Amazon FBA Shipment Processing — 8 Pallets, Dec 1 Pickup — 2025-11-17
Overview
During the weekly sync on 2025-11-17, Mark and Karly worked through the Amazon FBA shipment creation process live for Doudlah Farms. Jason (warehouse contact) confirmed he could prep the inventory within two weeks, setting a December 1 pickup date. The session covered product entry, expiration date setting, packing type corrections, and a key consolidation decision.
Related meeting context (American Extractions, Crazy Lenny's): [1]
Key Decision: Consolidate to 2 Shipments
Amazon's default recommendation was 16 separate shipments. The team chose to consolidate to 2 shipments using the "Minimal Splits" option.
- Cost: ~$1,000 placement fee above the base shipping estimate (~$3k estimated freight)
- Rationale: With 16 shipments, every pallet must have exactly the right boxes for its destination. A single misplaced box causes fulfillment errors. Doudlah Farms' warehouse staff is new, making this risk especially high.
- Split logic: Amazon routed all 25 lb products to one shipment and everything else to a second.
"It cost $1,000 to do that. But trying to configure 10 orders and stuff would have been brutal." — Mark Hope
Products Included
| Product | Qty | Packing Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Beans, 1 lb | 15 boxes (180 units) | Master Carton | Exp: 05/01/2027 |
| Black Beans, 5 lb | 192 boxes | Single SKU Pallet (4 pallets) | Exp: 05/01/2027 |
| Black Beans, 25 lb | 40 boxes | Individual Units (1 unit/box) | Exp: 05/01/2027 |
| Cranberry Beans, 5 lb | 20 boxes | Master Carton | No expiration date required |
| Yellow Cornmeal, 5 lb | 144 boxes (3 pallets) | Single SKU Pallet | Exp: 05/01/2027; qty adjusted up from 132 |
| Yellow Cornmeal, 25 lb | 30 boxes | Individual Units (1 unit/box) | Exp: 05/01/2027 |
| Yellow Popcorn, 3 lb | 80 boxes (2 pallets) | Single SKU Pallet | Exp: 11/17/2027 |
| White Popcorn, 3 lb | 80 boxes (2 pallets) | Single SKU Pallet | Exp: 11/17/2027 |
Total: ~8 pallets (plus loose boxes), approximately a half truckload.
Quantity Adjustment — Yellow Cornmeal
Original quantity from Jason's list was 132 boxes. At 48 boxes/pallet, that yields 2.75 pallets. Decision was made to round up to 3 full pallets = 144 boxes.
Action: Karly to notify Jason of the quantity change (132 → 144 boxes of 5 lb Yellow Cornmeal).
Process Notes & Troubleshooting
Expiration Dates
- Standard shelf-stable products: 18 months from ship date → 05/01/2027
- Popcorn products: 2 years from ship date → 11/17/2027
- Format required: MM/DD/YYYY with slashes (system does not auto-format)
Packing Type Error — 25 lb Products
The 25 lb Black Beans and 25 lb Cornmeal were initially entered as "Individual Units," which Amazon interpreted as requiring additional box packaging. The correct interpretation: these products ship one unit per box — "Individual Units" is the right selection, but the quantity entered should equal the number of boxes (not units inside). Required re-entry to resolve.
AWD vs. FBA
AWD (Amazon Warehousing & Distribution) is not to be used until further notice. Current AWD issues include expiration date mismanagement and fulfillment errors. All shipments go direct to FBA.
Shipping Method
All shipments use LTL (Less Than Truckload). Small parcel (UPS-style) was not selected. LTL pricing is weight-based; FTL pricing is flat-rate per lane regardless of pallet count.
Output Documents Generated
Six files were produced and are to be emailed to Jason:
| # | Document Type | Shipment |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Box Labels | Shipment 1 |
| 2 | Box Labels | Shipment 2 |
| 3 | Pallet Labels | Shipment 1 (2 pallets) |
| 4 | Pallet Labels | Shipment 2 (12 pallets) |
| 5 | Bill of Lading (BOL) | Shipment 1 |
| 6 | Bill of Lading (BOL) | Shipment 2 |
BOLs were initially unavailable at shipment confirmation but appeared within ~10 minutes on page refresh.
Action Items
- [ ] Karly — Email Jason all 6 FBA documents (2 box label files, 2 pallet label files, 2 BOLs); subject line: "Amazon Details for December 1st Pickup"
- [ ] Karly — Include note to Jason that Yellow Cornmeal 5 lb quantity has been updated from 132 to 144 boxes (3 full pallets)
Related
- [2]
- [1]