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BUSINESS

French supermarkets team up with couriers to offer one-hour home delivery

Four French supermarket chains have teamed up with couriers Deliveroo and UberEats to offer home delivery services within one hour.

Published: 13 April 2020 09:48 CEST
French supermarkets team up with couriers to offer one-hour home delivery
Supermarket shopping can be delivered by courier. Photo: AFP

With many people unable to go out shopping because of illness or lockdown restrictions and supermarket delivery slots rapidly filling up, four French supermarket brands have begun offering one-hour deliveries of a limited number of items.

Carrefour and Casino supermarkets have teamed up with UberEats, while the chains Franprix and Monoprix are partnering with Deliveroo to offer delivery of smaller orders to the home within one hour – although at present the service is generally only on offer in cities.

More usually concerned with delivering takeaways, Deliveroo and UberEats have branched out to offer the new service via their websites.

There are some limitations to the new service though.

Firstly it's not available everywhere.

Carrefour launched last week in around 15 stores in Paris and the Paris region and hopes to roll it out nationwide in the coming weeks.
 
 
For Casino, it is present in 17 cities including Aix, Brest, Marseille, Montpellier, Saint-Etienne and Toulouse, Monoprix is running the service in 38 outlets in 15 cities including Paris, Marseille and Nice while Franprix has it in 32 stores with a target of 80 by May.
 
Secondly there are limits on what you can order.
 
Many couriers are on bikes so there is a weight limit to the baskets and a maximum number of items per order – the service is not intended for people getting their entire weekly family shop.
 
The supermarkets allow you to choose from between 50 to 100 everyday basic items to make up your basket, while several also offer ready-made baskets, including an organic fruit and veg basket from Monoprix, an everyday basics basket from Carrefour and an apéro basket – beers or wine, cheese and hummus – from Monoprix.
 
And thirdly it is more expensive – not only do you pay the UberEats or Deliveroo delivery charge on top of the cost of the items, some items seem to be more expensive than those on the shelves of the same supermarkets.
 
Carrefour has told French media that “order preparation costs” are a factor, while acknowledging that this is an additional (and therefore more expensive) service.
 
 
 
 

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HEALTH

French government calls on over-60s to get second Covid booster as cases rise

As Covid cases show a significant rise in France in recent weeks, the government is calling on all eligible groups to get a second Covid vaccine booster shot.

Published: 20 June 2022 16:35 CEST
Updated: 22 June 2022 10:40 CEST
French government calls on over-60s to get second Covid booster as cases rise

After a 40 percent rise in Covid-19 cases in the last week, the French Health ministry is calling all eligible people – including over 60s and those health conditions – to receive their second booster (fourth dose) of the vaccine.

“It is necessary to redouble our efforts to protect vulnerable people, this is done through vaccination and this campaign of second boosters is absolutely necessary,” said the ministry of health.

The Covid incidence rate is increasing in more than 50 départements across France. Currently, there are an average of 50,000 positive tests per day, which has also been accompanied by an increase in hospitalisations. 

“This is very clearly a reprisal of the epidemic linked to the arrival of new variants of the Omicron family, which are called BA4 BA5,” said infectious disease specialist Anne-Claude Crémieux to Franceinfo. Crémieux added that these variants are faster-spreading.

Therefore, the government is calling on vulnerable people to take their second booster dose (the fourth dose of the vaccine).

So far, only a quarter of eligible people have taken their second booster dose, with an average rate of 25,000 to 30,000 injections per day for the past two months.

“This is not enough, and it is not going fast enough,” urged the Ministry of Health on Tuesday.

The Haute autorité de santé also recently released its recommendation for a vaccination campaign to give a second Covid vaccine booster shot for the wider population, starting in October. 

The HAS recommendation advises starting France’s annual flu vaccine campaign in mid October (mid September for the French overseas territory of Mayotte) and combining it with a campaign to give a second Covid vaccine booster ahead of a possible new wave of Covid in the winter. 

At present although the great majority of the French adult population is vaccinated against Covid with two doses and a booster, a second booster is only recommended for people in high risk groups such as the over 60s and those with long-term health conditions.

The HAS recommendation reads: “At the end of May, the HAS recommended preparing for a booster shot campaign for people most at risk of developing the most severe forms of Covid, and envisaged a booster shot for healthcare workers.

“Those parts of the population most at risk are also those for whom the seasonal flu vaccination is recommended, therefore for logistical reasons the HAS recommends combining the two campaigns.”

The flu campaign is advised to go ahead as normal, starting in mid-October.

The HAS only makes recommendations, the details of policy are up to the government, but it usually follows HAS advice.

The usual seasonal flu campaign in France offers a vaccine for free to anyone in a high risk group, which includes the elderly, people with underling health conditions, healthcare workers and pregnant women – full details HERE on how to get the vaccine.

Those who don’t fit into those categories can still access the vaccine, but must pay for it – €6-€10 for the vaccine and the standard appointment charge to have it administered by a doctor (€25, with 70 percent reimbursed for those with a carte vitale).

The flu vaccine is available from family doctors, midwives and participating pharmacies once the campaign officially launches.

The Covid vaccine is also available from family doctors, midwives and pharmacies, but most of the vaccine centres set up in 2021 have now been closed down.

There is currently no suggestion a return of the health pass, so a second booster shot would be entirely voluntary, but the government has the power to re-introduce such measures if a major wave of Covid hits France over the autumn and winter.

Currently, there are no plans to lower the age minimum (as of now set at 60 years old) for receiving a second booster. Health authorities believe that the immune response after a first booster “continues to sufficiently protect” younger adults.

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