Iceland has reacted to a surge in demand for online groceries by creating 3,000 new jobs since March.

Online orders rose by more than 300 per cent since April, according to the discount supermarket chain, which has significantly increased its e-commerce and delivery capacity in response.

Iceland said that it now has the ability to handle 750,000 orders every week, but has had to add extra delivery drivers and staff in stores to help pick and pack online orders.

Its delivery fleet is increasing by 30 per cent, with an UberEats collaboration trial in Hackney, north London, now allowing customers to place and receive orders in 20 minutes.

Iceland's chief digital officer David Devany stated: “We’ve been blown away by the demand for deliveries over the past six months with a four-fold increase in online orders since the beginning of lockdown.

“We see no sign of a slowdown in the demand for deliveries in the run up to Christmas, so a recruitment drive for more permanent staff was essential."

In April, Iceland reported that its Food Warehouse branches, which are typically two or three times larger than a standard Iceland store - stocking a wider range of goods - were being brought online for home delivery at an accelerated rate.

More than 120 of them began to help fulfil the rising number of online orders since the lockdown began at the end of March, aiming for a 250 per cent increase in delivery capacity.

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