Deliveroo announces £5m ‘innovation fund’ to support UK restaurants

Deliveroo has announced it will invest £5m in UK restaurants to bring in new menus and measures that will be more compatible with the delivery app.

The delivery app is also looking into ways to fund more ‘dark kitchens’ that allow chefs and restaurant brands to mass-cook meals for delivery only. It is thought Deliveroo wants to increase the number of UK dark kitchens from 74 to 130 by the end of the year.

Caleb Merkl, vice president of special projects at Deliveroo, told media: “Expanding our delivery-only sites, giving restaurants access to our super kitchens, Deliveroo will bring new, exciting brands to local areas.”

Deliveroo has been placed under pressure to expand after Uber expanded its business reach in the UK last year.

The news will be welcomed by the UK restaurant industry, which has already seen a number of high profile administrations and closures in the last few months.

The news of investment comes after restaurants said that they found Deliveroo fees and workloads hard to manage.