Milk Storage

Save your liquid gold.
Breast milk is often referred to as "liquid gold," and storing it safely is a key and most important part of nursing. You may have discovered many different guidelines on how long and where you can store expressed breastmilk (EBM). When storing breast milk at home after pumping, it's generally recommended that you pour the milk into a clean BPA-free plastic storage container or polyethylene bottle liner, or simply keep it in the pump bottle. Label the container with the date that the milk was pumped.

Safely Preparing And Storing Expressed Breast Milk
    *   Be sure to wash your hands before expressing or handling breast milk.
    *   When collecting milk, be sure to store it in clean containers, such as screw cap bottles, hard plastic cups with tight caps, or heavy-duty bags that fit directly into nursery bottles. Avoid using ordinary plastic storage bags or formula bottle bags, as these could easily leak or spill.
    *   If delivering breast milk to a child care provider, clearly label the container with the child’s name and date.
    *   Clearly label the milk with the date it was expressed to facilitate using the oldest milk first.
    *   Do not add fresh milk to already frozen milk within a storage container. It is best not to mix the two.
    *   Do not save milk from a used bottle for use at another feeding.

Safely Thawing Breast Milk
    *   As time permits, thaw frozen breast milk by transferring it to the refrigerator for thawing or by swirling it in a bowl of warm water.
    *   Avoid using a microwave oven to thaw or heat bottles of breast milk
      o     Microwave ovens do not heat liquids evenly. Uneven heating could easily scald a baby or damage the milk
      o     Bottles may explode if left in the microwave too long.
      o     Excess heat can destroy the nutrient quality of the expressed milk.
    *   Do not re-freeze breast milk once it has been thawed.

You can store milk:
    *   At room temperature - not warmer than 25 degrees C - for up to four hours
    *   In a coldbox with refreezable ice packs for up to 24 hours
    *   In a refrigerator with a temperature of 4 degrees C or colder for three to five days
    *   In an older model single-door refrigerator with freezer compartment inside for two weeks.
    *   In a fridge freezer with a separate door for each, for three months
    *   In a deep freezer with a temperature of -20°C, that doesn't have a defrost cycle, for six to 12 months.

You can store milk in a freezer for various lengths of time depending on the kind you have. Always keep the milk in the back of the freezer away from the door, because items stored towards the front are more susceptible to changing temperatures when you open the freezer.