Ice Cream by Post: How the Cold Chain Is Kept All the Way to Your Door

Sending ice cream hundreds of kilometres away requires the temperature to be kept under control at every stage. If ice cream thaws and refreezes, large ice crystals form, the texture is ruined and food safety is put at risk. In this article we follow a shipping box on its journey from our production centre in Kahramanmaraş to your freezer.

1. Blast freezing

Blocks set aside for shipping are hardened in a -35 °C blast freezer straight after beating. Fast freezing creates small ice crystals and protects the texture. The blocks then rest in the -25 °C cold store for at least 24 hours; they are not boxed until the core temperature is below -20 °C.

2. Box and insulation

The blocks go into food-grade lidded plastic tubs and are placed in EPS boxes with 3 cm walls. For long-distance shipments we use double-walled boxes and an extra insulation panel. Thanks to the air pockets that slow heat transfer, the EPS box is the foundation of the cold chain.

3. Dry ice

Dry ice is solid carbon dioxide at -78.5 °C. It does not melt but turns straight into gas (sublimates), so it does not wet the box. We calculate the amount of dry ice based on the amount of ice cream, the delivery time and the season. For example, in spring, 3 kg of dry ice is enough for 3 kg of ice cream on a 24-hour shipment; in summer and on 48-hour shipments the amount doubles.

4. Dispatch days

So that boxes do not wait in a transfer depot over the weekend, we ship to major cities only Monday to Wednesday and to distant regions only on Mondays. Our cargo company, contracted for the cold chain, carries the boxes separately from other parcels and with priority.

5. When you receive it

• Open the box right away; take the ice cream out and put it in the coldest part of your freezer.
• Remove the dry ice with gloves and leave it on a balcony or outdoors.
• Do not leave dry ice in small enclosed spaces (a car, a bathroom); carbon dioxide can build up.
• If the ice cream has softened slightly at the edges, that is fine; if it has thawed completely, do not refreeze it and send us a photo.

Why we do not ship everywhere

We exclude islands that need a ferry transfer, village addresses that require pickup from a cargo branch, and addresses abroad. At these addresses there is a risk of uncontrolled waits of more than 48 hours. Not sending ice cream where we cannot guarantee the cold chain is a responsibility to your safety as much as to the product.