Zomato, the popular food delivery platform, recently introduced its new service called ‘Pure Veg Mode’ along with a dedicated ‘Pure Veg Fleet’, sparking a mixture of reactions from multiple users. Since India has the largest percentage of vegetarians in the world, this “Pure Veg Mode” feature aims to meet the Expectations and needs of their vegetarians with their dietary preference said CEO Deepinder Goyal.
I have received an overwhelmingly positive response on this launch from so many people. A lot of comments from young people who eat non-veg food saying “now my parents can also use zomato”.
I would like to repeat that this feature strictly serves a dietary preference. And I know…
— Deepinder Goyal (@deepigoyal) March 19, 2024
This feature option ensures that only restaurants serving only vegetarian food are shown to users when selected. Through “Green Delivery boxes” the orders placed would be identified and handled by Zomato’s exclusive Pure Veg fleet.
Goyal explains that why he took this initiative to rationally execute the Veg campaign. He highlights on the issue of food spillage in delivery boxes, which could lead to the aroma of non-vegetarian dishes affecting the subsequent orders. He stresses on the fact that separation of fleets was necessary to maintain the integrity of the vegetarian orders.
Zomato’s ‘Pure Veg’ Fleet receives mix responses
Apart from what CEO Deepinder Goyal has to say about his motive and reasons to introduce this move. Pure Veg fleet received wide range of responses on social media. While some users praised the move for valuing vegetarians preferences also at such a huge scale, others criticized it as unnecessary or even regressive. Concerns were raised the potential implications on delivery personnel and societal attitudes towards food preferences.
Users tweeted Multiple tweets supporting both positive and negative perspectives of this campaign. Someone wrote, ” Will this “fleet” exclude delivery personnel based on their personal dietary choices?- thats the hidden agenda, I fear.”
Will this “fleet” exclude delivery personnel based on their personal dietary choices? – that’s the hidden agenda, I fear.
— Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) March 19, 2024
Another user said that its a good thing that Zomato doesn’t operate globally. Imagine having to explain to every other country in the world why the a particular word- ‘pure’ is used for a dietary preference instead of ‘Strictly Veg’ or ‘Only Veg’ or ‘100% Veg’.
In response to these accusations, Goyal reassured the public that this initiative by the company is committed to addressing any negative social repercussions arising from this change. He further assured that if any significant negative social repurcussions are found from this change they would immediately take actions and would solve the issue in no time.
Later, Zomato retracted its plan to require delivery partners serving food to vegetarians under the new service to wear Green Uniforms, stating all his partners would still were red.
Update on our pure veg fleet —
While we are going to continue to have a fleet for vegetarians, we have decided to remove the on-ground segregation of this fleet on the ground using the colour green. All our riders — both our regular fleet, and our fleet for vegetarians, will…
— Deepinder Goyal (@deepigoyal) March 20, 2024
Despite the debates and controversies on its launch, Pure Veg campaign remains focused on providing diverse options to cater to varying customer needs and requirements. Goyal hinted at future plans to introduce more specialized fleets, such as cake delivery fleet equipped with hydraulic balancers to prevent damage during transit.
Both the ‘Pure Veg Mode’ and ‘Pure Veg Fleet’ are expected to be gradually implemented across the country country in the coming weeks, offering a tailored experience for vegetarian consumers while dealing with the twists and turns of food delivery preferences in a diverse society.
