Yesterday, Nick posted back-to-back rave/rants regarding Fresh Direct. Of the many interesting things below the surface of his entertaining narratives, one initially escaped my notice: the role of the refrigerated truck in keeping food cold and unspoiled.

Nick correctly wonders if Fresh Direct and other custom-food-delivery-on-a-massive-scale operations might not have a major problem, given how long the trucks are outside in hot weather. And how long the doors stay open. And therefore, how warm one’s fresh food might get - witness the spoiled salmon that soured Nick’s relations with the e-retailer. Now of course, he’s just one disappointed foodie among many no-doubt satisfied customers. But when I read the coverage of the failed Snapple stunt in Union Square the other day, I had to wonder: if Snapple, with all its PR folks, refrigerated shipping experts and associated other smart people couldn’t prevent their giant popsicle from flooding a major manhattan intersection on an 80-degree day…what hope does the average Fresh Direct order have? The popsicle’s sole purpose is to be cold - and it was a high-profile effort that relied on transport by cold truck. It may be that Fresh Direct is safest during the winter months only.

JF

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 23rd, 2005 at 4:36 pm and is filed under General, Finds, E-commerce.