Expired fish food still safe?

[Ghostly]

I just got a heck of a lot of fish food out of storage but most of it is expired ranging from late 2021 to 2022 my foods consist of flakes, pellets, dried bloodworms and I also have some frozen bloodworms although I don’t know if or when they expired but I have had them for about a year. I still have my good pellets and frozen food I feed now and it would be cheap enough to replace it so it’s not the end of the world but still a shame to wast.

 

[BigManAquatics]

Better safe than sorry. Heck, so many of thosecans of pellets, even feeding 5 bettas daily i couldn't get it used up before expiring in over a year!

 

[GlennO]

If the dry food containers have previously been opened I'd suggest buying fresh ones but otherwise if still sealed it should be ok if it only expired a year or so ago. I keep frozen food for about 6 months. I also keep my most of my bulk dry food in the freezer and just top up small containers as required so I'm not concerned about the expiry date.

 

[Noroomforshoe]

Why do you think it is expired?
Did you buy it around 2021 and 22? or did it expire then?
Does it say expires on ... or does it say best by ...?
Is it open or sealed?

 

[Ghostly]

Why do you think it is expired?
Did you buy it around 2021 and 22? or did it expire then?
Does it say expires on ... or does it say best by ...?
Is it open or sealed?

It’s a mix, most are opened though. And they all have the expiry dates on them which is what I am going off. I think I’ll just throw out the opened ones but my bettas really seem to enjoy the freeze dried bloodworms which are opened and expired about a year ago. Do you think they would still be safe?

 

[Noroomforshoe]

The food likly wont hurt the fish, as in give them food poisoning. But the older the food gets gets, the less nutritious it gets. And a lot of fish food is already only minimally nutritious due to poor ingrediants, and preparation.
so, even if the expired food is sealed, you will open this food at a point that is not the freshest, and over time it will decline even further.
Its your decision, but Now that im thinking about it, I will order some new foods for my fish

 

[RayClem]

How was the food stored? If the food was sealed and kept in a cool, dark, dry place, it should still be good well beyond the "best used by date". If it was kept in poor conditions, it might deteriorate even before that date.

 

[KingOscar]

I've often continued using out of date food without issue. It simply doesn't seem possible to use it up before expiration if you are feeding the proper amount. This is why I try to only buy the smallest size containers.

 

[DaniosForever]

I would not feed expired fish food

 

[ProudPapa]

I treat fish food like I treat people food. Most of the expiration dates are overly conservative, so if it smells okay it's probably okay.

 

[kansas]

Use by dates on most food intended for humans is a con to get you to buy more.

 

[Noroomforshoe]

I use to keep a container with a portion of the fish food in it. Maybe a months worth. And then keep the rest sealed up tight and in the dark. I think I will start doing that again but keep the sealed part in the freezer.

 

[kansas]

I use to keep a container with a portion of the fish food in it. Maybe a months worth. And then keep the rest sealed up tight and in the dark. I think I will start doing that again but keep the sealed part in the freezer.

I thot of doing that but wonder if condensation will make it a soggy mess when thawing.

 

[Noroomforshoe]

I was also wondering that. I was hoping someone would chime in and give there personal experience with freezing fish food.I just ordered new foods from Ultra Fresh, I will put my old stuff in the freezer but there is no way to know right away what will happen.

 

[GlennO]

I store my food in the freezer and decant into smaller containers kept under the fish tank. It freezes well and stays dry.

 

[SinisterKisses]

If it's been opened and has expired, then yes I would turf it.

I buy a lot of my foods in bulk - it's cheaper - and throw most of it into the freezer after opening the new bag to pull out a small portion in a separate container. Lasts wayyyyyy longer in the freezer.

 

[cjcummings]

Stale chips, popcorn, or cookies don't really taste all that great either. So I figure it's the same with fish food, dog food, cat food, etc.

 

[jaysurf7]

I mean it might not be as fresh as a new can, but it'll still do for a while more past the date if it was always closed tightly. If it was never opened it should still fresh past the date for some time, I've used fish food that was a few months past the date and it was fine, as long as there is no mold. Just like people's food like cereal I've eaten past the date that was never opened and it was fine, I think a lot of dates are more of a recommend time then an actual expired time, especially dry goods.

 

[RayClem]

Stale chips, popcorn, or cookies don't really taste all that great either. So I figure it's the same with fish food, dog food, cat food, etc.

Once opened, chips, crackers, popcorn, and cookies go stale pretty quickly due to exposure to moisture. While the texture might not be quite the same, it is not harmful to eat them. In a sealed package, they will last a long time. Remember that you will be immersing dry fish food in aquarium water, so any slight amount of moisture it might pick up from the air will be insignificant.

 

[KingOscar]

If I can eat out of date foods my fish can too!

 

[Noroomforshoe]

I am not concerned about the flavor of the fish food. My fish and many other peoples fish will chow down stale food, Poor quality food, and dirty food like kids on a birthday cake. But it seems like stale fish food also loses nutrition.

I am concerned about my pets, some of which are 15 years old, some of which were pretty expensive. Some of whom I really truly care for.

If they eat food with low nutrition it is a double loss. they lose out on those nutrients in the food obviously, but they also lose energy/nutrients while digesting the junk food.