An Ice Pack is a reusable gel cold pack included with shipments of temperature-sensitive livestock and plants when ambient or forecast temperatures along the shipping route would otherwise put animals or plants at risk during transit. Shrimp, snails, and aquatic plants all have upper temperature thresholds beyond which heat stress, tissue damage, or mortality becomes likely -- and sealed shipping bags inside cardboard boxes can reach temperatures substantially higher than ambient air during warm-weather transit, particularly in vehicles and sorting facilities. The ice pack moderates temperature inside the shipping box for the duration of expected transit time, keeping the package environment within a safe range for the livestock inside. It is a standard inclusion for warm-weather shipments and is selected or omitted based on current and forecast temperatures at the time of packing.

Transit Temperature Protection