Shipping Perishables During Warm Summer Months
Fruit baskets, desserts and chocolates make lovely gifts for any occasion, but it is important to take care when shipping them during warm summer months. Most perishables do not last well in heat and humidity and unless the delivery company uses refrigerated trucks, your package will not fare well. You can still ship food during warm weather if you package it correctly and ship it within a short period of time. If you are buying from a company that sells perishable food gifts, then they will take on the shipping responsibility. However, if you are cooking or baking the food yourself or assembling a care package for someone, you will need to take precautions when shipping.
Keeping Food Cool When Shipping
Food can be shipped in insulated packaging with dry ice for overnight or two-day trips. You can buy a cheap Styrofoam cooler and add your food and dry ice to the box to keep it cool. Then put the entire package in a shipping box to send. Dry ice works well for shipping because it won’t soak the package if it leaks. For small packages, this option works best.
For larger shipments of food, hiring a refrigerated trucking service will see your delivery to its destination safely and in edible condition.
Don’t Take Too Long
Although standard shipping routes are the cheapest way to send packages, one- or two-day shipping is the best bet for food during summer. During winter months, food can be kept cold for longer shipping methods by the weather alone. However, in warm weather, any food that remains in warehouses that are not cooled properly for food may deteriorate. Therefore, a better choice is to ship overnight or using a priority method that gets your package there within 48 hours.