According to the Australian Cold Chain Guidelines, 2017…
- Chilled food must be stored and transported at temperatures colder than +5℃.
- Frozen food must be stored and transported at temperatures colder than -18℃.
It is always suggested to stop shopping in the weeks leading to your move and consume as much refrigerated food as possible before moving.
However, it’s not as easy as it sounds.
You are about to travel and probably do not realise until the last moment about the frozen food languishing in the freezer.
Here are some tips to help the frozen foods stay safe during travel.
To start with, you need to remember two crucial food safety issues:
- Protect the food from cross-contamination.
- Maintain the appropriate temperature during the course of transport.
Pack Only the Necessities
Prepare a list, itemising the perishables, non-perishables and frozen food.
Keep only what is absolutely necessary and those that can survive the travel.
Also, look at the expiry dates.
Throw away those that are expired, and cook the food that is about to expire.
Ensure that you do this a few days before you travel.
Furthermore, you can also share with family and friends, if not with charities in your area.
Use a Cooler or Esky to Store Frozen Food
Using an esky is the best possible way to keep your frozen food safe during travel.
If your travel time is going to be long, use iceblocks instead of ice cubes to keep temperatures low for longer.
The general consensus is to use ½ kilo of iceblocks for every litre of capacity of the esky.
“Your esky works better when it is packed to its brim. If not, use icepacks to pack the remaining area to prevent melting.”
It should be maintained at a temperature of no more than 4℃ throughout your journey.
Precool the Frozen Food
Ensure that the frozen food is at its desired temperature before transportation.
If not, lower the temperature before it is loaded.
This way, it will maintain a safe temperature for longer during travel.
Set temperature
Temperature control is the key for maintaining frozen foods since lower temperatures can damage them while a high temperature can spoil the food encouraging microbial growth.
Ideally, the temperature of the frozen food should be maintained throughout the journey to ensure that the food is indeed safe.
Transport Considerations
Here are some transport considerations to ensure food safety:
- The frozen food should be kept in the coldest part of the vehicle. If the vehicle is air-conditioned, the frozen food should be inside the vehicle rather than the boot.
- The journey should be as short as possible and appropriately planned way ahead.
- The vehicle should be clean. If used to transport other items, the area containing the food should be fully cleaned and lined to avoid contamination.
- Frozen food should be packed, collected last and immediately placed in insulated bags for a short journey and a freezer for a long journey.
- When arriving at the destination, the frozen food should be unpacked first and places in the freezer back again.
Following these simple steps will mean that you won’t have to throw away food when you move into your new home. Our team of removalists Gold Coast can help you with all the tricky aspects of moving house.