If you are an online business that ships different kinds of food, knowing how to ship frozen food is necessary. Food must be fresh, free of contamination, and reach the intended receiver in good shape, regardless of what you sell and ship. Your business will surely lose clients and money if your food arrives in terrible shape.
You should be aware of some crucial shipping advice for frozen meals before getting too involved in the sale and delivery of food. Our blog information gives a brief but thorough look at how to make sure your frozen meals are dispatched without any major problems.
How frozen food is shipped?
Understanding the obligation of maintaining temperature control, shipping frozen food is harder than transporting another shape of the meal, yet it’s far nonetheless possible. Using the proper coolants and ensuring you have enough insulation are critical for exporting frozen meals. Make sure the container seal is functioning nicely by way of checking it and packing food tightly in the walls of insulated shipping bins. To further defend in opposition to temperature fluctuations, you could additionally use an insulated liner. Furthermore, because dry ice maintains meals colder for longer than cold packs, it’s an advanced coolant for frozen food.
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Select the quickest transport choice whilst delivering frozen items. Food that has been frozen in a single day is more likely to reach without defrosting. To save the food from moving and hasten the warming system, you need to also use packing peanuts or another form of padding.
Before finding out how to ship frozen food, keep the following in mind:
- Dry ice is needed as a coolant for frozen items; it continues temperatures low for a longer duration, however use it cautiously. When handling, put on goggles and gloves to defend your skin from burning.
- Tightly seal meals within a plastic bag. Ensure that the food stays far from the dry ice.
- Frozen food objects and dry ice cannot generally be shipped overseas.
- Find out how much dry ice you could make use of by speaking along with your cargo provider, and make certain you abide by way of their policies.
- If the inner of the box includes dry ice, notify the recipient. On the outside of the field, mark this.
Why frozen meal shipping is challenging for companies?
Frozen food delivery without shipping problems presents a completely different set of challenges than food sales made in person. Because you have to make sure the food arrives undamaged, shipping frozen food is especially difficult. The best delivery option will likely be expedited shipping in light of this.
Your products can spoil quickly if you don’t have the proper eCommerce packaging to support them. Consumers might think you didn’t try hard enough, and losing sales and suffering a tarnished reputation will harm your business.
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Major challenges in frozen food shipping
According to estimates from the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, 14% of the food produced worldwide is lost. Some reasons, including the requirement for appropriate storage, cause this to typically happen between harvest and retail.
Sadly, however, when suppliers supply frozen food, this waste may sometimes become worse. Most likely, you also deal with some of these issues if you are wondering about how to ship frozen food. Here are a few that you need to know about:
Food spoilage
If perishables are not packaged properly, they may spoil during shipment. Food packaging for transportation is a meticulous and crucial procedure. Refrigeration and appropriate insulation are needed. For added security, this could entail utilizing several layers to create an airtight seal.
Your goods will stay cold and be less prone to deteriorate as a result. Additionally, it can stop leaks, which can lead to product cross-contamination. Leakage may potentially cause a soggy mess to be delivered to your clients. Reduced risk of exposure to heat and humidity is another benefit of proper packaging.
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High Temperature
Food suppliers must understand how to send food. The first step in preventing your food items from being impacted by temperature variations outside is to package them properly. The texture of food can be altered by extremely low temperatures, frequently turning it mushy and flavorless. Additionally, increased heat might hasten spoiling. Enzymes, yeast, mold, and microbes can all thrive more easily in a heated environment.
Excessive humidity
When the air contains a lot of water vapor, this happens. Although excessive humidity is frequently difficult to foresee, it is easily apparent. It’s something to take into account while sending chilled food. Just like extreme heat, dampness can hasten the deterioration of frozen food.
Damaged Goods
Sealing food properly can do more for you than just keep mold and bacteria from causing spoiling. Also, it prevents food items from shattering or breaking. As little movement as possible should be ensured during delivery. This means that when the food items are packaged, any gaps around them must be filled. Additionally, items like crumbly pastries or fruit that are prone to bruising should be properly cushioned and supported.
Dissatisfied Business Partners
Imagine an owner of a grocery store confronting a sticky mess of melting ice cream, or a restaurant receiving a batch of ruined oysters. These two situations are only two of the many that could happen if you don’t take every precaution to prevent the difficulties associated with exporting frozen food.
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Best shipping companies for frozen food items
UPS
UPS allows the shipping of frozen food however properly packaged shipments must avoid leaks and thawing. They advise picking a shipping company that provides shipment tracking, has a maximum delivery period of 30 hours, and notifies the recipient of when to anticipate the goods.
FedEx
FedEx shipping is not available for refrigeration, just like UPS and USPS freight. Food that is frozen must be packaged carefully for the food to stay frozen and not leak. A shipping option with a maximum arrival time of 30 hours is also suggested by FedEx. Therefore, First Overnight, Priority Overnight, or Standard Overnight are the best shipping options when using FedEx.
USPS
Sadly, there are no particular refrigeration services available for USPS mailing. Frozen food can be sent with them but at your own risk. You must choose one of their expedited shipping choices and ensure that the shipment is securely packaged, ideally in a polystyrene box filled with dry ice or ice packs and enveloped in plastic mailing wrap. It requires to be wrapped securely enough to stop any smells or spills.
Instructions for frozen food safely shipment
- It can be hard to ship frozen food to your clients. These perishable goods should be kept inside a particular temperature range; even a short departure from this variety can cause spoiling or maybe food poisoning. When sending frozen goods, undergo the following thoughts:
- Use the right packing: Make sure the packaging is made to maintain the product at the right temperature. These could be gel packs, dry ice, or insulated containers. When delivering food goods that require a temperature range of 32 to 60 ranges Fahrenheit, use frozen gel packets. Gel packs thaw and emerge as wet, but they undergo loads longer than dry ice.
- Maintain the product’s frozen condition: Before packaging, make sure that the food is frozen stable. The product can defrost and ruin in transit if it isn’t completely frozen. Food will live frozen for a longer length if the box is pre-cooled earlier than shipping.
- Wrap up the product: Make certain the food products you’re handing over are kept away from the dry ice. To stop any moisture from leaking in while being transported, instead wrap the frozen food in foil or plastic wrap.
- Package labeling: Indicate on the label that it contains frozen food and provide any guidelines for particular handling. Put a label on the goods that states the net weight as well as the weight of the gel packs or dry ice.
- Safely handle dry ice: Avoid handling or touching dry ice without the appropriate gloves.
- Select a trustworthy shipping company: Go with a company that can offer tracking information and has experience transporting frozen food. Confirm if the carrier can fulfill your delivery needs, such as a two- or overnight shipment.
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Conclusion:
At this blog’s conclusion, while shipping frozen food without dry ice can involve a little extra planning, it is doable with the appropriate supplies and approach. Hope you understand now how to ship frozen food. You can make sure your frozen food reaches its destination in perfect condition by using cold packs, high-quality insulated coolers, appropriate packing, and speedy shipment.
