An Environmentally Friendly Dry Ice Alternative
We are no longer shipping with Dry Ice. Starting Feb. 1, 2022 we are shipping cold packages with our new Enviro Ice cold packs that are biodegradable and recyclable.
Why the Change?
Pandemic triggered supply disruptions have put significant pressures on couriers to deliver packages in the target timeline. For this reason, VitaCyte had to resolve numerous delayed product shipments in the past 2 years which highlighted the risks associated with maintaining cold storage using dry ice. These issues along with the rapid increases in dry ice costs has prompted VitaCyte to evaluate different shipping containers and cold storage options.
Product integrity is the paramount consideration. After review of the extensive stability studies performed on purified enzyme products, the need to transport materials at -70°C (dry ice) is not required. All products are stable for a minimum of weeks to months at +4°C with most products showing no loss of potency as measured by internal assays up to +37°C for multiple weeks. In thoroughly evaluating the needs of product integrity, costs and shipping risks, VitaCyte has selected to use Enviro Ice in lieu of dry ice for most shipments that require cold storage.
These Enviro Ice cold packs provide a number of benefits relative to dry ice including:
- Maintaining a temperature below 0°C for 48 hours minimum
- Significant material cost reduction (Dry ice costs 7x more than Enviro Ice blocks for similar size cartons)
- Equal to or less shipping weight keeping shipping costs low
- No dry ice courier imposed hazard fees
In the event of a delayed shipment Enviro Ice offer additional benefits including:
- Keeping product below 0°C slightly longer than regular quantity of dry ice
- Significantly slower warming between 0°C and ambient temperature minimizes high temperature excursions
About Enviro Ice
Enviro Ice is a -12°C ice pack that is environmentally friendly. The inside solution is 100% drain safe and can be used as plant food while the outer plastic is recyclable. This product was designed to be nontoxic, cost-effective, and an alternative to dry ice.
Show me the Data
An extensive shipping study was performed on Enviro Ice using different carton sizes. A comparison of cold storage duration for an average shipment is shown in the graphs below.
Shipping Conditions
This change will impact the packaging and shipping of all products that had been shipped on dry ice. Here is the new shipping condition for each product.
Product |
Recommended Condition |
|---|---|
| Collagenase HA/MA | Enviro Ice |
| Collagenase Gold | Ambient |
| Collagenase Gold Plus | Enviro Ice |
| BP Protease | Ambient |
| RI | Enviro Ice |
| Thermolysin | Enviro Ice |
| DE Collagenases | Ambient |
| AS/AS2 | Ambient |
| Comingled Order | Enviro Ice (if at least 1 item is recommended to ship with Enviro Ice) |
Packing Fees
With the new changes here is the updated packing fee table. Using Enviro Ice will save you shipping and packing costs.
Box Size
|
Shipping Condition |
Packing Fee |
|---|---|---|
| 9x6x2 | Ambient | $20.00 |
| 8x6x7 | Ambient | $30.00 |
| 8x6x7 | Enviro Ice | $40.00 |
| 8x6x12 | Ambient | $40.00 |
| 8x6x12 | Enviro Ice | $50.00 |
| 12x10x9 | Ambient | $50.00 |
| 12x10x9 | Enviro Ice | $60.00 |
| 12x12x11 | Enviro Ice | $70.00 |
| 16x16x15 | Enviro Ice | $85.00 |
| * | Broker Selection | $10.00 |
| * | EEI | $10.00 |
Effective Date
These shipping changes are effective Feb. 1, 2022 unless you specify to VitaCyte your shipping preferences. Dry ice will only be used for future orders if expressly communicated to VitaCyte and will result in higher packaging and shipping costs.
We kindly request you share this information with your team’s quality assurance, purchasing, shipping and receiving colleagues along with any other impacted individuals. VitaCyte understands changes to your incoming raw material shipping conditions creates a potential for confusion. For that reason, we will continue to fulfill shipments to your organization’s specific requirements. Please let VitaCyte know promptly if these changes conflict with your quality system and specify your organization’s preferences.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.
Terms & Conditions
With these changes our Terms and Conditions have been updated. View our Terms and Conditions here.