In the early morning of March 20th, Beijing time, Amazon has suspended the delivery of Prime Pantry delivery services due to the surge in related orders caused by the new crown virus outbreak.
Amazon Prime Pantry issued a pinning notice on Thursday saying “Pantry service has been temporarily closed and we are busy restocking.”
Prime Pantry can offer discounted grocery and home delivery services to Amazon Prime members. The company said it closed the service because of “high order volume” and said that there are other products on its website that offer similar products. Services such as Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods, and Grocery and Household services. An Amazon spokesperson confirmed that the Prime Pantry service has been temporarily closed across the United States.
The spokesman said: “Amazon Pantry is not currently accepting new orders. Due to rising demand, we are committed to fulfilling open orders and replenishing inventory. We are working to restore the availability of these products and will update users as soon as new orders are accepted . “
The spokesman declined to comment on when the Prime Pantry service will reopen.
Amazon launched the Prime Pantry service in 2014, sourcing products from a range of grocery and consumer goods suppliers, providing Prime members with a variety of non-perishable foods such as cereals, pasta sauces and snacks, as well as household necessities such as detergents and paper towels . According to Amazon regulations, shoppers are eligible for free shipping only when they place an order for $ 35 or more, otherwise they will be charged $ 5.99 for shipping.
With a shortage of physical store products, shoppers have turned to online retailers, causing Amazon’s same-day and next-day grocery delivery services to be delayed.
Shoppers still have difficulty accessing Prime Now and Amazon Fresh services, and users in some regions have been unable to use these services for several days. For shoppers with limited delivery capacity in their area, the Prime Now service displays a notification to them.
In recent days, Amazon’s main site has also faced delays in delivery and low inventory. The company warned last week that for some Prime members, “delivery commitments take longer than normal.” In addition, the most popular household items such as toilet paper and bottled water have also run out of inventory.
Amazon has sought to address logistics and inventory issues in a number of ways, announcing that it will recruit 100,000 new warehouse and delivery workers to meet the surge in demand from shoppers. Amazon also told third-party sellers that, for the time being, the company’s shipments of household necessities and medical supplies will take priority through its own fulfillment center. This change took effect on Tuesday and is expected to continue until April 5.