What might the shopping trolley of the future look like?
Most shoppers probably do not think twice about their shopping trolley when they enter a supermarket.
That is unless it has a wonky wheel determined to make their shopping experience their worst nightmare.
With supermarkets keen to do whatever they can to win over customers, will shopping trolleys soon look like something out of The Jetsons?
Australian Food News has investigated and found a few innovative trolleys with some features that might be making their way into supermarkets near you at some stage soon…
- Lambent Shopping Trolley Handle
The Lambent shopping trolley handle can be clipped onto a pre-existing trolley handle to help tell shoppers whether they are making a healthy food choice or not.
All consumers need to do is scan the barcode and nutritional information will appear.
The handle was a joint creation by US and European academics as part of their research in 2012. There is no news yet on whether it will become commercially available.
- Trolleys which can tell if a vegetable is ripe
According to vegetable industry representative body, AUSVEG, there is a possibility Australian supermarkets could introduce trolleys with touchscreens.
AUSVEG says such trolleys are already being tested in international grocery stores and Australian supermarkets could follow.
“In the future, retailers could integrate batch tracking technology and interactive in-store displays to tell Australian shoppers exactly when a crop was harvested and how long it will stay fresh if stored properly, ensuring consumers get the most out of their vegetable purchases,” AUSVEG spokesperson, Shaun Lindhe, said in April 2016.
- Additional Needs Trolley
The future is already here for Coles shoppers who now have access to the “Additional Needs Trolley”.
The Additional Needs Trolley is designed to seat disabled children accompanying their parents shopping.
It is manufactured by one of the biggest suppliers of shopping trolleys to Australia’s supermarkets, QHDC and was nominated as a finalist in Coles Supplier of the Year Awards for the trolley.
