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Pappy Q
03-26-2018, 11:56 AM
I had a shipment from SRF scheduled for delivery this past Friday. FedEx tracking showed it on the truck for delivery but at the end of the day, it showed as no delivery attempt made and to be delivered Saturday. Saturday it did show up with the box open and the briskets about 75% thawed. I immediately put them in the freezer.

I sent SRF an email Friday evening and again Saturday after delivery. I called FedEx and got routed to leaving a voice mail. I have not heard from either. Is this a SRF, FedEx or both issue if there is an issue with the meat?

HuskerMan
03-26-2018, 11:58 AM
This is a FedEx issue imo but doubt you get anywhere with them on it.

jacobp
03-26-2018, 12:04 PM
You would need to take the issue up with SRF. Hopefully you took pictures of the boxes when they arrived as they may ask for those. SRF will have to take it up with FEDEX as it was shipped on their account.

DUBBAGA
03-26-2018, 12:59 PM
I had a shipment from SRF scheduled for delivery this past Friday. FedEx tracking showed it on the truck for delivery but at the end of the day, it showed as no delivery attempt made and to be delivered Saturday. Saturday it did show up with the box open and the briskets about 75% thawed. I immediately put them in the freezer.

I sent SRF an email Friday evening and again Saturday after delivery. I called FedEx and got routed to leaving a voice mail. I have not heard from either. Is this a SRF, FedEx or both issue if there is an issue with the meat?

Darn you Annella... all future vacation time is being revoked :laugh:

THoey1963
03-26-2018, 02:48 PM
Agree, take it up with SRF, and let them get reimbursed from FedEx. SRF should ship you a replacement out ASAP. I had a different issue with an order I placed, and they immediately sent me a replacement. Great customer service.

Pappy Q
03-26-2018, 06:01 PM
Update:

After another email, SRF did respond that the briskets should be fine. No response from FedEx.

Mankite
03-26-2018, 11:51 PM
FedEx strikes again.

Rockinar
03-26-2018, 11:55 PM
Interestig that SRFs response was "It should be fine". While that is true, it makes them seem like they dont really care.

Fat Freddy
03-27-2018, 07:30 AM
Update:

After another email, SRF did respond that the briskets should be fine. No response from FedEx.

Really? A couple years ago I had a Double R Ranch brisket in similar state of thaw for a contest when a family emergency happened and I had to back out. Brisket was not completely thawed but i called anyways just to check. Was told while it should be fine to refreeze but they couldnt guarantee the quality.

DRMSMKER
03-27-2018, 08:24 AM
For what you pay for those, I don't think I would accept the "It should be fine" response. You got meat shipped to you, arrived a day later in an opened box and 75% thawed. That is not acceptable to me. But hey, if you're happy, then that's what matters.

gettinbasted
03-27-2018, 08:58 AM
I believe they state that the product will arrive "frozen or partially thawed". As long as it was below the danger zone, I don't think there is a problem.

Pappy Q
03-27-2018, 09:11 AM
I believe they state that the product will arrive "frozen or partially thawed". As long as it was below the danger zone, I don't think there is a problem.

As a top tier team I value you opinion....this is for a comp and I won't be able to trim until I arrive at the comp Friday morning, if this were you would you be confident in the product or should I take a back up?

Pappy Q
03-27-2018, 09:14 AM
For what you pay for those, I don't think I would accept the "It should be fine" response. You got meat shipped to you, arrived a day later in an opened box and 75% thawed. That is not acceptable to me. But hey, if you're happy, then that's what matters.

I didn't say I was happy...

WareZdaBeef
03-27-2018, 09:32 AM
No way would i accept 75% thawed. Who knows how long the surface of the meat was in the "danger zone" not to mention the box was opened so that meat could have been basicly "left on the counter overnight" in a heated truck/warehouse. Its one thing if you want to take the risk yourself, but you are risking other peoples health without them knowing.

DRMSMKER
03-27-2018, 09:38 AM
I didn't say I was happy...

For what you pay for their products, this shouldn't conclude with anything but you being happy.
75% thawed to me is not partially thawed, that's more like partially frozen/mostly thawed.

SRF needs to make it right with you and hold FedEx accountable for this. As a customer for high end products, you should expect nothing but the best as far as the product goes, and the customer service that comes with it.

Burnt at Both Endz
03-27-2018, 02:00 PM
As a top tier team I value you opinion....this is for a comp and I won't be able to trim until I arrive at the comp Friday morning, if this were you would you be confident in the product or should I take a back up?

