Are grocery delivery services actually more sustainable than traditional supermarket shopping, or do they merely shift the environmental burden to other areas?
This speaks in favor of it
Fewer individual car trips
A key advantage of delivery services is the ability to combine multiple orders into a single delivery run.
- When shopping in the traditional way, many people drive to the supermarket individually.
- With a delivery service, one vehicle can serve several households in succession.
- As a result, the total distance traveled is reduced, and greenhouse gas emissions are saved.
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Sources
https://css.umich.edu/publications/research-publications/carbon-footprint-alternative-grocery-shopping-and-transportationOptimized delivery routes through digital route planning and modern vehicles
- Multiple orders are grouped geographically.
- Unnecessary trips can be avoided.
- Electric vehicles and cargo bikes can reduce local emissions.
- Better vehicle utilization can lower energy consumption per order.
Such delivery concepts can offer particular advantages in large cities, where many households are concentrated in a small area.
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Planning your shopping can reduce food waste.
Ordering online makes it easier to plan your purchases more purposefully.
- Customers can put together their shopping cart from home.
- They can check what food they already have in their refrigerator.
- This helps reduce impulse buys and unnecessary purchases.
- It is easier to plan the exact quantities needed.
This can help ensure that less food ends up being thrown away.
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Fewer personal shopping trips
A delivery service can be particularly useful when people would otherwise have to make a special car trip just for a small amount of shopping.
A delivery can replace several individual shopping trips. This is especially advantageous from an environmental perspective if the delivery takes place along an existing route.
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This speaks against it
Additional packaging waste:
- Food items are sometimes packed in plastic bags, paper bags, or cardboard boxes.
- Perishable food items requiring refrigeration may need extra insulating packaging or ice packs.
- Some delivery services generate single-use packaging that is discarded after delivery.
- The production and disposal of this packaging consume energy and resources.
In contrast, when shopping for themselves, customers can use their own cloth bags, shopping baskets, or reusable containers.
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Sources
https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/publikationen/die-oekologisierung-des-onlinehandelsEnergy consumption through storage and refrigeration
Food delivery services often require central warehouses and logistics hubs where food items are stored, sorted, and assembled into orders.
- Refrigerated and frozen storage facilities require a continuous supply of electricity.
- Refrigerated delivery vehicles consume additional energy to maintain specific temperatures.
- Food products must be kept sufficiently chilled throughout the entire supply chain.
- The processes of picking and preparing orders also result in energy consumption.
However, it should be noted that in traditional retail, food products are already held in supermarkets—environments that also require refrigeration.
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Not every delivery is automatically efficient.
- Express deliveries can result in additional trips.
- Small orders may lead to poor utilization of delivery vehicles.
- Customers are sometimes not at home when a delivery arrives.
- Failed delivery attempts or inefficient routes can lead to extra mileage.
A delivery vehicle carrying only a few orders can cause a relatively high environmental impact per household.
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Shopping on foot or by bicycle is always more environmentally friendly than using a car!
Getting to the supermarket on foot, by bicycle, or via public transport generates significantly fewer additional transport-related emissions than relying on a delivery vehicle for every order.
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Sources
https://www.bundesumweltministerium.de/themen/nachhaltigkeit/konsum-und-produkte/nachhaltiger-online-handelFacts
Delivery advantage in the scenario studied: a potential 22–65% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
The researchers compared 72 different transport methods for a basket of 36 grocery items. Depending on the scenario, delivery services could reduce emissions by 22% to 65% compared to shopping trips made using a conventional SUV.
Context: This finding is based on a comparison with a car trip; it does not account for shopping trips made on foot or by bicycle.
05.11.2026
Sources
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.2c02050Advantage of online shopping
10–30% lower emissions in the scenarios examined
The study compared the environmental impacts of online grocery shopping with those of shopping at brick-and-mortar retail stores. Depending on the specific conditions, online shopping resulted in 10 to 30% fewer emissions.
Context: The study takes into account various stages of the supply chain, including the provision of goods, order assembly, and delivery. The findings are based on a case study in Italy.
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Sources
https://doi.org/10.1080/13675567.2021.1892041?utm_source=chatgpt.comSystematic review (2023)
Limited advantage: The researchers evaluated more than 20 scientific studies and 244 shopping scenarios.
=> Online shopping generally generates less CO₂ than in-store shopping in cases where people are heavily reliant on a car. However, this advantage cannot be readily applied to households that are able to shop on foot or by bicycle.
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Sources
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.2c00299Ideas / Solutions
The goal should not necessarily be to completely eliminate either of these two shopping methods. Instead, both systems should be improved to minimize resource consumption and avoid emissions.
Solutions for grocery delivery services
1. Electric delivery vehicles and cargo bikes
2. Introducing reusable packaging
3. Consolidating deliveries
4. Energy-efficient warehouses and refrigeration
Solutions for traditional supermarket shopping
1. Using sustainable modes of transport
2. Using reusable bags
3. Planning purchases more effectively
4. Buying regional and seasonal products
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