Online grocery is not just convenience, but accessibility

Online grocery is not just convenience, but accessibility

I caught COVID for the first time in July 2022, and unfortunately passed it on to my husband. At the time it was just the two of us, and like many in quarantine, to feed ourselves we had to rely on one thing: grocery delivery.

The driver messaged us to let us know that our food was at the front of our apartment building, and so I masked up (I was further along in recovery than my husband) and made sure no one was near while I took our groceries into our condo.

What a relief! I remembered my best friend telling me when he got COVID that it can be as much as mental recovery as it was a physical one. Thank goodness, my husband and I had been vaccinated and we experienced mild symptoms. But you start asking yourself, “I wear a mask, I am careful, I am vaccinated, how could this have happened?”

In the midst of this internal battle, though, I got food. And as someone who loves to cook, and was stuck inside, the ingredients in those bags were exactly what I needed.

It’s easy to see grocery delivery as a luxury – one that gives time back to people working multiple jobs, raising families, or simply lacking in time or interest. But similar to pre-cut fresh produce, I’ve seen online grocery as a food accessibility tool. In fact, SNAP had an online grocery pilot that showed programs like these cross food barriers, including disability and “food deserts” (you can read more about my take on food deserts here). This means people who didn’t have access to fresh food due to their proximity to a grocery store, could not purchase, cook and consume these foods.

And I LOVE this! It’s yet another way to close the food gap in this country. Consider perishability for the retailer: the more people can buy produce, the less goes to waste. Consider accessibility for consumers: anyone who is disabled, struggling financially or too far away can now leverage grocery delivery to feed their families. Consider sustainability for the food system: this globalized food system can now serve more people. All of these can be achieved through e-commerce and grocery delivery.

Whether you find yourself needing this service one day, to stock up at a vacation home for a weekend and you want to pick up groceries on the way, to make your weekly groceries while home in your bed due to a condition, injury or illness, or to simply save time and access fresh food, grocery delivery is bringing nutrition and nourishment to communities across the country.