Amazon Prime Pantry has "temporarily closed" and isn't taking new orders due to a surge of coronavirus-related demand.
The Prime Pantry website (opens in new tab) , which usually displays all the nonperishable food Amazon Prime members can order, now says the service is "busy restocking."
The site also says that you can't add items that are flagged as "Ships & Sold from Pantry" to your Amazon cart. But if you're already expecting a Prime Pantry order, you should receive it while the company works to fulfill its shipment backlog.
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There's no information on the site suggesting when Prime Pantry orders will reopen. It just says that the company is "working with our partners to get these items back in stock as quickly as possible."
Prime Pantry is one of Amazon's several food-related services, but is the only one currently closed for business. Amazon is still offers some of the best grocery delivery services, including Amazon Fresh and Prime Now. You can also shop Whole Foods Market directly online.
This news comes on the tail of a New York Amazon factory employee testing positive for COVID-19. Despite the company saying it plans to hire temporary staff to meet the recent demand surge, it's facing a number of delivery delays and a dwindling inventory. It is currently limiting shipment of non-essential items, too.
If you normally rely on Prime Pantry for certain items, consider alternatives like Instacart or Walmart Grocery. Instacart uses personal shoppers to pick up items for you from local store, while Walmart Grocery to get anything Walmart sells delivered right to your door during this time of social distancing.
We also have a guide to where you can buy the best coronavirus cleaning products, according the EPA.
Prime Pantry alternatives
- Amazon Fresh (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- Walmart Grocery (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- Instacart (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- FreshDirect (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- Peapod (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- Google Shopping (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- Shipt (check availability) (opens in new tab)
- Amazon Prime Now (check availability (opens in new tab))
