The meal kit delivery business has been steadily growing over the years, and HelloFresh has established itself as one of the leading providers worldwide. If you’ve ever come across the brand, you probably wonder how long Hellofresh lasts outside. So, how long can HelloFresh be left outside?
HelloFresh box contents can stay outside for up to 24 hours after delivery. However, it is always best to cook the meals as soon as you receive your package. That being said, you can also store your ingredients in the fridge or freezer if you don’t intend to use them immediately.
In this article, I provide details on the HelloFresh package, how long can HelloFresh sit outside, and what you can do to prevent the food from spoiling. I’ll also address the questions, “Does HelloFresh need to be refrigerated?” and “How long can HelloFresh stay cold?” Keep reading to learn more.
How Does HelloFresh Package Food?
Before we delve into how long do HelloFresh boxes stay cold, let us first take a quick look at what you can expect when you make a meal order.
HelloFresh packages food in cardboard boxes that contain a cooling paper pouch, ice packs, and insulators. This combination of cooling materials ensures your meals stay fresh within 24 hours of arrival.
The company relies on solid principles such as cost efficiency and sustainability. The packaging process is completely automated and tailored for all the different types of meals you can order.
The temperature in the cooling bags is monitored using data loggers, which measure how long HelloFresh in box contents are kept at standard refrigerator temperature without any risk of freezing.
The number of water-based ice packs also follows a strict automated process with which the company can guarantee that your food will remain chilled for a day even if you don’t cook it or put it in the fridge right away.
The boxes are also insulated using styrofoam. The material is one of the most preferred options for cooling boxes and helps keep the ice from melting even when exposed to higher temperatures for hours.
Now that I covered the packaging process, it is time to answer some important questions that people ordering from the company have regarding delivery, the freshness of the ingredients, and whether or not HelloFresh needs to be refrigerated on arrival.
How Long Do HelloFresh Boxes Stay Cold?
At this point, you are probably wondering how long can a HelloFresh box be outside and still be cold. After all, there could come a time when nobody is home to pick up the delivery. However, you shouldn’t panic.
HelloFresh boxes stay cold for a full day, and the ingredients will remain chilled because of the combination of insulation and ice packs inside. It is preferable to pick up the delivery when it comes. However, there is no risk if the package sits outside for up to 24 hours.
Although you are now aware of how long HelloFresh can be left outside, you might still want to avoid the scenario. Here are some helpful tips if you feel like there’s a chance you can miss a delivery.
- Change delivery date. The HelloFresh service gives you the chance to easily change the delivery date by going into the “Payment and Delivery” menu and hitting the “Edit” button.
- Leave a note when ordering. HelloFresh allows you to add comments to every order. If you feel you might miss the delivery, you can ask for a specific timeframe or at least instruct them to place the package somewhere shadier.
- Skip a delivery. The HelloFresh subscription also allows you to skip certain weekly deliveries by simply going to the “Menu” tab, selecting the period you would like to skip, and clicking on the “Skip Week” button.
Do HelloFresh Boxes Need To Be Refrigerated?
Now you know how long can HelloFresh sit outside, so let us turn to another frequently asked question. People often ask whether they should immediately put the ingredients in the fridge.
HelloFresh boxes do not need to be refrigerated if you can cook the meals within 24 hours of the delivery. Naturally, if you plan to postpone the cooking beyond that period, you need to put them in the fridge to keep the contents fresh.
If you plan on refrigerating your HelloFresh boxes often, I think it is essential to follow some established guidelines.
Depending on your taste, you will have many different types of food coming to your home, so it is best to know how long can HelloFresh stay in a box in your fridge.
According to the official U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA), salads containing ingredients such as ham and eggs should not be refrigerated for more than four days.
On the other hand, vacuumed fish and meat can be put away for about two weeks and keep all its nutritional values and fresh look.
If you want to learn more about the types of foods and how long you can keep them in the fridge, check out this government-approved cold storage chart.
Now that we’ve answered how long does HelloFresh last outside and whether it needs to be refrigerated, let’s talk about freezing.
Can You Freeze HelloFresh Meals?
What about putting your HelloFresh meals in the freezer? Sometimes you can feel a sudden change of heart and decide to preserve the ingredients for another time somewhere down the road.
You can safely freeze the ingredients from your HelloFresh meals like meat, fish, and poultry. However, you should avoid freezing raw eggs and salads as this will ruin their nutritional value and taste.
Freezing orders from a meal kit delivery service is not exactly the ideal scenario because the primary intent is to cook the ingredients shortly after receiving them. That being said, there are times when freezing is the only way we can preserve food.
If the question of how long can HelloFresh stay in a box in the freezer is on your mind, you should think about going ingredient by ingredient and never put the entire contents of the box in your freezer.
This is true especially if your order contains some of the below-listed foods that do not freeze well:
- Eggs and dairy products
- Potatoes
- Lettuce
- Tomatoes
- Celery
- Radishes
- Condiments
- Spices
Conclusion
Meal kit delivery services are constantly improving on every front. If you love cooking but just don’t have the time to go grocery shopping, HelloFresh may be what you need.
I hope that if you were wondering about how long a HelloFresh box may stay outside or in the fridge, I have been able to help you out in this article.
And if you’re interested in what you can do with the leftover boxes, you can check out this YouTube video for ideas on how you can reuse them: