{"id":4526,"date":"2021-08-24T07:21:26","date_gmt":"2021-08-24T12:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/?p=4526"},"modified":"2021-09-13T16:06:09","modified_gmt":"2021-09-13T21:06:09","slug":"grocery-delivery-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/grocery-delivery-update\/","title":{"rendered":"Grocery Delivery Update"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In 2018, I was eagerly awaiting availability; today, I have a grocery delivery<\/a> update. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Delivery finally became available in my zip code just before\nthe pandemic. Ordering was easy. It was a natural extension of the grocery pick-up\nI\u2019d been doing for a couple of years. The first available service was Walmart.\nNext came Kroger\u00ae via Instacart\u00ae.  Then\nWhole Foods Market entered the picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My first delivery order with Walmart went smoothly and the merchandise\nwas consistent with my pick-up experience. Whether you choose Walmart,\nInstacart, or Whole Foods, the ordering experience is similar. Each interface\nhas a feature that shows items previously ordered, allows for substitutions,\nand has a space for special delivery instructions. The look is different for\neach, and the items captured by a search will vary in range.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walmart\u2019s search captures a wider group of products than I would\nprefer. A search for gluten-free cereal yields many varieties that aren\u2019t gluten-free.\nThat\u2019s annoying, but okay. I want search results to be wide. The problem is\nthat the gluten-free items aren\u2019t always grouped together at the top of the\nlist. Instacart works similarly. Whole Foods captures items beyond gluten-free\ncereal but seems to group and prioritize better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

September 13, 2021 update: I feel compelled to note that Walmart recently updated its website. Now you must choose pickup, delivery, and (for most items) shipping for each item before you add it to the cart. It’s cumbersome. It’s easy to accidentally end up choosing multiple delivery methods. And it feels like there are less products available for delivery. I don’t know if there are fewer, but it seems that way. Because of additional delivery problems and this website update, I have subscribed to Imperfect Foods. My first order will be delivered this week. We’ll see how that goes. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Online shopping carts have taken the place of my grocery lists. When I recognize the need for an ingredient or cleaning product, I add it to the cart. I also add personal care products, flowerpots, potting soil, garden trellis, tools, hardware, RV supplies, and toys when shopping Walmart grocery delivery. At the end of the week, I review the cart and place my order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walmart, Whole Foods, and Kroger carry basic grocery items and\nstore brands. And all three rotate through other offerings. During the\npandemic, it\u2019s sometimes been hard to tell if an item has been discontinued or\nwill be back when inventory is available. We all experienced the shortages of\ntoilet paper, paper towels, and disinfecting wipes. Laundry sanitizer, rice,\nbeans, and other staples were also in sort supply. That has gradually improved.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But while some things have gotten better, the Walmart produce\nquality has continued to deteriorate to the point some items are now spoiled\nupon delivery. The good news is that my garden, the farmers market, and Whole\nFoods have filled the gap. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whole Foods delivers cold food in insulated bags. Some frozen\nitems come in additional wrapping. I recently threw away a pint of ice cream\nthat was so well wrapped I missed it. (Oops.) Today, I received some pre-washed\nlettuce from Whole Foods that has some browning on the stems, but still smells\nfresh. The sugar snap peas and raspberries in my order are perfect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Occasionally, I try ordering produce from Walmart to see if they\nhave fixed the freshness problem, but last week, the stench of spoiled\nvegetables greeted me when I opened a bag of sugar snap peas minutes after they\nwere delivered. I empathize with the difficulties working around a pandemic\nbrings, but I\u2019d rather not have to throw away food the minute it arrives at the\ndoor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the past month or two, I\u2019ve been splitting each week\u2019s\ngroceries between Walmart and Whole Foods. I order the majority of my produce\nfrom Whole Foods along with Imagine Chicken Stock and raw nuts.*  While I sometimes supplement with a Kroger\norder, those instances are limited. I don\u2019t enjoy the voluminous number of\ntexts included in the Instacart experience. I also feel like there are always\nmore substitutions from Kroger. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are rare exceptions, but most orders arrive within my chosen\ntime frame no matter which store I choose. Walmart sometimes sends me surplus\nitems or doesn\u2019t deliver my whole order. I haven\u2019t had this problem with Whole\nFoods or Kroger. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the past year, I\u2019ve relied on three vendors. I now have more options.\nNatural Grocers, The Fresh Market, Costco, and another locally owned franchise recently\njoined the mix of available delivery. Drugstore delivery choices have also multiplied\nalong with discount and big-box warehouse stores. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m happy the choices are increasing because I like grocery\ndelivery as much as I believed I would. It\u2019s allowing me to stay in when the\nheat index is 110\u2070 and that feels good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For younger moms, it can mean shopping while the kids are asleep\nor working on virtual school. And it eliminates the need for putting a toddler\nin a hot car seat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are so many pluses to this service, grocery delivery will remain my primary means of shopping when in-person purchasing becomes safer. If you live in a location where it\u2019s available, I recommend giving it a try. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Raw nuts from Walmart are another item that\u2019s become questionable. If I need a variety of gluten-free flours as well as nuts and\/or dried fruit, I order from Nuts.com. My whole family gets excited when they see a bright colored bag from Nuts.com. It\u2019s one place I can find dried mango and papaya without added sugar. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2018, I was eagerly awaiting availability; today, I have a grocery delivery update. Delivery finally became available in my zip code just before the pandemic. Ordering was easy. It was a natural extension of the grocery pick-up I\u2019d been doing for a couple of years. The first available service was Walmart. Next came Kroger\u00ae … Continue reading “Grocery Delivery Update”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2316,3082,2870,2445],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4526"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4526"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4526\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4558,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4526\/revisions\/4558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4526"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4526"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4526"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}