How to Ship Strawberries
94% of U.S. households consume strawberries regularly. This sweet and somewhat sour scarlet fruit is an essential and accessible healthy snack. However, the journey of these delectable fruits from farm to table can be a logistical puzzle due to their exacting storage demands. Without the right logistics partner, the fate of your strawberry shipment hangs in the balance, risking delays or even spoilage.
BlueGrace is a trusted and renowned shipment partner for many produce suppliers, offering reefer shipping services for strawberries at competitive rates. Coupled with BlueGrace, you can utilize our temperature-controlled reefers to ensure the preservation of your strawberries at the optimal temperature for quality and on-time delivery.
Transport Practices for Strawberries
To ensure your strawberry shipment’s integrity, it’s vital to grasp the key best practices for temperature-controlled shipping. These practices are fundamental to the success of your strawberry delivery:
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Loading: Fresh strawberries are first harvested and loaded into the transport container. During this process, it’s crucial to stack the loaded crates in a structured layer, leaving enough space for air to circulate while ensuring the compartments are firmly placed.
Pre-cooling: Before transportation begins, cool the strawberry crates in a controlled environment to maintain the optimal temperature. This pre-cooling step is essential in maintaining quality fruit during long transit periods.
Logging: As you load the produce into the carrier’s reefer trailer, truck or container, it’s also important to log and record their temperature. This allows the handler to monitor and adjust fluctuations, meaning someone is constantly supervising the shipment.
Distribution: Once the product arrives, consumers or retailers can access it. If a retail store receives the strawberries, they will likely require post-cooling before being displayed on the shelf.
The Problems When Shipping Strawberries
There are a few challenges to consider when shipping strawberries.
The most common potential issues are:
Potential fungal growth: As you know, strawberries ship under cold and controlled temperatures. When the temperature fluctuates during transit, it can cause condensation to form inside the container, leading to fungal growth.
Crushed produce: Another challenge emerges during shipping as strawberries can easily suffer damage. This usually happens when crates aren’t stacked properly, or there aren’t adequate spaces for crate movement.
Spoilage: In line with the temperature problem, spoilage occurs when the temperature drops too low or rises too high. If not monitored adequately, the strawberries can rot and become unsafe for consumption.
Reefer Shipping Is the Solution
Learning how to ship strawberries nationally and internationally can be a challenge without the right partner. BlueGrace tailors temperature-controlled services to meet your unique logistics needs, ensuring constant monitoring and maintenance of your shipment throughout transit. With our meticulous transportation practices and temperature tracking, you can rest assured that your strawberries will arrive at the destination crisp, fresh, and ready to consume.
Contact us today for a free reefer freight quote and get your strawberry shipment on its way.
