Process
How to I know I will be getting my own breast milk back?
We operate in a “closed-loop system” where mothers receive their own breast milk back after freeze-drying; we do not buy, sell or distribute breast milk. We provide the service by appointment only, and our process is designed to handle one mother’s breast milk at a time.
What if i live in Austria, Croatia or Italy?
We are happy to help international moms and offer them our service. However, at this time, we are unable to personally pick your milk. The good news is that you can make the trip yourself and bring us your frozen breast milk. Once it is turned into powder, we will send your powdered milk back to you via a reliable courier service.
Why is freeze-drying my milk better than freezer storage?
Freeze-drying preserves the breast milk much longer. It is also particularly useful when freezer storage is impractical or impossible due to lack of freezer space, travel, moving or to protect against power outages. Given the effort and time a mother puts into storing milk for later use, many want to use the milk that they have worked so hard to save.
How does your freeze-drying process affect the nutrients in the breast milk?
Freeze-drying is a very gentle process, and results in retention of the nutrients in breast milk. Various human milk donor banks world-wide are implementing this process as an improved method of storage for donated breast milk. We can send you list of researches how the freeze-drying process affects various components of breast milk.
Is freeze-dried breast milk safe? Do you add anything to it?
Yes, freeze-drying is used by human milk banks around the world to preserve and store breast milk. We organize the cold chain by using insulated coolers to transport the milk to our facility. Freeze-drying is a delicate process in which absolutely NO chemicals, additives, or preservatives are added to your milk. There are many studies that prove this is the most appropriate process to preserve your breast milk and maintain its nutrients.
Is my breast milk mixed with other mom’s breast milk?
No. The service is personalized. Your breast milk is never mixed with another mother’s breast milk. We process and freeze-dry each order individually so you can rest assured that you will only receive your own milk.
Can you freeze-dry colostrum/transitional milk?
Yes, our process works the same for colostrum and transitional milk.
Lipase
What if my infant refuse to consume frozen milk?
Freeze-drying can help in many situations where milk tastes different after freezer storage. However, it is hard to predict with certainty whether the process will make the milk palatable again, since it depends on how much lipase activity has already occurred in the milk, and your infant's taste preference also plays a role! We recommend freeze- drying breast milk that has not been stored in the freezer for more than three months.
Does the freeze-drying process stop lipase activity?
Yes. The lipase enzyme is made inactive by the freeze-drying process. Mothers who are concerned about changes in the flavour or taste of their milk can stop further lipase activity by freeze-drying, however, reversing the degradation that has already occurred is impossible. We recommend freeze-drying breast milk that has not been stored in the freezer for more than three months.
Milk rehydration
How much water do I add to the breast milk powder to reconstitute it?
Every mother is given a different water ratio for her freeze-dried breast milk. Therefore, each mother receives individual instructions on how much water to add to the breast milk powder. This way, the consistency of reconstituted breast milk will be identical to freshly expressed breast milk.
If i provide 1l of frozen breast milk, can i reconstitute the powder back into 1l of milk after freeze-drying?
Yes, when we freeze-dry 1 litre of your breast milk, you’ll be able to reconstitute it back into 1 litre of breast milk. Because your breast milk is kept frozen the entire time, losses are extremely minimal. Potential losses may occur when opening bags – if there is residual milk on the sides of the bags, in the corners or in the zip seal when the bags are overfilled.
My breast milk bags contain different amounts of breast milk and some are more watery/fattier – will I receive different water ratios for each bag?
Breast milk varies from day to day (and hour to hour), so you may find that expressed breast milk has a different colour, volume, and consistency – it is constantly changing. For this reason, convenience and nutritional value are critical to our customers. We combine all of your breast milk before freeze-drying, so your baby receives a broad spectrum of nutrients from your entire breastfeeding experience in each and every bag. It’s like a powerhouse of nutrients in each bag! You only get the ONE water ratio for each bag, so you can decide how much or little you need for your baby.
How much breast milk do i need to send in to make an order?
We believe every drop is precious and have no minimum requirement for your first order. However, they are 3 packages we are offering to be easier for you to choose: up to 1,44 liter of breastmilk, up to 4,32 liter of breastmilk, up to 8,64 liter of breastmilk.
Usage of powder milk
How do I use my freeze-dried breast milk powder?
Your freeze-dried breast milk powder is sealed in individual mylar bags, that you can easily take with to a caretaker. If you want to use the powder to prepare a bottle, simply mix it with warm purified water and it will turn into milk. Along with the packaged milk powder, you will receive illustrated instructions with your personal water ratio.