Not in the same league as Brad, but do have a few brisket wins to my name, so take it for what it's worth.

I wouldn't be worried about spoilage, but have seen a few that have slice marks in the flat, so I always trim at home just to be safe.

gettinbasted
03-27-2018, 07:10 PM
As a top tier team I value you opinion....this is for a comp and I won't be able to trim until I arrive at the comp Friday morning, if this were you would you be confident in the product or should I take a back up?

If I can’t trim at home, I always take a backup.

As Cal said, I’d have confidence it won’t be spoiled and will have no noticeable difference because of this. I’d use it in a heartbeat if I felt it wasn’t sitting in the danger zone for more than a couple of hours. This is more from a food safety perspective than a quality of the brisket perspective. If you feel that it was too hot for too long, I’d probably send a reply to SRF stating my concerns about food safety.

WareZdaBeef
03-27-2018, 10:30 PM
If I can’t trim at home, I always take a backup.

As Cal said, I’d have confidence it won’t be spoiled and will have no noticeable difference because of this. I’d use it in a heartbeat if I felt it wasn’t sitting in the danger zone for more than a couple of hours. This is more from a food safety perspective than a quality of the brisket perspective. If you feel that it was too hot for too long, I’d probably send a reply to SRF stating my concerns about food safety.

How could he be confident they are not spoiled. He even said the box was open when he received it. Its no longer a question of SRF quality, the question is, what did Fedex do with his package. I am amazed with the responses in this thread to be honest, its like none of you read his initial post, or ignored that most important fact. Do you people work for the company and are trying to ignore this, that's just nuts.

gettinbasted
03-27-2018, 11:48 PM
How could he be confident they are not spoiled. He even said the box was open when he received it. Its no longer a question of SRF quality, the question is, what did Fedex do with his package. I am amazed with the responses in this thread to be honest, its like none of you read his initial post, or ignored that most important fact. Do you people work for the company and are trying to ignore this, that's just nuts.

I’m extremely confident that I could leave a frozen brisket on the counter overnight to thaw and it won’t be spoiled. I’m not confident that it’s safe to eat by USDA standards. Did you bother to read my response?

WareZdaBeef
03-27-2018, 11:58 PM
I’m extremely confident that I could leave a frozen brisket on the counter overnight to thaw and it won’t be spoiled. I’m not confident that it’s safe to eat by USDA standards. Did you bother to read my response?

Did you not read that he received the package a day later then it was expected?

gettinbasted
03-28-2018, 12:13 AM
Did you not read that he received the package a day later then it was expected?

Yep. I order over $15,000 of SRF briskets a year for competition use. They are packed in dry ice inside of other packing materials. The boxes are often very roughly treated and, yes, sometimes Fedex is a day late. I’ve never had one I wasn’t confident in cooking from a food safety standpoint. That being said, I clearly stated that if he feels that they were “in the danger zone” when they arrived, he should not cook them. Being a day late doesn’t qualify. I’ll often leave them in the shipping container overnight depending on when they arrive on my door step and my laziness factor that night.

Being over 40 degrees does qualify. Pappy will have to make that determination. The box isn’t what keeps them cold, FYI. They did recently change from a styrofoam cooler to insulated packing materials, however.

WareZdaBeef
03-28-2018, 12:23 AM
Yep. I order over $15,000 of SRF briskets a year for competition use. They are packed in dry ice inside of other packing materials. The boxes are often very roughly treated and, yes, sometimes Fedex is a day late. I’ve never had one I wasn’t confident in cooking from a food safety standpoint. That being said, I clearly stated that if he feels that they were “in the danger zone” when they arrived, he should not cook them. Being a day late doesn’t qualify. I’ll often leave them in the shipping container overnight depending on when they arrive on my door step and my laziness factor that night.

Being over 40 degrees does qualify. Pappy will have to make that determination. The box isn’t what keeps them cold, FYI. They did recently change from a styrofoam cooler to insulated packing materials, however.

You seem to be too invested in this company to be a reliable, trusted source. He clearly said it was 75% thawed, that is 3/4 thawed. And the box was open, and a day late. I would never risk that while in my own hands, let alone fedex's hands. SRF, nor you, or anybody knows what could have happended to that package. Im done here, i hope the OP consideres he is serving this potentially spoiled product to people that have no idea what they are about to eat.

gettinbasted
03-28-2018, 12:25 AM
As a side note, I ordered some Australian wagyu from a place in Florida one time. They shipped the briskets in Island Breeze coolers with no ice. They arrived 4 days later and were 62 degrees when I opened them according to my infrared thermometer.

