How to preserve breast milk into powder?

The Art of Preserving Breast Milk into Powder
In recent years, the preservation of breast milk has evolved significantly, allowing parents to store this vital nutrition in a more convenient form. One of the most effective methods is converting breast milk into powder, a process that not only extends its shelf life but also maintains its nutritional integrity. This transformation is primarily achieved through freeze-drying, a technique that has been utilized since the 1950s.
Understanding Freeze-Drying
Freeze-drying, or lyophilization, involves removing moisture from breast milk while it is frozen. This process preserves the milk’s nutrients, flavor, and bioactive components, making it as portable and shelf-stable as infant formula. The method works by first freezing the milk, then placing it in a vacuum chamber where the pressure is lowered. This allows the frozen water in the milk to sublimate, turning directly from ice into vapor without passing through a liquid phase. The result is a fine powder that can be reconstituted with water when needed.
The Process of Making Powdered Breast Milk
To create powdered breast milk at home, parents can follow a few essential steps:
1. Collect Fresh Breast Milk: Start with freshly expressed breast milk. Ensure that it is stored in clean, sterilized containers to prevent contamination.
2. Freeze the Milk: Pour the milk into ice cube trays or flat containers and freeze it. This step is crucial as it prepares the milk for the freeze-drying process.
3. Freeze-Drying: If you have access to a home freeze dryer, transfer the frozen milk into the machine. The freeze dryer will handle the vacuum and temperature adjustments necessary for sublimation. If you don’t own a freeze dryer, some companies offer services to freeze-dry your breast milk for you.
4. Storage: Once the milk is fully dried, store the powder in airtight containers, preferably in a cool, dark place. Properly stored, powdered breast milk can last for years without losing its nutritional value.
Benefits of Powdered Breast Milk
The powdered form of breast milk offers several advantages. It is travel-friendly, allowing parents to easily carry nutrition for their infants without the need for refrigeration. Additionally, it can be mixed with water or added to foods as babies grow, ensuring that they continue to receive the benefits of breast milk even as their diets diversify.
Moreover, the process of freeze-drying helps to preserve the milk’s nutrients, making it a viable alternative to liquid breast milk, especially in situations where fresh milk is not available. This method also minimizes waste, allowing parents to utilize every drop of their expressed milk.
Conclusion
Converting breast milk into powder through freeze-drying is a remarkable way to extend its usability while retaining its nutritional benefits. As more parents seek flexible feeding options, this method stands out as a practical solution, ensuring that infants continue to receive the best nutrition possible, no matter the circumstances. Whether for travel or long-term storage, powdered breast milk is a testament to the innovative ways we can support breastfeeding in modern parenting.

Can I get my breast milk made into powder?

04:38 – What is freeze-dried breast milk or Booby Food? They turn a mother’s frozen breast milk into a shelf-stable, travel-friendly powder that they can take with them wherever they go. They can make bottles on the go and can fortify bottles as an alternative to formula.

Is freeze-drying breast milk worth it?

Not only does freeze dried breast milk offer nutrition benefits, it gives you convenience by delivering flexibility and peace of mind – and a much longer window for use with a three year shelf life versus traditional freezing. When you freeze-dry, you don’t risk wasting your breast milk or battling with freezer space.

How to turn breast milk to powder at home?

How to freeze dry baby milk at home? Cut open all the frozen bags of breast milk. Fit about 9 bags per tray and fill 5 trays to fill the freeze dryer. It takes over 24 hours for the freeze dried to finish. Turns into very dry powder. Put it in a Ziploc bag and smash it up. Grind it up into the finest powder.

How much breastmilk do you need for a keepsake?

Your breast milk can be easily shipped using a small box or padded envelope. Breast milk storage bags work great for shipping as they rarely leak in-transit, but if you don’t have those, high-quality freezer bags work, as well. Only 30mL (1 ounce) of breast milk is needed per jewelry piece.

Is freeze-drying breast milk safe?

Researchers around the world have been researching this topic for decades and they agree that freeze-drying is a safe and effective way to preserve the nutritional, immunological, and probiotic properties of breast milk that make it the gold standard of nutrition.

How to turn breast milk into powder for jewelry?

How to crush your milk (this step should take only take 10-20 minutes):

1. Empty all of the dried milk paste into your glass bowl (or mortar)
2. Using the back of your spoon (or your pestle), crush your milk until it’s in a fine powder–you’re aiming for powdered sugar consistency!

How do you preserve breast milk for keepsake?

One common method for preserving breast milk is freeze-drying. This process involves freezing the breast milk and then removing the moisture through a process called sublimation. The freeze-dried breast milk is then ground into a fine powder and mixed with a special resin that is used to create jewelry.

How much does it cost to turn your breast milk into powder?

What does it cost to freeze-dry breast milk? The smallest shipments can cost around $110 to $300, depending on the brand. One company accepts shipments of up to 2,400 ounces of breast milk, which it’ll turn into powder for almost $3,000 dollars. (They also donate a portion of every sale to a local breast milk bank.)

How to convert milk into powder?

And that’s milk you can use any milk skim milk two percent three percent whole milk. And all you have to do is get a thin layer on a tray. And place it in a dehydrator at 135.

How do you convert milk to powder?

Set the dehydrator at 130°F – 135° and dehydrate. It will take roughly 12 hours for the milk to dry. After the milk is completely dry and flaky, crumble it into pieces and blend in a mixer until it forms a powder. Store the powdered milk in a vacuum seal jar for longer shelf life.