Supermarket chain Kroger is testing delivering groceries via drones, starting with two cities in Ohio.
The pilot program will allow consumers in Cincinnati and Monroe to receive grocery packages by drone at locations set up on their smartphones. The autonomous drones will be manufactured by a local delivery business under Drone Express, a branch of TELEGRID Technologies, which is headquartered in New Jersey.
“Autonomous drones have unlimited potential to improve everyday life, and our technology opens the way to safe, secure, environmentally friendly deliveries for Kroger customers,” Beth Flippo, TELEGRID’s chief technology officer, said in a press release. “The possibilities for customers are endless — we can enable Kroger customers to send chicken soup to a sick friend or get fast delivery of olive oil if they run out while cooking dinner.”
The deliveries will not be limited to someone’s home location, allowing a customer to get products delivered anywhere, such as sunscreen at the beach or supplies for a backyard cookout.
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Kroger is in the process of designing bundled product offerings that fit within 5 pounds, the typical weight limit for drone delivery. The company said customers will be able to receive packages within 15 minutes.
Test flights are expected to begin in early May near the Kroger Marketplace in Centerville, Ohio. A second pilot is set to be scheduled for summer at a grocery chain operating out of California.
The program follows similar endeavors into drone use by Walmart, which has been trying out drone deliveries in recent years, according to a report by the Verge. Walmart, the country’s largest retailer, is testing drone deliveries of household goods in North Carolina and health and wellness products in Arizona.
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Demand for contactless delivery vehicles has skyrocketed since the outset of the coronavirus pandemic. In February, Philadelphia International Airport began using a new Gita droid as part of a robotic food delivery pilot program. Target created “Drive Up and Shipt” as a contactless means of delivery in time for Thanksgiving, and Starbucks began a contactless delivery service in April of last year.
