More grocery choices in FairPrice's new air-con truck

Housewife Norlea Hamid previously had to walk about 400m to the nearest supermarket to pick up small items she may have forgotten to buy while shopping for groceries.

Now, the 58-year-old, who lives in West Coast Road, will need only to walk to the next block, to a FairPrice truck stocked with many items normally found in supermarkets.

"I live in the next block so it's very easy now to pick up something I've missed," said Madam Norlea, who lives with her husband and son.

The FairPrice on Wheels initiative was first launched on April 23 during the circuit breaker, with five vans selling groceries in five mature estates with a higher concentration of seniors.

Yesterday, FairPrice announced that an air-conditioned truck will, for a start, serve Block 108 Bukit Purmei Road, Block 32 Telok Blangah Rise and Block 518 West Coast Road.

The truck can hold about 200 products, including fresh fruit and frozen products, and serve up to five customers at a time, with safe distancing measures in place.

FairPrice said that with the air-con truck, it can now sell items that were previously not available on FairPrice on Wheels vans, such as meat and dairy products.

The vans, which FairPrice used during the pilot scheme that ended last month, had carried about 40 products that were not temperature-sensitive. These included bread, rice, toilet paper, canned goods and vegetables.

As for the truck, about 40 per cent of the items it carries will comprise house brand products, to cater to more budget-conscious customers, said Mr Traves Tan, general manager for supermarkets and FairPrice shops at FairPrice.

He added that the decision to expand the range of products was based on customers' feedback, as well as a preference among elderly customers to pick and choose the products themselves.

FairPrice said that 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the customers during the first run were seniors.

Mr Tan said the three locations chosen were based on demographic data. Each has a high concentration of seniors living in three-room Housing Board flats.

He added that the FairPrice on Wheels initiative had been in the works last year but was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

As a result, FairPrice had to use vans instead of air-con trucks as an interim solution during the circuit breaker.

FairPrice said it will continue to assess the viability and customer receptivity of the initiative in considering whether to add more trucks and locations.

Retiree Chua Hee, 77, said he was pleased to see a wider selection of items when he visited the truck in West Coast Road yesterday morning. He purchased fruit and vegetables.

The truck will be at Block 108 Bukit Purmei Road from Sundays to Tuesdays, between 9am and 2pm. It will be at Block 32 Telok Blangah Rise from Sundays to Tuesdays, between 3pm and 8pm, and at Block 518 West Coast Road from Wednesdays to Saturdays, between 9am and 8pm.