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By Danielle Wiener-Bronner, CNN Business
Amazon Prime users should soon say goodbye to free shipping from Whole Foods.
Starting October 25, each Whole Foods delivery order placed by Amazon prime will include a delivery charge of $ 9.95. Amazon Prime members were notified of the change via email on Friday.
The new fees are designed to help cover operating costs associated with delivery such as equipment and technology without raising grocery store price, said a spokesperson for Whole Foods, noting that Whole Foods delivered three times more orders in 2020 than in 2019. Whole Foods piloted the new fresh in six markets over the summer – Portland, Maine ; Providence, Rhode Island; Manchester, New Hampshire; and the larger areas of Detroit, Boston, and Chicago – before moving nationwide. There is an additional charge for 1 hour delivery orders.
Amazon acquired Whole Foods in 2017. The following year he introduced free delivery within two hours from the grocer. Some perks, like the one-hour complimentary grocery pickup, will still be available to Prime members. The charges also do not apply to customers who order delivery through Amazon Fresh.
The news comes as American consumers pay more for food. Grocery prices have risen 3% in the past year, according to the latest data measured by the Consumer Price Index, the country’s main measure of inflation. Restaurant prices rose 4.7% over the same period.
For years, online shopping was considered immune to rising prices, but that changed during the pandemic. According to an analysis of visits to retail sites by the Adobe Digital Economy Index, online prices rose 3.1% in August compared to the same month last year. Groceries are up 1.64%. This compares to an average increase of 0.51% between 2015 and 2019.
– Nathaniel Meyersohn and Matt Egan of CNN Business contributed to this report.
The-CNN-Wire
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