智能超市悄悄来袭，你准备好了吗？

Topic 1: Intelligent markets >>>>>>>>Yuan Qian, a local resident, now prefers to use FreshMarket, a company operating an IM in Shanghai and surrounding cities, instead of having to trudge through her neighborhood wet market every day after work. From her office she simply swipes an app and selects ingredients for what she&`&d like to cook that evening. In recent months it is not uncommon to see large parcels filled with fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and fish being dropped off all day long at local communities. A growing number of residents, especially office workers too busy to shop, are preferring to order food and meals online. As the price difference is not big but the convenience is huge, IM just might revolutionize how shopping in Shanghai is done. Yuan told the Global Times she first found out about FreshMarket a year ago and has been exclusively using its app ever since. Another benefit of IM are the new refrigerated drop boxes being set up in certain communities. Like large lockers activated with a pin number or QR code, delivery boys simply place orders inside these boxes, where they will keep cool until picked up by the customer. FreshMarket uses a refrigerated truck and insulated boxes that keep contents between 3 C and 7 C . Yuan said that IM also has discounted goods and special deals for group purchases, making the prices much lower than in supermarkets, even including shipping fees. In order to keep their prices competitive, FreshMarket cooperates directly with several farms to skip the middlemen . In August, the same variety of tomatoes being sold at 5 yuan ($0.75) per kilo on FreshMarket were going for 7.96 yuan per kilo in Shanghai wet markets. Yuan is also satisfied with IM&`&s pesticide residue testing, the results of which can be seen on its app at any time. "Unlike wet markets, where you don&`&t know about the safety information," Yuan said. According to the Special Commissioner&`&s Office in Shanghai of the Ministry of Commerce, there will be over 1,600 intelligent markets by the end of 2017.