Online grocer

The most common type of personal delivery involves storing grocery inventory in a warehouse to deliver to customers once orders are placed.

Online-only grocers typically have warehouses or distribution centers nearby, to allow local shipping of refrigerated items.

Online grocers with a large regional or national delivery area may ship groceries using courier services.

For instance, in Fall 2016 Washington, D.C. approved a trial run of rolling delivery drones produced by Starship Technologies.

[4] Amazon acquired Whole Foods Market to help accelerate growth efforts in the online grocery sector.

Pre-COVID-19 food shopping activity accounted for 9% of the market, but 63 percent of consumers worldwide purchased more groceries online after the outbreak than they did before they were socially isolated.

Small-scale farmers have been embracing digital technologies as a way to directly sell produce, and community-supported agriculture and direct-sell delivery systems are on the rise during the coronavirus pandemic.

[16] Some online grocery stores have a goal of supporting the production and sale of fresh, organic, locally grown, sustainable foods.