Food delivery service Just Eat has begun offering takeaway by drone as part of a pilot programme in Oranmore, Co Galway.
The service, which is powered by drone delivery as a service platform Manna, is available for customers of Camile Thai. It is the first time that such a service has been offered on JustEat, and comes amid an ongoing trial of the drone delivery service with Tesco for small basket deliveries in Oranmore.
Customers can select their dishes on the Camile Thai drone delivery menu, which is available on select days. The food can be dropped to the delivery point in under three minutes.
“We’re thrilled to see this exciting partnership with Manna get off the ground and delighted that our Camile Thai customers in Oranmore will be the first to enjoy this new delivery option right to their door.
"It's a real success story for technology in the takeaway food industry in Ireland, one that has continued to show its resilience and innovation in the face of all the challenges it has experienced over the past year," said Just Eat Ireland managing director Amanda Roche-Kelly.
“We were all geared up to pilot Just Eat’s takeaway food delivery service in early 2020, but we put this on hold and focused all of our efforts on supporting our restaurant partners. While the road ahead will present its own unique challenges, Manna Drone Delivery ‘as-a-service’ will transform the business of food delivery as we know it, so we’re really proud to be the world’s first online food platform providing this option to our customers in partnership with Manna.”
Widening service
Ms Roche-Kelly said she hoped to widen the drone deliveries to more customers in the coming months.
Manna introduced drone deliveries to Oranmore in October, and said it had been well received.
“Drone delivery is now a welcome part of everyday life for the people in Oranmore.,” he said. “ It’s very encouraging to get such a resounding endorsement from our local retailer partners and residents and we look forward to expanding the service in the coming months through our partnership with Just Eat. Drones are a safe, greener, faster and more private delivery solution and creates jobs for local retailers to boot.”
