Bread with your books? Amazon moves into fresh foods

"It's up and running," says spokesman Craig Berman. "People are ordering and trucks are delivering." He would not speculate, however, on when the program would be expanded.

"When we feel we are ready to add neighbourhoods and add more customers to the invite list, and we can provide those customers with a great experience then we will do so," he claims.

Some of the items available on AmazonFresh include a bunch of organic carrots with leafy tops for $1.79 and a 5 ounce steak for $1.99. Nonperishable items, already sold on Amazon.com, will also be available through AmazonFresh.

Daytime shipping is free with a $50 minimum purchase, while predawn shipping is free with a $25 minimum order. Delivery for purchases below minimums is $9.99. Customers may also pick up their goods at an assigned station.

"We have 12 of our own trucks that will deliver the products to customer doorsteps," Berman says. "We even bring them inside to your kitchen."

Berman claims repeated requests from customers for perishable groceries prompted the pilot program.

The online grocery business is a difficult one, given the perishability of fresh food and the grocery industry's razor-thin profit margins.

If AmazonFresh expands to the UK, it would be competing with online grocers such as Tesco and Waitrose.