With inflation, we've come to expect to pay more for disposable containers.
But while it's common to see S$0.30 or more charges for packaging, that's a pittance compared to a takeaway charge one Foodpanda user in Singapore was recently quoted on the app.
According to a screenshot shared by the customer to Facebook on Jan. 8, their S$19.20 meal order came with S$27,958,344 worth of "container charges".
The receipt
While the original post has since been deleted as of Jan. 17, here's the order summary shared by the customer:
Screenshot from foodpanda customer / Facebook.
The customer's meal costed S$19.20, with a delivery fee of S$2.09 and a platform fee of S$0.40.
So far, a fairly typical delivery order.
The outlier, though, was the S$27.9 million worth of "container charges".
For context, one could win the Toto S$12.8 million top prize from last December twice, and still not be able to foot those charges.
The customer quipped in the post, "[I] decided to order food from foodpanda but I guess 'container charges' meant paying for the entire container vessel."
"But hey, at least I got 25% off."
Understandably, commenters were quick to question if the ludicrous screenshot was real.
Some also opined that the math on the order did not quite check out.
Charges due to 'erroneous input' on restaurant side: Foodpanda
In response to Mothership's queries, a Foodpanda spokesperson explained that the "container charges" were due to an erroneous input in the restaurant partner’s settings.
"[It] momentarily appeared live on the app and has since been corrected," the spokesperson said.
"We can confirm that the customer was not charged."
Top image from Foodpanda / Facebook & Foodpanda customer's FB post.