Frozen EBM

[~ Mylitta ~]

Hi ladies,

I have a question about frozen EBM. I have around 9 litres of frozen EBM in a deep freezer and I have read that you can keep it in there for up to 12 months. My question is why 12 months? What happens after 12 months? It's still frozen at the same temperature, so why couldn't I give DS some of the frozen milk from say 13 months ago? I defrosted some of the older milk recently and it still smells exactly the same... I'd really rather not waste it!

[MantaRay]

Hun, that's really a matter for your judgement. As you suggest, milk won't go off right on the dot of 12 months, however it will deteriorate at some point. I'm not sure that the exact time it takes is known, and probably it varies on a number of things, however it is known from testing that the milk is fine for 12 months in a deep freeze. If the milk still seems fine to you at 13 months then the chances are that it still is. EBM is known for it's anitbacterial properties which help it to last a long time. However there could be a small risk that it's not, which is why the guidelines say 12 months. I'd say trust your own instinct on this one.

And I know what you mean about throwing it out. Broke my heart to throw out a freezer full of EBM when DS self-weaned

[Loula]

Oh hun, I'm not one who knows but would agree with the above post. It's heartbreaking to think any is going to 'waste'

I too am wondering about all this. I've expressed off around 100 ml each day usually from just the early morning feed and have a bit if a stock happening. But when am I going to use it lol and when should I stop expressing and freezing so I don't waste any. Mine doesn't go in the deep freeze so I can't store it for as long.

Does anyone have a data system so they know what is going in and out??

[~ Mylitta ~]

Thanks girls. I think I'm just going to go with my gut and keep using it as long as it smells fine. I also figure that DS would probably be pretty quick to reject it if it didn't taste right.

MantaRay - Gosh I can just imagine how hard it would have been pulling the EBM out of the freezer and knowing that this amazing milk you made yourself is now going to waste!

Loula - I started expressing once DS was about 2-3 months I think. I did it because we knew that we wanted another baby fairly close in age and I was worried that I would have to wean well before I wanted to in order fall pregnant. We ended up going through IVF and I was still able to breastfeed through that which was great. It's actually now that I'm pregnant that things have gotten hard and my supply dropped dramamtically. And now in the last week or so I think the milk has turned to mainly colostrum and DS only gets a few mouthfuls, so I figured I might as well start pulling some of the EBM out of the freezer and giving him a sippy cup of it in the evening

[Baby Dreamtime]

Hi loverlies,
Loula, I used milk freezer bags and wrote the date on and turned them over every 3 months, I was using them as a top up or bottle feeding the ebm and also expressing and freezing fresh. Just a note I had to dump about 4 liters of ebm as I discovered too late I have an enzyme int breast milk that makes it break down quicker and it was only lasting about 1 month before going yellow and soapy tasting. The only solution was to scald it before freezing and made all the difference. Might be worth testing as you go.

Good luck xx

[Baby Dreamtime]

Hi loverlies,
Loula, I used milk freezer bags and wrote the date on and turned them over every 3 months, I was using them as a top up or bottle feeding the ebm and also expressing and freezing fresh. Just a note I had to dump about 4 liters of ebm as I discovered too late I have an enzyme int breast milk that makes it break down quicker and it was only lasting about 1 month before going yellow and soapy tasting. The only solution was to scald it before freezing and made all the difference. Might be worth testing as you go.

Good luck xx

[Loula]

Oh wow BD how would I know about the enzyme?? My milk separates in the fridge clear and watery at the bottom and thick and curdy white at the top.

Just defrosted 70ml as DS is unsettled went to give it to him and he is finally asleep!!!! Sucks

[Baby Dreamtime]

Hi Lou, I don't know how you would know until you get to that stage, maybe just test anything you are keeping long term. Your fresh milk in the fridge with the separation sounds normal though. Didn't want to stress you out, just something to keep in mind, mine definitely went yellowy after being frozen for more than a month and had a slightly funny smell even though still frozen.

As long as he is sleeping lol, hope you are enjoying it, it goes too fast. Xx

[Loula]

Mmmmmmmm so as I look at my frozen ebm it does look more yellow. Is this normal? How will I test it?

[helle]

Mmmmmmmm so as I look at my frozen ebm it does look more yellow. Is this normal? How will I test it?

mine comes out yellowish... i always assumed it was from my multi vitamin... oO;;

[Loula]

mine comes out yellowish... i always assumed it was from my multi vitamin... oO;;

Good point ....that might be mine too! although mine comes out white then turns yellow once frozen

[~ Mylitta ~]

Hi ladies, I found some info for you about having extra lipase enzyme:

A few mothers find that their refrigerated or frozen milk begins to smell or taste soapy, sour, or even rancid soon after it's stored, even though all storage guidelines have been followed closely. These mothers have an excess of the enzyme lipase in their milk, which begins to break down the milk fat soon after the milk is expressed. The lipase enzyme stays active even when the milk is frozen.

Once the milk becomes sour or rancid smelling/tasting, there is no known way to salvage it. However, newly expressed milk can be stored by heating the milk to a scald to inactivate the lipase and stop the process of fat digestion. Scald the milk as soon after expression as possible.

To scald milk:

Heat milk to about 180 F (82 C), or until you see little bubbles around the edge of the pan (not to a full, rolling boil).
Quickly cool and store the milk.
Scalding the milk will destroy some of the antiinfective properties of the milk and may lower some nutrient levels, but this is not likely to be an issue unless all of the milk that baby is receiving has been heat-treated.

It also says that as long as your milk still smells normal after you thaw it, then it is generally safe for a baby to drink. The spoilt milk has a very distinctive smell similar to when cows milk spoils.