Fish food in film containers

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I've been keeping my fish food in film containers for quite some time now. However, I recently discovered mites in my fish food.

The thing is, how did they managed to get in? From my fingers? Because I use my fingers to pinch out the food and sometimes my fingers are not totally dry... is that the culprit? I know moisture leads to mites, but how did the mites get in the film container in the first place?

[stormhawk]

Mite eggs are present in fish food and in many other food items we eat everyday. Sometimes they just appear out of nowhere, which is rather perplexing like you found out. If you have to, just microwave the food for a short while, say 2 mins or so, then let it cool down to room temperature before repacking in a clean film canister.

It is best to use a separate spoon or scoop to handle the food or you run the risk of fouling them with moist fingers.

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The dead mites are edible to fish? I wish I thought of microwaving instead of throwing the whole film container's contents away. Thanks for that!

[RonWill]

I wish I thought of microwaving instead of throwing the whole film container's contents away

Microwaving works only if there's ample moisture (like in meat) but since fishfood is essentially dry, I don't think the zapping will be effective.

I did thought of using CO2 to send 'em buggers to their next life!! Doesn't take a PHD to rig up a simple 'gassing' container...

[xXXXx13]

I'd experience the same thing with container from a certain brand. Used about half of it the mites mill appeared and I threw away. Of late, I collected some silica packs and throw one or two packages into the new bought food to keep it dry. So far so good.

[aquarius]

For me i usually buy the smallest pack of fish food available from whichever brand i'm buying cos once opened, it usually cannot be kept long due to our humid weather. I'll also take some of the food from the original pack and put it in another container for everyday opening and closing to feed fishes and i'll use a plastic tea/coffee spoon to scoop the food out for feedings. It may not be perfect in eliminating the problem of moldy or mites infested food but i know that every little step i take goes a little way to prolonging the lifespan of the food. BTW using film containers to keep your food is a very good idea cos they are very airtight.

oohh... also not forgetting looking at the expiry date before buying fish food.

[tetrakid]

That is a very good thing to do. If one cannot find film canisters (hardly anyone uses film cameras anymore), one can use those
small plastic containers which certain hawkers use for take-away chilly for 'orlor' (fried oyster), etc. Use two if need be.
The remaining fish food in the original big container should be placed clingwrapped tightly in the fridge to keep it airtight.

Take care to make sure when you take the big container out of the fridge it is allowed to reach room temperature with the shrinkwrap
on before opening it to transfer to the small container. If this is not dones, and it is opened while still cold, moisture condensation will
immediately occur, which will make the fish food moist and prone to fungus growth, fast deterioration, etc.

For me i usually buy the smallest pack of fish food available from whichever brand i'm buying cos once opened, it usually cannot be kept long due to our humid weather. I'll also take some of the food from the original pack and put it in another container for everyday opening and closing to feed fishes and i'll use a plastic tea/coffee spoon to scoop the food out for feedings. It may not be perfect in eliminating the problem of moldy or mites infested food but i know that every little step i take goes a little way to prolonging the lifespan of the food. BTW using film containers to keep your food is a very good idea cos they are very airtight.

oohh... also not forgetting looking at the expiry date before buying fish food.

[stormhawk]

Just FYI, you guys might want to read this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Foo..._Action_Levels

I first read this as an online article on a separate site, and did not believe for once that the FDA would allow these bugs or parts of them to be present in our food. Storage dust mites are common in pet food, if they are not stored properly.

Using silica gel packs as desiccants, like the ones found in BW food are pretty handy to have around. However, airtight containers must be kept clean at all times. To be truly "kiasu", especially with our climate, the only way to safely keep the food is to vacuum pack after each use, which will be tedious. Many other methods are just as tedious so the use of desiccants is probably the best option.

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Well I bought one of these and filled it up with fish food. I can sprinkle them easily like pepper now!

[stormhawk]

Sadly, it can't work for larger pellets. Where'd you get this anyway?

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I got it at the cheap we-got-everything shop in my neighbourhood. It was sold in a pack of 4, 2 of those bottles and 2 mister bottles. Makeup accessories I guess.

[cheetf]

Hahaha nobody asked you what a film container is yet?

Actually these things are really difficult to find nowadays. It's a great idea though.

[RonWill]

To be politically correct, it should be film canisters and that, I had in abundance when 35mm was the more popular, if not de facto medium. I will, however, have a good laugh if someone were to ask if these have input & output valves!

For those of us who prefer to buy fish food in larger commercial packs, try portioning out into smaller plastic bags and heat-seal it with a pack of desiccant. Store the excess in the fridge and 'bench-warm' overnight before breaking seal. Works a treat for me.

[stormhawk]

Ron, go raid your neighbourhood photo developer so I can get more canisters please.

[tetrakid]

Film canisters are rather hard to come by. I should think the only place one can find them would be at some neigbourhood photo processing shop, who should be obliging to give them away rather than discarding them. I have no doubt film is still being used by a restricted pocket of photographers today.

But there are other alternatives if one would bother to look around. Other than the 'orlor' chilli container and the salt sprinkler mentioned before, the stationery store or the hawkers' supplies store would be a good places to hunt for suitable containers. The possibilities are endless.

It is important to give our pets uncontaminated feed.

[aquarius]

I noticed some of you store your fish food in the fridge, so i'm wondering if you guys store them in the freezer or in the normal compartment of the fridge and also is there a difference in where you store it in the fridge since it is processed dried food unlike the normal food that we keep in our fridge? I'm currently thinking of storing my fish food in the fridge and taking it out daily to feed my fishes instead of my usual practise of having them in 2 different containers, 1 for daily feeding and the other for the main storage.