<p>Amazon has officially launched AmazonFresh in San Francisco. The online grocery business started as a test in Seattle several years ago and expanded to Los Angeles earlier this year. </p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p>The opportunities in ‘fresh’ have motivated more and more companies to tap into the category. Starbucks offers whole and fresh-cut fruit and veggies as well ready-made salads and sandwiches upon checkout. 7-Eleven presents fruit and veggie cups and fresh salads. On your way out of a 24 Hour Fitness you can now grab fresh, ready-to-eat bites at select locations.</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p>According to USA today, the move by Amazon steps up pressure on grocery store operators such as Safeway, Kroger and Whole Foods Market, as well as Wal-Mart Stores and Target. The report notes that consumer packaged goods, including perishable food, is a $222 billion a year potential opportunity for Amazon in the U.S. The recent estimate is attributed to Carlos Kirjner, an analyst at Bernstein Research.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">However, it is difficult and expensive to deliver fresh food quickly to a wide geographic area and several start-ups, including Webvan, went bankrupt trying. In addition, Amazon is dropping its usual low-price strategy for the grocery expansion.</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p>The company is offering a free 30-day trial for Amazon customers as an incentive in select areas of San Francisco to initiate the launch. Once the free trial has concluded, customers can continue using AmazonFresh by joining Prime Fresh, an upgraded tier of our popular Prime membership program, according to a company press release. Amazon is also presenting San Francisco Spotlight, a program where hand-picked unique local businesses sell their products on AmazonFresh. </p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href=" http://fresh.amazon.com" target="_new"> AmazonFresh SF </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/12/11/amazon-grocery-san-francisco/3986439" target="_new"> USA Today </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
