Just Eat rolls out discounts on low-carbon deliveries for restaurant partners

Just Eat has partnered with e-bike manufacturers Eskuta to offer a 45% discount on electric scooters for food deliveries for its restaurant partners. Companies can save around £750 on the vehicles, which usually cost in excess of £1,400.

“With more delivery drivers on the roads than ever before, we recognise that we have a role to play in finding ways to reduce the carbon emissions that result from food delivery,” Just Eat’s UK managing director Graham Corfield said.

“This partnership with Esukta is another step towards tackling the impact that takeaways can have on our planet and we look forward to continuing our work with our restaurant partners and suppliers to support innovation across the industry.”

The e-scooters can run for 50 miles on an eight-hour charge and will help restaurant partners reduce emissions across UK cities. Delivery drivers in the Just Eat network covered around 100 miles in 2017 and the lack of noise from the scooters means businesses can use them late at night without impacting local communities.

Just Eat also offers exclusive green energy deals, via Make it Cheaper and Squeaky Clean Energy, to all of its restaurant partners. Partners are offered discounted rates to purchase renewable energy to power their restaurants, lowering carbon emissions as a result.

Last month, Just Eat announced it will stop selling all single-use plastic items. The move comes after a consumer survey found that three-quarters (74%) of people would prefer their takeaway to arrive without items such as plastic cutlery and straws.

An innovation platform is also being launched by the company to foster R&D investment into single-use plastic alternatives. To start with, Just Eat is partnering with Skipping Rocks Lab which will trial restaurant launches of edible seaweed-based sauce sachets that decompose in six weeks.

Just Eat will work with the Sustainable Restaurant Association to develop a series of resources for the company’s 28,500 restaurant partners to help them and their customers reduce plastic usage.

Matt Mace