Uber Eats Introduces New Features for Consumers with Food Allergies

Image Credit: Uber.com

 

For hundreds of millions of people around the world, food allergies have drastically changed their everyday lives, making simple tasks like ordering food difficult and frustrating at times. After successfully testing Uber’s new allergy features in the UK and Ireland in 2023, the company has been actively listening to the food-allergic community and exploring new ways to enhance the online food delivery process for these individuals worldwide.

In recognition of Food Allergy Awareness Month, Uber introduced a new suite of allergy features designed to improve the ordering experience for consumers with food allergies and simplify the process for merchants who receive allergy requests.

This new set of features includes:

• Disclaimers noted on each store details page (accessible via the caret on the storefront) indicating whether a restaurant can accommodate food allergies.
• A special instructions field dedicated to allergy requests, encouraging consumers to disclose their allergies when ordering from eligible merchants. Consumers can select from a pre-selected list of common allergens or enter their own, with the information saved to their account.
• The ability for consumers to call the merchant and disclose food allergies, provided the merchant can receive phone calls.

Sung Poblete, Ph.D., RN, CEO of FARE, commented, “As a champion for the food allergy community, FARE is pleased by Uber’s proactive approach to ensuring that the millions of Americans with food allergies can share allergy restrictions with restaurants. We appreciate Uber’s work to make online food delivery more accessible to people with the disease of food allergy, and we look forward to our continued partnership.”

Uber has also made it easier for merchants to accept food allergy requests by:

• Highlighting consumer allergy disclosures for merchants on the Uber Eats Orders app and on the printed receipt in bold, making them more visible.
• Giving merchants the ability to contact a consumer if they are unable to accommodate an allergy request, helping to determine how to proceed.

Jennifer Gerdts, Executive Director at Food Allergy Canada, stated, “With the dramatic increase in online ordering and the use of delivery apps, effective communication between foodservice establishments and consumers with food allergies is vital. With Uber Eats’ new allergy request feature, consumers can now disclose their food allergies in a more streamlined way with participating restaurants, which means they can make more informed decisions. We look forward to our continued collaborations with Uber Eats and others in the foodservice industry to ensure consumers with food allergies can navigate safe food choices.”

These features were rolled out across the US and Canada in May, with a global rollout starting in June.