Staring at the discount meat section gave me a moral pause

I was at the grocery store last night, looking for something cheap to make for dinner. I spotted some ground beef that was marked way down because it was hitting its sell-by date. My budget was tight, so it seemed like a win (you know, saving money and all). But then I thought about how stores often throw away perfectly good food, and buying this might just be a band-aid on a bigger problem. I bought it anyway and made tacos, but I felt kinda guilty the whole time. Is it better to buy these items to reduce waste, or does it let companies avoid fixing their donation systems? Curious what you all think when you're in a similar spot.