Frozen products such as beef, poultry, and blood plasma require a high caliber insulation in order to maintain frozen temperatures against external temperature fluctuations.
Some frozen food, blood plasma and other perishable items are also regulated and scrutinized by government agencies. That’s why it’s crucial to your cold chain operations to choose the right refrigerant and insulation when shipping frozen food and other perishables.
Determining the right amount of dry ice to pack up your perishable product and ship it requires some niche knowledge and experience. At Insulated Products Corporation (IPC) we run into a lot of these questions, so in the spirit of helpfulness, here’s a step-by-step guide and best practices for shipping frozen products.
PopupLiner Box Liner is the perfect solution for shipping meat and other frozen food products.
The PopupLiner Box Liner provides superior insulation through high performance materials and patented engineering to keep your products frozen throughout transport. Whether it’s seafood, ice cream, or other perishable items, using the right liner can significantly boost the durability of the product during transit.
How to Ship Frozen Products: Step-by-Step Guide
Before we get into the how, let’s cover some basics. In order to keep a product frozen, you’ll need dry ice or -20C PCM packs. Dry ice is the most common and cost-effective method of shipping frozen foods and other perishables, so we’ll stick to that in this article.
How much dry ice should you use when shipping your product depends on the ambient/weather temperature, product density, initial temperature, humidity and the caliber of your insulator. It’s important to test your pack out and qualify your solution before commercial use.
A good rule of thumb is that once the dry ice has sublimated, frozen foods and other perishables will begin to defrost. The changing of dry ice from a solid to a gas is called sublimation.Once the dry ice fully sublimates, the rising temperatures of frozen goods can accelerate microorganism growth. To ensure a successful shipment, it’s essential to use the right amount of dry ice combined with high-quality insulation. We’ve provided a dry ice chart for your reference.
The PopupLiner Box Liner is ideal for shipping ice cream
1. Safety first, use appropriate protection for handling dry ice
Whether you’re shipping frozen food, blood plasma or some other perishable, take the appropriate precautions to prevent injury and contamination. Dry ice is -110F. Wear gloves when handling dry ice.
There are transport regulations around the transport of dry ice. Check with your carrier on the maximum amount of dry ice they allow per package.
Add appropriate labeling and for your customer when they open the container that warns them about the dangers of dry ice and provide handling instructions.
2. Place an insulated box liner inside your box
After you’ve vacuum sealed or wrapped your product, get or construct your insulated container. We suggest using one of our PopupLiner insulated box liners as the foundation for building out the rest of your package.
(Note: We advise against shipping with molded containers for either bulk or individual shipping orders. Not only are they less effective than PopupLiner insulated box liners, they are also bulky and contribute to greater landfill volume if they are not recycled)
3.Place your frozen products and dry ice inside the container
Use our dry ice reference table, depending on the weight of your package, you’ll have different set ups.
If you’re shipping less than 30 pounds of frozen food you will place your frozen products inside your insulated shipping box. Then add your dry ice on top.
If you’re shipping more than 30 pounds (or high density of goods) of frozen food you’ll need to sandwich your perishables between two blocks of dry ice.
4. Fill any empty spaces within your package to improve thermal efficiency
Minimize any empty air space where possible by using filling materials, such as foil insulation rolls. If you’re using pellets of dry ice you can pack them into air gaps to fill in the space and optimize the pack out. Extra air inside the package allows accelerated circulation of diffused heat, leading to suboptimal thermal performance.
5. Leave a tiny bit of room up top and add safety information
Be sure to allow enough head space for the PopupLiner lid to shut without making contact with the dry ice. We’ve seen people use cardboard, gel packs, plastic bags to separate the liner from the dry ice. You should avoid overfilling the package to the extent that the insulator gets squeezed between the container and the frozen food which may allow cold air to escape and heat to enter
Close the insulated box container, but do not attempt to completely seal the box off from the outside air. It is important to ensure that a small amount of the sublimated gas is able to vent through your insulated container. Venting is necessary to prevent a dangerous build-up of pressure. Our PopupLiner is designed to gradually off-gas the CO2, increasing the dry ice’s cooling performance and avoiding gas build up.
Meat shipping requires effective thermal control during transit to protect it against odors, off-flavors, and spoilage.
Best Insulated Packaging for Shipping Frozen Food
Since 1999, Insulated Products Corp. has been providing top-quality solutions to help businesses maximize efficiency while ensuring frozen foods and temperature-sensitive products remain frozen during transit. With decades of manufacturing and problem solving experience, we’re here to support your business with expert advice and high-performance packaging. For personalized assistance, feel free to contact us today!
PopupLiner Box Liner
The PopupLiner Box Liner is our most high-performance product line, built to offer extremely powerful temperature control when shipping frozen goods. The liners are made using a unique, space-saving design that makes them incredibly cost-efficient to store and handle.
Cold Packs
Refrigerant cold packs provide a performance boost in conjunction with dry ice to prolong refrigerated temperatures (please note that they do not help in maintaining frozen temperatures.)
We manufacture our gel packs in Dallas, Texas and in our headquarters in California. We offer various types of gel packs, including drain-friendly recyclable gel packs and sweat-proof gel packs.
Read our case study about how well our PopupLiner insulated boxes perform in combination with dry ice.
Request a quote to find our how you can use IPC insulated packaging products to protect your products while in transit
Performance Testing of IPC Box Insulation when Shipping Frozen Products
The two insulated shipping performance tests were performed to assess the effectiveness of our insulated box liners in maintaining cold temperatures of frozen foods while in transit.
Thermal Performance of IPC’s EcoLiner Box Liner for Frozen Meal Shipment
| Box Size: Insulator: Container Compared to: Weight of Dry Ice Temperature Recording Device |
10” x 10” x 10” 1.5″ thick compressed box liner 12 oz of frozen food 4.5 lb Type T thermocouple |
Thermal Performance of IPC’s PopupLiner Box Liner for Frozen Milk Shipment
| Box Size: Insulators: Commodity: Weight of Dry Ice Temperature Recording Device: |
16” x 12” x 9” 2″ thick PopupLiner insulated box liner 50 oz of frozen milk 8.6 lb Type T thermocouple |
When to use dry ice vs. gel packs for shipping?
Dry ice is used to keep products frozen, making it suitable for frozen meats and ice cream, while gel packs are better for keeping items chilled, such as pharmaceuticals or perishables that should not freeze, like chocolate. Dry ice lasts longer for frozen shipments, but gel packs are safer for items sensitive to freezing temperatures. Check out our article gel packs vs. dry ice .
What are common challenges when shipping frozen products?
Common challenges when shipping frozen products include maintaining an unbroken cold chain, keeping costs down, preventing and preparing for temperature fluctuations, ensuring proper packaging for humidity and temperature, and complying with regulatory requirements for refrigerants like dry ice or gel packs.
Which carriers specialize in frozen goods?
- FedEx Cold Chain Services – Offers temperature-controlled shipping with deep-frozen solutions and real-time tracking.
- UPS Temperature True – Provides global frozen shipping with specialized containers and monitoring.
- DHL ColdChain – Offers frozen logistics with temperature-controlled packaging and monitoring services.
- C.H. Robinson – Specializes in large-scale frozen food distribution with temperature-controlled fleets.
- Lineage Logistics – Focuses on frozen goods supply chains, including transport and cold storage.
- Americold Logistics – Provides end-to-end frozen logistics, from storage to transportation.
- USPS – Offers Priority Mail Express for domestic frozen shipments with proper packaging.
