Nation's first drone route for food delivery approved

Food delivery platform ele.me said on Tuesday that it has been granted permission to use unmanned drones for its food delivery services.

This new service, which is the first of its kind in China, would shorten food delivery time to an average of 20 minutes. Regular delivery times range from 30 minutes to over an hour.

A total of 17 air routes, all of which are located in an industrial park in Shanghai’s suburban Jinshan district, have been approved so far, ele.me said.

Workers will still be involved in the delivery process despite the use of drones – they will be responsible for loading the food onto the drones at the starting points, and picking them up from the device before completing the delivery.