Subscription meal kits, mail-order food, and home-delivered groceries offer convenience.  Make sure food safety is part of the package, too. Home-delivered food must be handled properly so it is safe to eat.

Whether food is shipped to your home or delivered by a local service, it needs to stay at a safe temperature to prevent the growth of germs that could make you sick. Follow these tips to keep you and your loved ones safe and healthy while enjoying meals prepared at home from these foods.

Before Ordering

• Ask questions first. Research companies and call customer service to ask about food safety standards. This is particularly important if you are buying the food for someone who is more likely to get food poisoning: adults 65 and older, children younger than age 5, people with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women. Ask how the company responds if food is delivered at an unsafe temperature or is otherwise not safe to eat. Find out if the company provides information with each shipment on safe handling and preparation of food, including cooking temperatures.
• Arrange for delivery when someone is at home so food can be refrigerated quickly instead of being left outside until someone is at home. If you can’t be there in person, see if a neighbor can.
• Find a safe space for delivery if no one will be at home when food arrives. Food should be delivered to a cool, shaded, and secure location where pests and rodents won’t be able to get it. Let the company know where you would like them to leave your box.

Safe Food Delivery and Receipt

• Examine the box and packaging. When you get your delivery, look for stickers on the box that say “Keep Refrigerated” or “Keep Frozen” if you ordered perishable food such as meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, or dairy.
• Check the temperature with a food thermometer.

  Perishable food should arrive frozen, partially frozen with ice crystals still visible, or at least as cold as it would be in a refrigerator (40 °F or below). The only way to know that the food is safe to eat is to use a food thermometer to make sure that the ingredients are 40 °F or below. Even if a perishable food product is smoked, cured, vacuum-packed, or fully cooked, it still must be kept cold.

   

  

   

  Perishable food should arrive frozen, partially frozen with ice crystals still visible, or at least as cold as it would be in a refrigerator (40 °F or below). The only way to know that the food is safe to eat is to use a food thermometer to make sure that the ingredients are 40 °F or below. Even if a perishable food product is smoked, cured, vacuum-packed, or fully cooked, it still must be kept cold.

• Make sure the company uses insulated packaging and materials such as dry ice or frozen gel packs to keep perishable food cold in transit.
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  Wash your hands and kitchen utensils. Use soap and water for at least 20 seconds before, during, and after handling any food. Wash your utensils, cutting boards, and countertops with hot, soapy water after using them.

• Rinse fresh fruits and vegetables under running water.
• Separate foods to avoid cross-contamination. Keep raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs away from other foods, and use separate cutting boards for these ingredients.
• Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.  Make sure you know how long your leftovers will keep in the fridge or freezer