The Controlled Atmosphere Packaging Experts Call us at 800-763-1969
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To place an Order click here Do you have questions?. Many do, It is so important to us that you do this right. So here is a portion what your friends are asking.  How
do the MIL-B-131 barrier bags seal? Do you use the oxygen absorber packets with the bags
the same as you would inside a Mylar bag in a bucket?
A .MIL-B-131 barrier bags are normally sealed by a heat/impulse sealer. However these bags may also be sealed with a common household iron on medium heat. (I normally tell people to use the outside edge of the iron and make several different passes next to one another to be certain it seals well) Because the interior layer of the bag is low density PE, the heat melts the two layers together forming an airtight seal.Based on the O2 and moisture transmission rates of the MIL-B-131 bags, the O2 absorbers may used the same as if you were using a Mylar and a external airtight container.
A. YES... in most cases this is a great way to store your food in a limited area and save a bunch of money as well. MIL-B-131 Barrier bags are an exceptional oxygen and moisture barrier. When would you not want these bags to be your primary source of containment?. If you have a rodent control problem. None of the items available can prevent rodents. Steel pails are your only real chance if this is a problem. But if its not an issue... save yourself the cost of the pails and put it into food. Good luck. May I use oxygen absorbers and desiccants in the same food container? A. As set forth by the two major manufacturers of oxygen absorbers, YES,
but like everything else we do there is a technique that must be followed to insure proper
results. This is very simple and will be very simple for all of us to understand. Step 1:
Place the desiccant into the bottom of the empty container. Step 2: Place the food
into the container directly over the desiccant. Step 3: Place the oxygen absorber on
top of the food. Step 4: seal the container normally.
A. Oxygen absorbers and Desiccants come in an atmosphere controlled Multi-pouch, you should remove the Oxygen absorber pouch and or Desiccant pouch from the Multi-pouch and place them directly into the food container, no further unpacking is necessary or recommended.
Q. What is a desiccant and why is it important? A.Their are many different types of desiccant. The most common are made of activated clay, silica gel, and molecular sieve. Most simply stated a "packaged desiccant" adsorbs water molecules by pulling the water into it's molecular structure and retaining it away from the atmosphere you are trying to protect. You see them in your pill bottles, fine electronics, and so on, ensuring that the product inside the package will be protected against moisture damage. In dry food packaging, desiccant is extremely important because it helps to maintain a very dry environment within a package, usually below 8-10% relative humidity. The dry environment reduces the risk of spoilage due to mold etc. Q.Why should I use an oxygen absorber in my long term food packaging system. A. The presence of oxygen in an atmosphere sustains life, life to microorganisms, insects and even their eggs. Remove the oxygen from an atmosphere and remove the potential for life. It really is that overly simplistic. (of course there is a nice long scientific explanation, but I have as much desire to type it as you have to read it). Q. Are desiccants and oxygen absorbers difficult to use? A. Not at all. Their is no equipment to buy or tanks to fill, simply remove the desiccant and oxygen absorber packs from their protective pouches and place them into the food container. Q. Why oxygen absorber packs instead of vacuum packing or nitrogen flushing? A. See our devilishly clever chart (I'm getting lazy) about half way down the page is an explanation outlining the the benefits and results of each of the above methods. Oxygen absorbers are BY FAR the easiest, safest, and overall least expensive way to reduce the oxygen content of an atmosphere. Q. What type of containers should I use? A. NEW... first and foremost. So many of you are telling me that you got them from the bakery, or restaurant, or neighbor. This is your food... please get new containers. Besides the obvious reasons we don't use old pails to store our food, here are some not so obvious ones. Possible cross contamination of a number unfriendly food borne illnesses finding their way into your packaged food. Also, used containers rarely seal as well as they did the first time, and you want the best possible seal. As for the style, a HDPE 5-6 gallon pail with a gasketed good sealing lid is one of my favorites (and extremely durable). Another excellent choice would be a 1 gallon steel pails (new paint can type), there are very few materials that can control the flow of ambient atmosphere into a controlled atmosphere as well as steel can. We have also had many of you asking questions about storing meats properly. This gets a little more complicated and we will need to know as much of the requested information as possible. E-mail us with the info and we will work with you. 1) Size of the package 3 dimensions (even if it is a bag give an approximate dimension based on the dimensions of the interior product. 2) The type of material you are packaging it in (be very specific) Spec sheet or trade name would help. 3) The weight of the product. 4) Moisture content % if possible. 5) Is there free fats, oils, or water. 6) Are you gas flushing now ?, If so, what type of gas are you using ?. 7) Average oxygen concentration in the package (if you know that's great if not don't sweat it). Q. May I use Poly bags or zip lock bags to store my food? A. Poly bags or ziplock bags are fine when you a trying to keep the food segmented for portion control (within a barrier container). However they have very poor barrier qualities, and will not stop oxygen or moisture from freely entering your food. Q.I want to store moist items (bake goods, bread etc...) should I store differently? A. Yes, storing moist foods is a bit different than dry goods. First, you do not use a desiccant in conjunction with your long term shelf life preservation items. Second, you will need to use a different oxygen absorber than your normal D or ZPT series, you will need to use a B or FX series oxygen absorber. The main difference in the oxygen absorbers is the way they are activated. B or FX series oxygen absorbers are activated by 70 or more relative humidity only, so they are useless in dry food storage yet just what you need for bake goods with H2O activity of .70 or above. (these are also a bit easier to use than standard oxygen absorbers because they will not begin to work out of the package until they are in contact with this higher humidity). Third, we recommend you package moist stored food in separate barrier bags with their own individual atmosphere control items (oxygen absorbers). Due to the nature of these moist foods and the way they are stored, the could adhere to one another making almost impossible to pull apart and thus wasting some of them. Q. What does the date and outer information (printed in red) on the silver MIL-B-131 bag mean, is it the date my product was produced?? A. No, all of the information printed (in red) on the exterior of the silver MIL-B-131 bags is related to the bag MIL-Spec and the government requirements related to it. The date printed with this information has no relation to the product within, only the original production information of the film that makes the bag. What is your question? (PLEASE REMEMBER TO INCLUDE YOUR or e-mail us with your questions at Foodsave@aol.com
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HOT!!
Question...May I use your MIL-B-131 bags is place of pails?
