Drone food delivery is now operating in Dublin, and has raised questions surrounding the potential impacts and regulation of commercial drones in Ireland. One company, Manna, has been at the forefront of this push for food delivery via drones, with them now having partnered with Just Eat and Deliveroo. Manna’s drones can fly over 80 kilometres per hour, carrying up to four kilograms of cargo. The company claims that the flight time for their drones is usually less than three minutes, depending on the distance they have to deliver and that they’ve made over 165,000 deliveries thus far.
Food delivery via drones has the potential to improve the speeds at which food can be delivered, reducing wait times for customers and resulting in food which is fresher. Additionally, food delivery via drones has the potential to reduce congestion on streets from food deliveries that would otherwise be delivered via bike, motorcycle, or car. However, the use of drones has also raised questions, especially regarding regulation of commercial drone use and the noise levels of drones. There is also the question of how this will impact delivery drivers, who oftentimes face precarious circumstances and whether this will result in a reduction in jobs. With that being said, there is also the potential for a food delivery service via drones to create other jobs relating to the operation and maintenance of drones.
Manna was founded in 2018, and, in May 2021, the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) issued a light UAS operator certificate (LUC) to Manna, which is recognized across the European Union. A statement by the IAA at the time said LUC’s allow the IAA to “assign privileges” to operators, which could include allowing it to “self-authorise operations conducted by the drone operator.”
Manna’s operations have not been without controversy. In October 2025, Fingal County Council issued a planning enforcement notice to Manna regarding their facility in Blanchardstown – which had been used as a base for drone deliveries – with the council saying it was an “unauthorised development.” Manna has since said they plan to appeal to An Coimisiún Pleanála, and there have also been over 90 submissions sent to Fingal County Council in opposition to giving Manna planning permission.
Additionally, there have been calls for greater regulation of drones across the political spectrum. In July 2025, the Sinn Féin spokesperson on Transport, Pa Daly TD said that “While technological innovation is important, and there are examples where this technology could be useful, we need proper rules. And we need to ensure that the safety, well-being and concerns of local communities are taken into account”. Daly also said that the Irish government “must strengthen the power of the regulator IAA”.
In August 2025, Fianna Fáil TD Shay Brennan submitted an objection to Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council over a planned Manna air facility in Dundrum, with him saying that “I fully support innovation and I want to see Irish companies thrive, but we cannot allow drone delivery hubs to pop up unchecked, without listening to those who will be most affected. We need a clear plan that protects our community’s peace, privacy, and safety”.
Later, in October 2025, Leader of the Green Party Roderic O’Gorman TD introduced the Regulation of Drones Bill 2025 to Dáil Éireann seeking greater regulation of commercial drones, with him saying that “the bill makes it clear that drone bases need planning permission, and that each local authority area needs to have a policy about commercial drone usage contained within its development plan”. O’Gorman also said that “the bill changes the law so that local authorities can regulate noise pollution coming from drones”.
Dublin is not the first city to pilot a programme for drone deliveries, and the programmes have already been launched in a number of countries across the world. Meituan operates food delivery with drones in a number of cities across China having launched the programme in 2021. The company has done over 600,000 drone deliveries to date. Meituan subsidiary Keeta Drones launched a food delivery programme in Dubai in December 2024 and in Hong Kong in June 2025. In the United States, Amazon runs delivery services in select locations through Amazon Prime Air, having first piloted the programme in 2022, and currently plans to pilot the programme in the United Kingdom and Italy as well. In September 2025, Uber announced a partnership with Flytrex, a drone delivery company. They plan on piloting drone deliveries for Uber Eats in a number of locations across the US by the end of the year. Uber claims that Flytrex has already completed over 200,000 in the US thus far. Globally, the varying successes of drone delivery programmes has depended on cooperation with municipal authorities and regulatory frameworks, both of which Ireland is clearly lacking from currently. It’s clear that Dublin is not the first city to test out drone deliveries, but the question is, will Dublin be able to do it at scale, and what impact will it have on our city?
Drone based food delivery has the potential to change Dublin’s food scene, particularly for younger people and students who already use food delivery services heavily. People in Ireland already order takeout approximately 2.9 times a month on average, and drone deliveries could have the potential to further increase this amount. Faster delivery with drones could also translate into an increased amount of options, especially if drone deliveries could expand the feasible range which food could be delivered to. For consumers, this could potentially result in reduced costs for deliveries as well, as it may require less manpower to operate than traditional food delivery methods, especially if it can be automated. On the other hand, this could change the offerings restaurants present, who may start focusing on lighter options that could meet the drone’s four kilograms weight limit, and more efficient delivery could also have the potential of reducing demand for traditional, sitdown restaurants.
What’s clear in all of this is that drones are coming to cities around the world, and for better or worse, they have the potential to revolutionize our cities. Across the world, drones are set to become a large part of urban logistics, making deliveries more efficient while also raising questions about regulation and the impacts they have on communities. In the coming years, we will see if Dublin adopts drones for delivery purposes, and how that will impact our city.
