More Top Picks Best Water Humidifiers
player ready...Want to send cookies, candy or booze for the holidays?
Better do your homework.
The U.S. Postal Service said it’s OK to mail baked goods and other dry perishables as long as they’re securely packed, a spokesman said. Be sure to let the person at the mailing counter know if the package contains any liquid, perishable or fragile items so they can treat the package properly, he said.
However, it is illegal to ship alcoholic beverages such as wine and beer with the postal service, he said.
Only licensed importers, retailers, distributors, dealers and wholesalers can send shipments containing alcohol via FedEx. UPS won’t accept person-to-person alcohol shipments either.
So the perishable goods don’t spoil en route, UPS suggested choosing a fast shipping option such as next day air. It’s best to ship perishables early in the week so they are less likely to sit in a UPS facility over the weekend.
Foods should be wrapped securely with foil or plastic wrap and packed as snugly as possible like in a tin.
If sending items that need to be kept cold or frozen, put them in polystyrene foam cooler with dry ice or frozen gel packs separated from the food with cardboard. Put the cooler into the shipping box.
FedEx added tips to mark the outer container as “perishable” and include on the shipping label the address and 24-hour phone number of the shipper and recipient.
Also recommended is overnight shipping for perishables and packing them to withstand a minimum transit time of 30 hours.