Lowes Foods Tests Flashfood Program in Columbia
Five Columbia, South Carolina stores are piloting discounted perishables sold through the Flashfood app.
Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Couponing
Live Poll
Would you buy discounted groceries nearing expiration through an app?
Lowes Foods began testing a Flashfood pilot program in five stores in Columbia, South Carolina. Shoppers can buy marked-down perishables nearing expiration through the app for up to 60% off regular prices and pick them up at the store.
Why it matters
The program targets food waste, which an estimated $382 billion of food in the U.S. goes to annually. Grocers recoup some costs on perishables that would otherwise go to food banks, pantries or waste.
Flashfood discounts reach up to 60% off regular prices, and the platform's partner programs have diverted more than 145 million pounds of food from landfills and saved shoppers over $370 million. The source does not report results specific to the Lowes pilot.
The players
Lowes Foods
Lowes Foods is a supermarket chain founded in 1954 and headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, operating more than 80 stores in the Carolinas.
Flashfood
Flashfood is an online platform that lets customers buy discounted perishables through an app and partners with more than 2,300 stores operated by chains including Kroger and Meijer.
The details
Shoppers use the Flashfood app to buy perishables at a discount and collect them at the store. Lowes Foods, which operates a store in Marble Hill, Georgia, is partnering with Flashfood to mark down items near expiration, and the pilot runs in five Columbia stores.
Timeline
Lowes Foods began the Flashfood pilot in five Columbia, South Carolina stores.
Season Trajectory
The Lowes pilot extends the Flashfood model, which has already diverted more than 145 million pounds of food from landfills across partner grocers. It places a Carolinas-based chain alongside national partners such as Kroger and Meijer in the effort to cut surplus perishables.
Columbia shoppers at the five pilot stores can buy discounted perishables through the Flashfood app and pick them up in store. Discounts of up to 60% off regular prices may lower grocery costs for those who use the program.
The takeaway
Checking apps that list discounted near-expiration food can lower grocery bills while reducing waste. Shoppers in Columbia may find the Lowes pilot a useful place to start.
Further reading
For more ways to stretch a grocery budget, see Couponing in Columbia.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Business North Carolina.
Live Poll
Would you buy discounted groceries nearing expiration through an app?
