Americans spend over a billion dollars each year on mail order food items.

If you are giving or receiving mail order foods that are perishable there are some things you can do to avoid problems.

When you place the order, find out when the item should arrive. If possible, send it for next day delivery. While you may not want to tell the recipient what you are sending, he or she should be alerted to expect a package of perishable items and given the delivery date. That way you won’t send a package of food to someone who has just left on a two week vacation.

If you receive a gift of good that was frozen when shipped, it should arrive frozen or at least hard in the middle. If it was never frozen, it should arrive firm and cold, the same is true for canned or processed foods that are labeled keep refrigerated.

For example, many canned hams must be kept cold even when unopened because they are pasteurized but not sterile.

If your gift is cheesecake, it should arrive fully frozen.