ago evening, she had seen a bakery filling three or four large garbage bags with unsold noodles. "I thought it was too wasteful, so I asked if I could sell it to me cheaply, or give it to people who need it, and circulate it, but the clerk replied to me that the company had a rule that it was not sold on the same day, and the only way was to throw it away." Bouch said regretfully.
The emergence of "leftover blind boxes" coincides with the concept of people like bags who pay attention to environmental protection and "want to recycle things that are discarded". "The restaurant industry is prone to waste, and the concept of leftover blind boxes is very good, allowing nearby residents and people in need to take away the food that was not sold out that day, which can reduce a lot of unnecessary losses." In Baobao's view, the "leftover blind box" is not only a saving of food resources, but also a reflection of its environmental protection concept. "Environmental protection is its original intention, if it is not worth the loss to provide delivery or express delivery, I will not choose a store far away to buy, driving will also involve exhaust emissions."
Unfortunately, there are relatively few merchants who have settled in the "leftover blind box" platform near the bag community, "I still hope that more merchants will join in, so that the concept of 'leftover blind box' will be more widely popularized, and everyone will work together for environmental development." ”
Pick up leaks or step on mines? The bipolar experience of leftovers blind boxes
With the "halo" of the blind box, the leftover blind box seems to be naturally attractive, "spend less money to get the original higher price food", and picking up leaks has become an expectation of many consumers. But not all leftover blind boxes can satisfy consumers, and like blind boxes, some people call for earnings, and some people step on thunder madly.
Ginger shares his leftover blind box experience
"The bread blind box meets my dual needs of 'bread head' and difficulty in choosing, and what I buy is worth it, and I can buy bread at the original price of more than 50 yuan for 20 yuan." Jiang Jiang is a bread lover, has bought the bakery's leftover blind box several times, on Xiaohongshu, she shared her experience of opening the leftover blind box, the most popular post has received more than 1,800 likes, many netizens poured into the comment area, exploring whether their city can buy such a value-for-money leftover blind box.
Hu Paipai also has several experiences of buying leftovers blind boxes, but not every time he is as lucky as Jiang Jiang. "The most memorable time was when I bought a blind box of pastry from a store, and when I opened it, I only had a tiger skin roll, and a small cake that was about to expire the next day."
Hu pat's thunder experience
It is worth noting that in the leftover blind box purchased by Hu Paipai, the pastry is pre-packaged, marked with a clear production date and shelf life, and many netizens said that because the purchase is a ready-made product, the packaging bag will not be marked with relevant information.
In this regard, the reporter of Zhengguan News recently placed an order for 3 consecutive bakery blind boxes on the Food Wise Magic Bag mini program, a total of 12 bakery products, but all bread has only a layer of plastic packaging bags, and the packaging bag is marked with the words "Recommended taste period: within two hours after purchase", in addition to this, there is no introduction and reminder about the product name, ingredients, production date, shelf life, etc., and there is no shopping receipt.
Watch the leftover blind box purchased by the news reporter
"I don't know what will be in the leftover blind box, and the merchant has not provided the specific production date and shelf life, how to ensure food safety?" In interviews, many consumers said that although they are willing to believe that the product is fresh, they also want to get clearer production information.
What is more worrying is that some netizens on social media said that spoiled food was found in leftover blind boxes, putting a question mark on the safety of leftover blind boxes.
Netizens reported that spoiled food was found in leftover blind boxes
In response to this problem, Zhu Danpeng, vice president of the Guangdong Food Safety Promotion Association and a food industry analyst, once said in public that some "bread blind boxes" and "leftover blind boxes" use temporary food, and in the case of complete sealing, the number of bacteria in some foods may not be easy to control, so there are certain food safety risks.
In addition, the relevant laws also clearly stipulate the problem that consumers are concerned about "leftover blind boxes do not provide information such as production date and shelf life":
According to the relevant provisions of the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China, it is forbidden to produce and trade foods and food additives marked with false production dates, shelf life or exceeding the shelf life. Food traders shall store food in accordance with the requirements for ensuring food safety, periodically inspect the food in stock, and promptly clean up food that has deteriorated or exceeded its shelf life. At the same time, as a business, we should understand that many consumers do not eat food immediately after purchasing, so consumers should clearly inform or remind them of the expiration date before purchasing. In fact, no matter what form and packaging food is sold, food safety issues are the red line and the bottom line of business operations. Qin Ming, a senior partner at Beijing Jingshi (Zhengzhou) Law Firm, reminds consumers that when purchasing, try to choose a regular merchant with a good reputation to buy, and once they buy inferior products or have adverse reactions after consumption, they can protect their rights and interests through legal channels.
Article 148 of the Food Safety Law also stipulates that if a consumer produces food that does not meet food safety standards or deals in food that he knows does not meet food safety standards, in addition to claiming compensation for losses, consumers may also demand from the producer or operator compensation of 10 times the price or three times the loss; If the amount of the increased compensation is less than $1,000, it is $1,000. ”
It is undeniable that as an innovative business model, the existence of leftover blind boxes not only opens up sales ideas for merchants, but also allows consumers to obtain benefits and enhance the consumer experience. However, the taste of the "blind box" can be "blind", the quality cannot be "blind", the price can be discounted, and food safety must not be discounted. Taste aside, how to ensure food safety issues and protect consumer rights and interests, leftover blind boxes still have a long way to go. (All interviewees in this article are pseudonyms)
Zhengguan news reporter Zhou Mengzhen