1000 mile frozen meat shipping?

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ArmedBear

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We've got an upright freezer full of frozen meat. At today's meat prices, it's been saving us a lot of money.

However, we're about to move -- with two dogs and a household full of stuff. While I could probably move the meat in my Jeep with a lot of coffee and some dry ice refills on the way, that may not work this time.

Anyone ever had frozen food shipped and stored?

Any other thoughts, experiences, advice?

Thanks in advance!:)
 
Coolers and dry ice oughta work. A bunch of us did a canoe trip, one time, and the meat stayed frozen for the 500-mile drive to the river put-in, and for two more days of canoing. We used duct-tape to seal the coolers.

If it's an enclosed Jeep, make sure you run with a window open for ventilation against any CO2 buildup. Not really likely, but possible...
 
If it's an enclosed Jeep, make sure you run with a window open for ventilation against any CO2 buildup. Not really likely, but possible...
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Thanks for that reminder... Yeah, my head would be out of the CO2, but a dog's might not be. I didn't think of that.
 
Can you leave it in the freezer? If the freezer is full, it should stay frozen for a couple of days with no power. And maybe you could plug it in at nights with an extension cord.

Difficult to do without a pickup truck though (a chest freezer would be a lot easier)

You could also pack it all in a big Igloo cooler.
 
IMHO the cooler/freezer dry ice is the best bet . Other than that you will have to have it shipped via common carrier on a reefer . This will both cost more and be less reliable .
 
Are you allowed to fly with a cooler of meat on dry ice? My brother in law is coming out to do some hunting but he is flying?
 
Well it all depends on how you are moving and if you were going to drive up there anyways. If you are driving there anyways, go with the dry ice and cooler and tape the thing shut.

If you need to make a special trip to drive the meat, then it might not be worth it in gas money.

If you have a moving company move your things anyways, I would just pack it all up in the freezer with dry ice and put it in the truck and tape it up. If it will only take a few days to move the meat should be fine.

There are also companies that would ship the meat for you, but I have no idea on costs.
 
Are you allowed to fly with a cooler of meat on dry ice? My brother in law is coming out to do some hunting but he is flying?
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My dad flew back from New England once with a cooler of lobster on dry ice.

However, with airlines charging you for everything these days, and with concerns about terrorism as an excuse for making it a PITA to bring toothpaste on a trip, I'd check with them for terms.

Also, you didn't say what he'd be hunting.:) Quail would be a lot easier than, say, a couple of pigs.

Something to note: we flew to Idaho in July, by way of Reno. It was hot in some places. I had tossed some buffalo sausage (Summer and "stick" types for snacking in the field) in my duffle bag. It came out of the fridge the next day, smelling like a carcass. I think the baggage hold must get to 150 degrees or whatever the magic number is for rotting meat really fast.
 
On Tuesday, I'm going to check on how much it will cost to have the stuff shipped in a freezer truck. Will report back in case the info is useful to anyone. Depending on the price, I'll have to figure it out.:)

We have the Jeep and a Subaru wagon, two decent-sized dogs, a bunch of stuff, and it will probably be a good 90 degrees on the way up, going through the desert regions of California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah.

Used to have a pickup. Once every few years, I miss it.:) Maybe if I start hunting where I can get elk, I'll have to get another.

If it's really expensive to have the stuff shipped, maybe I'll get a small trailer for the Jeep and put the freezer on the back of it. The coolers will work; that's how the sausage got here from Colorado. I have to figure out what else will need to fit in a vehicle, though.

Hmmm....

Thanks all, and I'd be grateful for any more thoughts and advice.
 
UMMM guys I get regular shippments from my cousin in michigan in a styroffoam cube like container and no dry Ice takes 2 days to get here 850 miles next day ups or maybe fed ex its been 3 months I forget but it cost the same as regular shipping size/weight.
 
Eric-

When are the shipments? Is the meat frozen?

We got the meat from Montana to San Diego in November, in canvas bags. Ambient temperature took care of it.:)

That might be the plan if shipping is too expensive: store it here until Christmas, then drive it up.
 
UMMM guys I get regular shippments from my cousin in michigan in a styroffoam cube like container and no dry Ice takes 2 days to get here 850 miles next day ups or maybe fed ex its been 3 months I forget but it cost the same as regular shipping size/weight.
Click to expand...

Oh, the lure of punctuation, spelling and being able to write clearly:rolleyes:
 
If it is in a freezer I would leave it in there a few days or a week or two before the move crank the freezer to max (Lowest temp) then the day of the move place some Dry ice in the freezer and drive like crazy.

You could ship the meat but a freezer fll is going to cost you some big bucks.

We lost power here once for 2 weeks the stuff in our freezer stayed froves rather well if you don't go opening it all the time.

I would not seal the chest as this might happen.
 
I just moved from CO to WA with a cooler full of venison, bear, and halibut. I put in approximately 13# of dry ice on top of the meat, duct taped the cooler, but opened the drain plug, and put it in the back of my truck. It took me three days to get here, and everything was fine. The ice was gone, but the meat was still frozen, with some of the pieces that were towards the top beginning to be slightly soft. If I did it again, I'd have put in some more dry ice for the third day.
 
I had some pre-frozen meat shipped from WY to MD in Styrofoam shipping coolers with dry ice. It took three days to get here and was hard as glass when it arrived.
 
This November we're going elk hunting in Canada. My brother plans to drive up, towing a small trailer with a chest freezer and small generator to power it.

Sounds like a plan...
 
Two years ago in Missouri I took a chest freezer since we had power at camp and it was only a days drive home so it worked out good.
 
+1 on the trailer and generator, I've got a similar move planed for next spring from AZ to MI. I'm trying but I don't think I'm gonna make it trying to eat all that elk and deer before then so that is probably what I'm going to have to do.
 
Every year my dad and I take our freezer out to Wyoming from Minnesota. We've never had a problem on the trip and - of course - we plug it back in when we get there. works wonders.
 
When I come back from Eastern Montana (~1100 miles) I leave in the morning and plan to be home the next evening (with a sleep stop in the middle). If the meat is good and frozen to start, any regular coolers will work just fine. Sealing with duct tape is also a good idea. If you are using dry ice, do not let it be in direct contact with any of the meat or packages as this will burn the crap out of the meat.
 
If you can get the freezer in your vehicle then I would get an inverter and plug the freezer into that. Run the freezer all day while driving and pull the plug at night when you stop. If you look at the wattage requirement on the freezer you can figure out the minimum size of the inverter you would need. I winter in Fl and take a freezer full of meat there using this method every year. After you have the inverter it is handy to run tools or radio/TV from.
 
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