*Posted December 8, 2025 Why our shipping rates are a bit higher this Holiday Season

As the holiday rush kicks into high gear, we want to take a moment to address something we've heard from a few of you: our shipping charges are looking a little steeper than usual right now. We completely understand if that's frustrating—especially when you're already juggling gift lists and seasonal to-dos. Rest assured, this is a temporary adjustment, and we're committed to getting your orders to you reliably and on time. Let us explain what's going on behind the scenes.

Lessons from Holidays Past: In previous years, we've relied on USPS for much of our shipping, and while it's been a great partner most of the time, the holiday season has thrown us a few curveballs. Overloaded networks, weather delays, and sheer volume have led to packages taking longer than expected to arrive—sometimes missing those all-important "under the tree" deadlines. No one wants that, least of all us. Last year was a wake-up call, with more delayed shipments than we'd like to admit.

Switching Gears to UPS for This Season: To avoid repeating history and ensure your packages arrive with the speed and reliability you deserve, we've made the proactive choice to partner exclusively with UPS for all our holiday shipping this year. UPS has a stellar track record for handling peak-period volumes, and we're confident it'll make a world of difference in keeping things moving smoothly.

That said, this switch comes with a silver lining... and a small catch. Our shipping rates are directly tied to UPS's pricing structure, and they've recently announced general rate increases for 2025. On top of that, to manage the massive surge in demand during the holidays, UPS is applying peak season surcharges. These extra fees—effective from late September through mid-January—help cover the added costs of processing the flood of packages everyone sends during this busy time, including residential deliveries, additional handling for larger items, and overall network strain from e-commerce highs.

The Good News: It's Temporary: We know higher rates aren't ideal, but we're passing them through transparently without markup on our end. The silver lining? Once the holiday dust settles (around mid-January), these surcharges lift, and our rates will snap right back to their usual, more wallet-friendly levels. In the meantime, we're optimizing every route we can to keep your costs as low as possible while prioritizing on-time delivery.

If you're planning a big order or have questions about shipping to a specific area, don't hesitate to reach out to our team—we're here to help navigate this together.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support. From all of us here, we wish you a joyful, stress-free holiday season filled with all the magic (and no last-minute shipping surprises!).

Warm regards,  

The Bass Farms Team; orders@bassfarms.com