One of Uber’s freshest offerings aims to deliver fruits and vegetables to users at a discount — and reinvigorate the grocery wars with rivals like Amazon.
On Thursday, Uber said it would release a “Fresh Days” feature that lets some users find discounts of up to 50% on fresh produce, meat, and dairy items. The weekly offer will have its own banner in the Uber Eats app, the company said.
The move is Uber’s latest effort to dominate in grocery delivery. It’s a crowded field with competition from companies like Amazon, which has been expanding its delivery range and partnerships with local grocers.
Uber cited grocery inflation over the last few years as one reason that the delivery service is offering the discounts.
“At Uber, we know how important fresh, affordable groceries are to families everywhere, especially these days,” Susan Anderson, Uber’s global head of delivery, said in a statement on Thursday.
Some of the offers are exclusive to members of the Uber One subscription program. For example, in the US, members get a 30% discount on fresh groceries every Tuesday, Uber said.
Uber also said it’s adding other new grocery shopping features, such as putting icons to items that are eligible for a refund if they don’t arrive fresh and substitutions for unavailable products provided by AI.
The additions are the latest effort by a retailer to bolster its delivery options, especially for apples, ice cream, and other fresh and perishable groceries.
Amazon said last month that it expanded free same-day delivery on perishable groceries in 1,000 cities and towns in the US. The chain plans to more than double that number by year’s end. It’s also offering delivery services for some regional grocers, such as Florida-based Winn-Dixie.
Brick-and-mortar retailers have said grocery delivery is becoming a big business, and they’re trying to build out their delivery muscle. For example, Dollar General CEO Todd Vasos said last month that shoppers have increasingly turned to the chain for grocery delivery. The company works with DoorDash and Uber Eats to deliver orders to customers’ homes.
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