Packing food: ambient, chilled, frozen and baked goods

Food is the most demanding category to ship. The customer must receive it safe to eat, within date, at the right temperature and with the kashrut seal unbroken.

All food

• Ship only products that are within date for the whole delivery time plus a sensible margin for the customer. As a rule of thumb, do not send products with less than a third of their shelf life left unless the listing says so.
• Keep the original sealed packaging. Do not open, repack or relabel unless your kashrut certificate and food registration cover it.
• Keep meat, dairy and parev items in separate sealed bags inside the box.
• Make sure allergen and label information is on or with every product.

Ambient food (dry goods, tins, jars, sweets)

• Jars and bottles: wrap each one, stand them upright, and separate them with cardboard dividers.
• Chocolate and sweets melt: in warm weather use an insulated liner or ship early in the week.

Chilled and frozen food

• Use an insulated box (a liner or an insulated cool box inside a cardboard outer box) and enough gel ice packs for the full delivery time.
• Test your packing: pack a test box, leave it for the full delivery time plus 24 hours, then check the temperature with a probe thermometer.
• Use a next-day, tracked service. Dispatch Monday to Wednesday so parcels never sit in a depot over a weekend.
• Mark the box “Perishable, keep refrigerated” (or “keep frozen”).
• Dry ice is a dangerous good. Use it only with a courier that accepts it, in the quantity and with the labels that courier requires. Never seal dry ice in an airtight container.

Bakery (challah, cakes, pastries)

• Bake and pack as close to dispatch as possible. Cool completely before sealing, or condensation will spoil the product.
• Use a rigid box so nothing gets crushed. Put cakes on a board and fix the board so it cannot slide.
• State the shelf life clearly in the listing and on the packet.

Across borders: meat, dairy, fish, eggs and honey cannot be sent to the UK or the EU from outside, and food sent to the US needs FDA prior notice. See Shipping abroad before you list food for other countries.