How long can breast milk stay in the freezer before its bad?

Question

days? weeks? months? I have it in breast milk storage bags...

Answer 1

I was told three months, but to be honest, I'd toss it after a month if I hadn't used it.

If I hadn't used it in a month, I wasn't going to need it. There was plenty here to replace it.

I was really leery of frozen milk, but that's just my own quirk. There's nothing wrong with it at all.

I think that it can only be stored in the fridge for 24 hours.

Answer 2

I am always amazed at the number of people on Y!A who seem to just pull answers out of the air or flat out make them up as they go along!

First off, don't bother to freeze it if you will use it within a week. It will keep for about a week in the fridge and freezing and thawing can damage some of the good properties of the milk, so if you don't NEED to freeze it, don't.

If you are storing it in a self-contained freezer section of your fridge, it will keep 3-6 months. If you are storing in a deep freeze, it will keep 6-12 mos. Make sure that you always store back in the middle of the freezer away from the door.

There are links at the bottom here that have charts that you can print out and put on your fridge to remind yourself about appropriate storage times.

Here are storage guidelines for you.....

Freshly expressed milk
Warm room 79°F / 25°C 4-6 hours
Room temperature 66-72°F / 19-22°C 10 hours
Insulated cooler / icepacks 60°F / 15°C 24 hours
Refrigerated Milk (Store at back, away from door)
Refrigerator (fresh milk) 32-39°F / 0-4°C 8 days
Refrigerator (thawed milk) 32-39°F / 0-4°C 24 hours
Frozen Milk (Do not refreeze! Store at back, away from door/sides)
Freezer compartment
inside refrigerator (older-style) Varies 2 weeks
Self-contained freezer unit
of a refrigerator/freezer Varies 3-6 months
Separate deep freeze 0°F / 19°C 6-12 months

Answer 3

NO Way...NOT 24 hrs.

The length of time that human milk can be safely stored in a freezer depends mainly on the type of freezer. Proper collection also is important, as is where you place containers of milk in the freezer. (To properly collect milk, follow manufacturer directions if using a breast pump. If expressing milk by hand and you are unsure about collection technique, write again.)
Assuming a mother properly collects her milk , which is easy to do, milk can be stored for about 3 weeks if using a refrigerator-freezer combination that does NOT have a separate door for the two compartments. When the freezer of a refrigerator-freezer combo does have separate doors for each compartment, human milk usually can be kept frozen for 3 to 6 months. (If ice cream in your freezer tends to be soft, 3 to 4 months may be the limit for frozen breast milk. It probably will last longer if ice cream and other foods tend to be thoroughly frozen when removed from the freezer.) Breast milk stored in a "deep" freezer often lasts 6 to 12 months.

Label containers of your milk with the date and place them toward the back of the freezer-away from the freezer door-so they won`t be exposed to warm air every time someone wants something from the freezer. Also avoid placing containers next to the walls if using a frost-free freezer. Stored milk can be expected to have a layered look, as it is not homogenized. Simply swirl the container gently to remix before someone gives the thawed milk to the baby.

Answer 4

Depends on your refrigerator!

In a one-door refrigerator (top section freezer) for up to 2 weeks; in a 2 door or side-by-side, 2-3 months; chest/deep freeze for up to 6 months. Make sure you use thawed milk within 24 hours.

Answer 5

My experience is a refrigerator /freezer about a month or less. A deep freeze up to 3 months.

Answer 6

3-4 months. make sure it stays in the back of the freezer.

Answer 7

4-6 months in a regular freezer, 6 months to a year in a DEEP freeze...

Answer 8

It can stay in there for 2 weeks

Answer 9

Three months if its frozen
three days in the fridge

Answer 10

Before it begins to lose nutritional highest value ... about 24 hours. (I knew someone who used "expired" refrigerated breast milk to make butter with. My husband then was overly fond of that woman's "jugs". I fed him some of her "butter" one evening on crackers, THEN told him about how it was made. Grossed him out and he never brought up another woman's "Jugs" again.)