ZB ZB
Live now
Start time
Playing for
End time
Listen live
Listen to NAME OF STATION
Up next
Listen live on
ZB

How lockdown affects fast food, food delivery services

Author
Newstalk ZB / NZ Herald,
Publish Date
Tue, 24 Mar 2020, 4:53PM
My Food Bag options. (Photo / NZ Herald)

How lockdown affects fast food, food delivery services

Author
Newstalk ZB / NZ Herald,
Publish Date
Tue, 24 Mar 2020, 4:53PM

A trip to the golden arches is out of the question for at least a month, with McDonald's shutting its doors during the nationwide lockdown.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern raised the alert level to 3 this afternoon, with a nationwide lockdown to begin at 11.59pm on Wednesday.

Restaurants should be takeaway-only until level 4 begins Wednesday evening, after which they are to close.

That includes Macca's, a spokesman confirmed to the Herald.

Restaurants will close "before the deadline" of late-Wednesday evening, with the closing times to vary across the 170 restaurants.

Until then, you can get a Big Mac for the road via takeaway, drive-thru and McDelivery.
Eating-in at the restaurant is a thing of the past at alert levels 3 and 4.

The total number of Covid-19 cases in New Zealand is now 102, with 36 new cases announced today.

There won't be any fastfood or takeaway food options during the four-week lockdown.

But meal kit delivery services My Food Bag and HelloFresh will continue to run as normal past the stroke of midnight on Wednesday.

Kevin Bowler, chief executive of My Food Bag, said he was seeking assurances on the matter, but was confident the service fell under the umbrella of essential services.

"Providing food to New Zealanders is really critical and a vital service, and we're a significant participant in that," he said.

"It also takes the pressure off supermarkets, meaning people don't need to go to the store, they can get a contactless delivery at home."

My Food Bag sales have soared recently courtesy of Covid-19, with record-breaking sales expected this past weekend.

The company has also launched a $139.99 My Back-Up meal option designed to take the hassle out of stocking up the pantry with long-life items.

Hello Fresh will also keep its kitchen doors open and deliveries to customers, a spokesman said.

"At the moment we are classified as an essential service so there aren't any disruptions to our current service and our teams are taking the necessary precautions to maintain the safety and wellbeing of our employees and customers, which is our highest priority.

"We're monitoring the situation very closely and taking direction from health authorities."

Customers will be told if anything changes via email, he said.

 

Take your Radio, Podcasts and Music with you