Nowadays, more and more mothers are paying attention to the dietary health of their babies. How to provide healthy and nutritious food for their babies is a topic of concern for every mother. Freeze-dried breast milk, because it can almost 100% retain nutrients and has a very long shelf life, is being chosen by more and more mothers. In our previous article Freeze-Dried Breast Milk: The New Use For Home Freeze Dryers, we also mentioned how to use a freeze dryer to freeze-dry breast milk. Today, let’s explore how to freeze-dry breast milk at home.
The Process of Freeze-Drying Breast Milk
The process of transforming breast milk into freeze-dried breast milk requires a professional commercial freeze dryer or a home freeze dryer. First, the liquid breast milk is placed into the freeze dryer, which quickly freezes the breast milk. Then, the air is extracted, and under low temperature and low pressure conditions, the water in the breast milk directly sublimates into vapor, leaving behind nutrient-rich breast milk powder.
The Benefits of Freeze-Dried Breast Milk
Freeze-dried breast milk, as a new way of preserving breast milk, is loved by mothers for its multiple advantages:
- Nutrient Preservation: Since freeze-dried breast milk is made under low temperature and low pressure, it can preserve the nutrients in the breast milk to the greatest extent, which is very beneficial for the healthy growth of babies.
- Long Shelf Life: Freeze-dried breast milk contains almost no water, so it can remain fresh and nutritious for a long time without the addition of preservatives. Under cool conditions, it can even be stored for 25 years (needs to be packaged in sealed bags or containers).
- Convenient for Carrying and Use: After removing the water, freeze-dried breast milk is small in volume, light in weight, and easy to carry, which is especially convenient for mothers who need to travel long distances. At the same time, when needed, just add an appropriate amount of warm water to feed the baby.
How to Use Freeze-Dried Breast Milk?
The process of using freeze-dried breast milk is actually as simple as using regular powdered milk. You just need to mix warm water and freeze-dried breast milk in a container, then stir well to get rehydrated freeze-dried breast milk that is close to fresh breast milk. We recommend a 1:1 volume ratio of freeze-dried breast milk to warm water, but you can adjust according to your baby’s preferences. It is particularly important to note that once the packaging of freeze-dried breast milk is opened, please feed it to your baby as soon as possible (recommended within 24 hours) to avoid contamination by bacteria in the air.
Can I Freeze-Dry My Own Breast Milk?
Certainly.Next up, we’re diving into how you can freeze-dry breast milk right in the comfort of your home.
How to Freeze-Dry Breast Milk at Home? How Much Does It Cost to Freeze-Dry Breast Milk?
There are two ways to freeze-dry breast milk:
- Sending Breast Milk to a Professional Freeze-Drying Company: We note that with the increasing demand for freeze-dried breast milk, there are professional freeze-drying companies offering this service. However, the cost of freeze-drying breast milk each time can be hundreds of dollars, which is a very expensive expense for families that need to freeze-dry breast milk for a long time. Additionally, the process of mailing breast milk to the freeze-drying company may cause the breast milk to spoil or become not fresh, therefore, we do not recommend this method.
- Using a Home Freeze Dryer to Freeze-Dry Breast Milk: With the popularization of home freeze dryers, freeze-drying various foods at home has become very simple. The cost of purchasing a home freeze dryer is a few thousand dollars, which is a significant investment for ordinary families, but it is totally worth it for families that need to freeze-dry breast milk or other foods for a long time. The cost of electricity for a home freeze dryer running 24 hours is about two to three dollars, which is affordable for ordinary families. Additionally, our home freeze dryer is very intelligent; you just need to put the breast milk into the freeze dryer, turn on the switch, and then you can slowly enjoy the process of breast milk turning into nutrient-rich powder through the transparent window.
More Tips For Freeze-Drying Breast Milk
What Is the Temperature for Freeze-Drying Breast Milk?
To lock in the nutrients of breast milk during the freeze-drying process, our home freeze dryer uses ultra-low temperatures of -30°C to -50°C, ensuring that the water in the breast milk is completely frozen into a solid state before sublimation.
Does Freeze-Drying Breast Milk Lose Nutrients?
Freeze-drying breast milk is currently the best way to preserve the nutrients in breast milk. During the freeze-drying process of breast milk, only the water in the breast milk sublimates while other substances are preserved. Therefore, freeze-drying breast milk almost does not lose the nutritional components of breast milk.
Is Freeze-Dried Breast Milk Better Than Dehydrated Breast Milk?
Whether from the perspective of nutrition and health, shelf life, or taste, freeze-dried breast milk is superior to dehydrated breast milk. Dehydrated breast milk, because it requires heating during the production process, leads to the loss of some nutrients and also changes the taste of the breast milk.
What Are the Alternatives to Freezing Breast Milk?
Freezing breast milk can preserve breast milk and retain its nutrients and health for a short time, but if you want to preserve breast milk for a long time, we recommend using the freeze-drying method. Freeze-dried breast milk can preserve the nutrients of breast milk just like frozen breast milk, but it can be stored for much longer, up to 25 years under ideal conditions.
Freeze-dried breast milk, as a new way of preservation, is the best choice to extend the shelf life of breast milk without losing nutrients. With the popularization of home freeze dryers, more and more mothers are enjoying the benefits of freeze-drying technology. What are you hesitating for? Join us and experience the wonderful life brought by freeze-drying technology.
