Food Delivery Safety

With many Americans working longer hours, working side jobs, commuting back to the office, and getting busier in general, people are looking for ways to make their lives easier. This need for convenience has led to a significant increase in subscription meal kits, grocery deliveries, and restaurant food deliveries, but how do you know if the food delivered to your door is safe to consume? Here are a few things you can do to ensure your food deliveries are safe to enjoy.

General Food Delivery Safety

Make sure you or someone you know is home and able to accept the delivery. This will ensure that perishable items will be refrigerated or put in the freezer right away.
Inspect the food packaging to ensure the food was not damaged, tampered with, or exposed to contamination.
Make sure your food was not cross contaminated with perishable foods.
Always check the temperature of your perishable items using a food thermometer to ensure it arrives at 40°F or below. If your perishable items arrive above 40°F, notify the company and do not consume it. Even if items look and smell ok, they can still be unsafe to eat! Germs that cause food poisoning multiply quickly when food is in the “danger zone” which is between 40°F and 140°F.

Meal Kit Subscription Safety

Research the company’s food safety practices before you place an order. Be sure to ask about how they ship perishable food and how their company handles issues if food is delivered at unsafe temperatures or is unsafe to eat in some way.
Schedule your food deliveries for when you will be home. Perishable food like meat, dairy, poultry, seafood, cut fruit and eggs need to be refrigerated or put in the freezer immediately after being delivered.
During shipping, make sure the company used insulated packaging, foam or corrugated cardboard, and materials such as dry ice or frozen gel packs to keep perishable food cold during transit.
Always check the temperature of your perishable items using a food thermometer to ensure it arrived at 40°F or below. If cold food arrived above 40°F, contact the company and do not consume it.,

Grocery Delivery Safety

Hot food needs to arrive hot and cold food needs to arrive cold. These items need to be kept separate from each other during transit.
Perishable food should not be kept at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour if exposed to temperatures above 90°F so keep track of when the food was packed and delivered to your home.

Takeout Food Delivery Safety

Make sure you or someone you know is home and able to accept the delivery. Food that is not consumed immediately needs to be refrigerated.
Be aware of delivery times. Cooked meals can make you sick if they sit out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour if it’s above 90°F outside. Keep track of when your food is made, picked up, and delivered to your home.

Mail Ordered Food Delivery Safety

When purchasing a food item by mail, make sure you are home to receive it, or make sure the intended recipient is aware of the delivery date so they can be home to receive it.
A mailed food item should be delivered as quickly as possible, ideally overnight, especially if it is perishable so it can be refrigerated as soon as possible.
Do not have perishable items delivered to an office unless you know it will arrive on a workday and there is refrigerator available to keep it cold.

Report Foodborne Illnesses

A foodborne illness is a disease that is transmitted to humans by food. If you think you have become ill from food purchased at a supermarket, grocery or convenient store, or if you think food that was delivered to your home has made you sick, please see your doctor. After you see your doctor, contact your local health department to report the illness. Here is the Florida Department of Health online submission form.