Research on World Agricultural Economy

From Land to Sky: Understanding the Challenges and Opportunities of Drone-Driven Food Delivery in Malaysia

Yaty Sulaiman

School of Business Management, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Sintok 06010, Malaysia

Farouk Djermani

Faculty of Business and Management Science, Abderrahmane Mira University, Béjaïa 06000, Algeria

Maha Mohammed Yusr

Business School, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih 43500, Malaysia

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36956/rwae.v7i1.2460

Received: 14 July 2025 | Revised: 26 September 2025 | Accepted: 10 October 2025 | Published Online: 9 March 2026

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Abstract

With the ongoing industrial revolution, the innovative approaches to marketing strategies are being introduced, including the drones’ usage of online food delivery services. However, drone adoption involve into the food delivery sector remains limited and has yet to take hold in Malaysia. While drones are already utilized in various Malaysian industries—such as border security surveillance, aerial photography, and disaster relief operations, including the delivery of critical supplies during floods—the food delivery industry has not yet embraced this technology. This study seeks to prolong Technology Readiness and Acceptance Model (TRAM) by integrating delivery risk as main independent variable to better understand individual behavior toward adopting emerging technologies. Gaining deeper insights into these human factors can assist decision-makers and marketers in crafting strategies that better align with customer expectations. Specifically, two new constructs—delivery risk and generation gap—were incorporated into the model. The extended framework was empirically tested using a quantitative approach within the Malaysian context. Out of 400 questionnaires distributed, 384 valid responses were obtained. The results indicated that respondents’ views did not fully align with the hypothesized relationships concerning the two additional constructs and their influence on adoption intention, particularly regarding drone use in food delivery services.

Keywords: Adoption Intention; Food Delivery Services; Drone Technology; Drone Application; Drone Usage

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