Frozen food thawed, still viable?

[Reefbuds]

Hello everyone! I need some I put regarding my frozen food. I was out of power for 3 days and my food thawed. It does not reach room temperature but was thawed for at least 24 to 36 hours. Stayed cool tho in the freezer. I just went to get some plankton to feed but noticed some have turned green. Is this normal or is it rot? Unsafe to feed? What about the rest of my food. I'm sure they get thawed at some point during transportation, but maybe not. Would love to hear what everyone thinks and has experienced with this issue. Last thing I want to do is make my fish sick.

 

[ndrwater]

After 2-3 days, and a color change, I'd toss it. Not worth the risk for under $10

 

[Reefbuds]

Also, nothing else in the freezer was thawed out at all. Only fish food did not stay frozen solid. Just stayed cool.

 

[Gareth elliott]

Depending what other food you had i still wouldnt risk somethings for human consumption. If any part got above frozen solid bacteria could start growing and toxins are not cooked out.

any home prepared then frozen would toss(Tomato sauce).

Would also be suspect of foods that were not flash pasteurized(vegetables purchased fresh then frozen).

Meat would be dependent on its density. A full turkey safer than ground turkey.

Sorry the servsafe in me [emoji23]

 

[Reefbuds]

Depending what other food you had i still wouldnt risk somethings for human consumption. If any part got above frozen solid bacteria could start growing and toxins are not cooked out.

any home prepared then frozen would toss(Tomato sauce).

Would also be suspect of foods that were not flash pasteurized(vegetables purchased fresh then frozen).

Meat would be dependent on its density. A full turkey safer than ground turkey.

Sorry the servsafe in me [emoji23]

Ugh servsafe, I try to forget about this when I'm not at work lol. Really i need to know if I can still use my frozen fish food. I'm not sure if it's still good. Seeing as it is packaged in individual cubes I don't know if the color change is natural or something else. Anyone know?

 

[Gareth elliott]

The color change is likely caused by 2 factors.

Those foil packs are not 100% air tight so oxidation or biological processes are both likely.

The other is ice formation. Every time it freezes and thaws new ice crystals form in the cells tearing the food further apart. Degrading its nutritional value.

 

[Reefbuds]

Ok well I've decided not to feed any of this, lots of food wasted . My wife is going to make the 1 1/2 hour round trip to get me some tmrw thanks for your input everyone. I thought maybe there was a chance it just changes color naturally with no changes to the safety or nutritional value when thawed for a time. Thanks!

 

[Super Fly]

Not sure about plankton but I thaw a weeks worth of LRS Reef Frenzy frozen food and store it in refrigerator in plastic container mixed w saltwater to quickly/easily feed each morning on my way to work. Been doing this for a while and all my livestock r fine.

 

[Super Fly]

Not sure about plankton but I thaw a weeks worth of LRS Reef Frenzy frozen food and store it in refrigerator in a plastic container mixed w saltwater to quickly/easily feed each morning on my way to work. Been doing this for a while and all my livestock r fine.

 

[jsker]

That is a hard one, it really depends on the temperature of the food. If the food was over 45 degree for 4 hours, I agree with the above answers and it would be best to start with new food.

 

[Jonreefer]

Not sure about plankton but I thaw a weeks worth of LRS Reef Frenzy frozen food and store it in refrigerator in plastic container mixed w saltwater to quickly/easily feed each morning on my way to work. Been doing this for a while and all my livestock r fine.

i do the same but its thawed in RO water and I use up what i thaw out in about 3-4days. dont seem to have any issues. mysis and cyclo

 

[scubadude]

For the cost of the food I wouldn’t risk my system by putting spoiled food in. I know they are sealed, i just won’t risk it

 

[fabutahoun]

That is a hard one, it really depends on the temperature of the food. If the food was over 45 degree for 4 hours, I agree with the above answers and it would be best to start with new food.

Same opinion here, many times I keep thawed fish food in the fridge for 5 days up to a week. but if stayed warmer for some time it is most likely spoiled. It is better to throw it away and get new food.

 

[ReefFrenzy]

Not sure about plankton but I thaw a weeks worth of LRS Reef Frenzy frozen food and store it in refrigerator in plastic container mixed w saltwater to quickly/easily feed each morning on my way to work. Been doing this for a while and all my livestock r fine.

Just wanted to touch base and say that storing LRS food thawed for more than 24 hours is not recommended by the manufacturer. By the 4-7th day the food is seriously starting to break down and deteriorate. Think of it this way.... We receive fresh shrimp, scallop, perch, clams and oysters every Monday. The fresh Carolina shrimp were harvested the previous Wed-Friday, packed on ice and then driven by truck from the coast to our doorstep by Monday morning. So on Monday-Thursday our crew peels the shrimp, processes all the other seafood ingredients, blends everything together, packages it and then freezes it. So for instance that fresh caught shrimp was taken out of the water on a Wednesday, transported to us, processed and then placed in the freezer on the following Wednesday. It has been "on ice" for a week. Now bear in mind this is in a best case scenario with a small batch food maker with tight controls on delivery and preparation.

If you purchase that food from your LFS and thaw it out for another week, by the end of that week the shrimp (and other ingredients) have now been in a dead, non-frozen state for 14 days. Part of the reason LRS is such a quality food is the short supply chain from ocean to consumer means the proteins and fatty acids are more intact and better for your fish. Leaving it thawed in the fridge is not the most optimal way to prepare the food, although you may not have suffered any ill effects to date. The public aquariums and aquaculture facilities who feed our foods thaw enough for one feeding and discard the unused food.

We really appreciate your support and I hope I am not coming across in a negative manner, it's just that I keep seeing more posts like this one popping up and I would hate for it to be come a common practice and someone's aquarium inhabitants suffer. Thanks and have a great day!