I bet they were over 40 degrees for a solid 2 days, but they still weren’t spoiled. They did go in the trash, however. There’s a difference between spoiled and unsafe to eat. That was a $1000 lesson!

gettinbasted
03-28-2018, 12:30 AM
You seem to be too invested in this company to be a reliable, trusted source. He clearly said it was 75% thawed, that is 3/4 thawed. And the box was open, and a day late. I would never risk that while in my own hands, let alone fedex's hands. SRF, nor you, or anybody knows what could have happended to that package. Im done here, i hope the OP consideres he is serving this potentially spoiled product to people that have no idea what they are about to eat.

I certainly never told the OP to use the briskets or that they are safe. He will have to make that determination. I told him they won’t be spoiled.

Burnt at Both Endz
03-28-2018, 07:02 AM
You seem to be too invested in this company to be a reliable, trusted source. He clearly said it was 75% thawed, that is 3/4 thawed. And the box was open, and a day late. I would never risk that while in my own hands, let alone fedex's hands. SRF, nor you, or anybody knows what could have happended to that package. Im done here, i hope the OP consideres he is serving this potentially spoiled product to people that have no idea what they are about to eat.

That first line is almost a direct attack on a true brethren, sad in it's self....just sayin'.:crazy:

Norm
03-28-2018, 08:05 AM
. Im done here


Promise...

DRMSMKER
03-28-2018, 08:40 AM
I'm only advocating the replacement because of the unknowns. No one has any idea how long it was in the danger zone, and this will be served to other people. Yes it was only a day late but the package was delivered opened and almost thawed.

You pay too much money for those things to a company with a high end reputation for them to just say it "should be fine" and not even offer an alternative solution.

SRF_Sean
03-28-2018, 10:36 AM
Hi guys. Delays in shipping happen, unfortunately, but we try to be very clear about how we respond to them and why. We can appreciate being concerned about food safety - it's our highest concern when shipping beef. Here's what goes behind our policy that any partially thawed beef is safe and fine for use:

We run tests on all of our food at different temperatures - not to mention checking all returned packages for the status of the beef. We have not run tests where a brisket or any other cut was still frozen on the inside, but past the 40-degree danger zone on the outside. The tests validate what you see in normal life in a cooler you would pack for recreation. An ice cube next to any piece of meat keeps the area and cut cold enough for safety.

We also worry about freezing, thawing and refreezing. Pretty easy way to tell if this has happened to you. When defrosting, meat thaws from the outside in. When freezing, it freezes from the outside in. This rules out orders that have been on a truck or warehouse for an extra 3-4 days because it gives the cycle of freezing/thawing time to happen, but at a day late it isn't feasible with our packing/shipping methods.

Based on this information, we have zero reason to be concerned about partially thawed beef that arrives with only a limited time of delay.

We, of course, still handle every issue on its own merits. There are no hard and fast rules around Snake River Farms. Our customer service team, based on information provided on this order, will almost certainly replace it on this occasion. But we will not always do so for a partially thawed order, even in some delay cases.

One thing we do want to be clear on is that while we sometimes ask for photos to highlight problems internally and with our shippers, they are not a pre-requisite for us addressing anyone's problems. We believe our customers.

Hope this is enlightening on where our policies come from regarding this. Again, we share your concerns over food safety, but trust in the methods we've used to determine safety in delivery. If you have any other questions regarding it, just ask.

DRMSMKER
03-28-2018, 01:28 PM
Hi guys. Delays in shipping happen, unfortunately, but we try to be very clear about how we respond to them and why. We can appreciate being concerned about food safety - it's our highest concern when shipping beef. Here's what goes behind our policy that any partially thawed beef is safe and fine for use:

We run tests on all of our food at different temperatures - not to mention checking all returned packages for the status of the beef. We have not run tests where a brisket or any other cut was still frozen on the inside, but past the 40-degree danger zone on the outside. The tests validate what you see in normal life in a cooler you would pack for recreation. An ice cube next to any piece of meat keeps the area and cut cold enough for safety.

We also worry about freezing, thawing and refreezing. Pretty easy way to tell if this has happened to you. When defrosting, meat thaws from the outside in. When freezing, it freezes from the outside in. This rules out orders that have been on a truck or warehouse for an extra 3-4 days because it gives the cycle of freezing/thawing time to happen, but at a day late it isn't feasible with our packing/shipping methods.

