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The quest for french fries crisp enough to withstand delivery

Jul 8, 2019
The secret’s in the fry batter ... and the packaging.
Freshly cooked fries made by potato-processing giant Lamb Weston. The company has been working on ways to keep fries crisp during delivery.
Anna King/Northwest News Network

Food delivery startup Munchery folds, leaving small businesses on the hook

Feb 19, 2019
In 2018, U.S. venture capital investment surpassed the 2000 dot-com peak for the first time. According to the financial data company PitchBook, investors put some $130 billion into thousands of U.S. companies. Many of these businesses will not make it, and as some flame out, they’ll leave behind a trail of debt. This is exactly […]
Three Babes Bakeshop employees at a bake sale protest outside of Sherpa Capital, one of the VC firms that invested in Munchery. 
Sam Harnett for Marketplace

Delivery companies finding ways to help restaurants donate excess food

Feb 19, 2019
Nearly one-third of food prepared by restaurants and grocery stores winds up as waste, according to data cited by the Environmental Protection Agency. It can be awkward and costly for restaurants to coordinate transport of their surplus food to shelters or food banks, but food delivery companies like Postmates and DoorDash have started offering restaurants […]
Nearly one-third of food prepared by restaurants and grocery stores winds up as waste, according to the EPA.
krblokhin/iStock/Getty Images Plus

How delivery apps are changing the restaurant industry

Nov 19, 2018
"We have to adapt every single thing we do," one eatery owner says.
Sara Deseran and Joe Hargrave have made changes to their restaurant to adapt to third-party apps.
Sam Harnett for Marketplace

Should Blue Apron have been more transparent with investors?

Aug 10, 2017
After its first earnings report, Blue Apron's stock price went down by 15 percent.
A view of a Blue Apron box.
Illustration by Scott Eisen/Getty Images

How the rise of food delivery is changing restaurants

Sep 9, 2016
Restaurants face new challenges with the boom in apps like DoorDash and Postmates.
A Kokuho Rose brown rice dish from the restaurant Squirl. The plate contains sorrel pesto, poached egg and watermelon radish, along with several other ingredients. 
T.Tseng/Flickr

Instacart workers feel sting of pay restructure

May 11, 2016
Recent pay changes have left some Instacart workers rethinking the gig economy
Fernando Elvira loves delivering for Instacart but he hopes to someday get hired as an actual employee.
Sam Harnett/Marketplace

For public good, not for profit.

The New York Times gets in the food delivery game

May 6, 2016
Because we really needed another one.
Food apps aren't just coming from Silicon Valley anymore.
DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images

Ordering pizza now just a button away

Nov 23, 2015
Full evolution to sloth creature complete.

Can Amazon succeed as an online grocer?

Jan 2, 2014
'Grocery is the largest consumer category in the world,' and Internet retailers are lining up to deliver.