Passively cooled fluid storage apparatus

An improved food storage assembly and the like includes a housing having a cavity which opens from the housing along the side thereof. Door means are engageable with the housing across the side of the cavity for closing the cavity opening. Thermal insulation material is carried by the housing and the door means for essentially fully enclosing the cavity in the closed position of the door means. A receptacle is located in the housing for receiving a predetermined quantity of a latent heat of fusion cooling medium which is other than water ice. Means are intimately and thermally conductively associated with the receptacle for thermally coupling the receptacle with selected portions of the cavity; these means include a metal member which forms at least the floor of the receptacle and which also forms fin means disposed vertically in the selected portions of the cavity. The predetermined quantity of cooling medium and the dimensions of the metal member are defined with relation to the type and quantity of the insulation material, to the geometry of the cavity and to the thermal conductivity of the metal member for maintaining the selected portions of the cavity and the contents thereof at substantially predetermined temperatures throughout a predetermined period under predetermined ambient temperature conditions.