Drone deliveries: Just Eat parternship pilots high flying, speedy food service

03 Mar 2020 --- Food in “under three minutes” may soon be made possible with the aid of drones in Ireland, under a new partnership between Manna Drone Delivery and Just Eat, Ben & Jerry’s and Camile Thai. The flying start-up is positioned as the first aviation-grade B2B drone delivery platform positioned as a service. Manna and its partners will pilot the service this month at the University College Dublin, tapping into a need for speed in getting food to consumers in record time.

“It’s clear that Drone delivery provides a faster, cleaner, safer, cheaper and higher quality alternative to road-based delivery. We are excited about how that will improve the world,” says Manna CEO and Founder Bobby Healy.

The Manna drone fleet – which is autonomous – is operated by Manna directly from the restaurant or dark kitchen premises and is accessible to food tech providers and online food platforms alike in a “channel-agnostic manner,” meaning the channel is less important than the actual information being exchanged.

The partnerships will provide Manna with a large customer base to test the drone-based platform. Just Eat alone, the digital marketplace for online food delivery, works with over 2,100 takeaway restaurants in Ireland. Worldwide, the tech platform partners with 240,000 restaurant partners across the UK, Australia & New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Spain, Switzerland and Brazil.

“Technology is at the core of everything we do at Just Eat, so we’re delighted to be involved in these trials with Manna, who have built a ground-breaking drone delivery system. Transforming the business of food delivery as we know it, this coming together of two complementary services will greatly improve the delivery experience for our customers and further adds to the countless ways we connect people with food, everywhere,” according to Amanda Roche-Kelly, Managing Director Just Eat Ireland.

“This technology will transform online food marketplaces, restaurants, dark kitchens, and communities globally. The Irish Aviation Authority have been a tremendous help and guide over the past three years, working together, we have ensured that our drones are extremely safe in all operating conditions. We look forward to working with regulators around the world as we bring this innovative technology to customers across the globe,” concludes Healy.

Sometimes referred to as The Silicon Valley of Europe, Ireland has become a hotbed of new technologies and start-ups. Drones and blockchain information were spotlighted last year at 19th IFCN Dairy Conference in Cork, Ireland. The gathering that brought over 80 participants from more than 40 countries discussed international dairy developments as well as better technology to make production more efficient and safeguard resources.

Edited by Missy Green