Based on this information, we have zero reason to be concerned about partially thawed beef that arrives with only a limited time of delay.

We, of course, still handle every issue on its own merits. There are no hard and fast rules around Snake River Farms. Our customer service team, based on information provided on this order, will almost certainly replace it on this occasion. But we will not always do so for a partially thawed order, even in some delay cases.

One thing we do want to be clear on is that while we sometimes ask for photos to highlight problems internally and with our shippers, they are not a pre-requisite for us addressing anyone's problems. We believe our customers.

Hope this is enlightening on where our policies come from regarding this. Again, we share your concerns over food safety, but trust in the methods we've used to determine safety in delivery. If you have any other questions regarding it, just ask.

This is what I'm talking about. With the high reputation and the price you pay for their quality products, this is the response I'd expect.
Thanks for chiming in SRF!

Untraceable
03-28-2018, 01:33 PM
The last batch of briskets I ordered came in the new packaging method and I have to say they arrived easily in the best condition Ive ever received from SRF. Not a single puncture/friction hole, rock solid frozen. Greatly improved over the Styrofoam box days

dadsr4
03-28-2018, 02:32 PM
I would have refused delivery, based on the info the OP listed. Open box, left in truck overnight, and mostly thawed, at those prices?

Pappy Q
03-28-2018, 03:03 PM
Update: I have decided not to use the briskets as there are just too many unknowns regarding the food safety. I’m probably overly cautious but that’s okay. SRF has addressed the issue accordingly with me and I expect they’ll do the same with FedEx. In hindsight, I should not have posted anything as the intent was not to start arguments amongst the Brethern.

DRMSMKER
03-28-2018, 03:16 PM
Update: I have decided not to use the briskets as there are just too many unknowns regarding the food safety. I’m probably overly cautious but that’s okay. SRF has addressed the issue accordingly with me and I expect they’ll do the same with FedEx. In hindsight, I should not have posted anything as the intent was not to start arguments amongst the Brethern.

On the other hand, it gives some of us who have never done business with SRF a chance to see a little bit of their customer service and I for one think it showed them in a positive light based on the outcome and their willingness to get personally involved.

GettinPiggy
03-28-2018, 03:57 PM
Good luck next weekend! I will try to stop by and introduce myself.

Pappy Q
03-28-2018, 04:01 PM
Good luck next weekend! I will try to stop by and introduce myself.

Please do.

dadsr4
03-28-2018, 04:25 PM
Update: I have decided not to use the briskets as there are just too many unknowns regarding the food safety. I’m probably overly cautious but that’s okay. SRF has addressed the issue accordingly with me and I expect they’ll do the same with FedEx. In hindsight, I should not have posted anything as the intent was not to start arguments amongst the Brethern.
My point of view.
SRF, not you, chose who to ship with. You contracted with them for quality meat, it was up to them, after they accepted your order, to fill the order. It arrived in a non-acceptable condition and you contacted them.
I happen to have a brother-in law who has worked with UPS for decades. He's really hoping they stay in business long enough for him to retire, but doesn't expect it. He's the sort of person who, if he says something, you can trust he believes it. My wife and I have learned to ask how things we purchase are going to be shipped, after an unfinished replacement window I ordered was shipped via UPS. After it never showed up, I spent several days with UPS trying to find it. It was eventually found, by me, in a ditch a half mile from my house, soaked with rain.
We don't order anything that can't be mishandled through UPS anymore, and tell people why.
My wife receives packages almost daily, due to her business. UPS, there are delays, claiming they can not find our house. Fed EX and USPS, on the other hand, arrive at our door, with no problem.

pharp
03-28-2018, 05:40 PM
The last batch of briskets I ordered came in the new packaging method and I have to say they arrived easily in the best condition Ive ever received from SRF. Not a single puncture/friction hole, rock solid frozen. Greatly improved over the Styrofoam box days

Ditto that!

12ring
03-28-2018, 06:57 PM
Just because the package arrived “ a day later than expected” doesn’t mean it was late because Fed Ex. Fed ex has gaurenteed delivery dates and if they don’t get it there by the date, the shipper (SRF) can get their money back. Sometimes Fed Ex will show a delivery date that’s ahead of the actual gaurenteed date. In most cases they will deliver it on that date but if they are slammed that day, that package will most likely have to wait until the guaranteed date to be delivered. I deal with Fed Ex all the time and wouldn’t use anyone else for time sensitive deliveries.

With all that being said, SRF chiming in on a this makes me not hesitate at all to use them. Sounds like great customer service to me.