Beginner's guide: How to Use Oxygen Absorbers

Oxygen absorbers are packages of iron powder that are used to absorb oxygen in packaging applications. The material is most commonly used in packaging of dry food. When you put an oxygen absorber in an airtight container, the oxygen in that container is adsorbed by the iron in the oxygen absorber.  This leaves only nitrogen in the air (which doesn’t affect your food). Here is a simple guide on how to use oxygen absorbers:

Why should You Use Oxygen Absorbers?

Here are a few reasons why you should use oxygen absorbers:

·         To increase shelf life

·         To prevent mold or bacteria growth in your food

·         To preserve vitamins such as A, C, and E that are depleted when exposed to oxygen

·         To prevent dehydrated or freeze-dried fruits from browning

·         To preserve flavor of edible products

·         To prevent the growth of fungus in Flour and Grain Articles, Fresh and pre-cooked Pasta and Noodles

What Types of Food can You Store with Oxygen Absorbers?

Oxygen absorbers can only be used on DRY foods with 10% moisture or less. If you package moist foods using an oxygen absorber, you run the risk of soiled foods. You should also avoid storing them with oily foods. Some foods contain a lot of moisture such as fresh produce, yogurt, cheese, raw meat, etc. But other foods aren’t quite so obvious, and you should avoid using oxygen absorbers with these seemingly foods:

·         Brown Rice

·         Jerky

·         Granola

·         Pearled Barley

·         Dried eggs

·         Milled grains (other than rolled oats)

·         Brown sugar

·         Any dehydrated fruit or vegetable that are not dry enough to snap when bent

·         Nuts

You should not use oxygen absorbers with leavening agents such as baking soda, baking powder, etc. as cans can explode. You should also not use oxygen absorbers with salt and sugar as they have a long shelf life and can turn very hard with and oxygen absorber.

How much Oxygen Absorber do You Need?

This is one of the most important questions when it comes to using oxygen absorbers. It is very hard to determine exactly how much oxygen absorbers you need. The amount needed varies depending on the container size, how much open space you leave at the top of a container, as well as the density of the food you are packaging.

While you don’t want to waste money using too many oxygen absorbers, it is better to use too many than too little. A little extra amount of oxygen absorber won’t affect your food. If you use a low amount of oxygen absorbers, there will still be oxygen packaged with your food which can cause issues.

A Step-by-Step Guide on How to use Oxygen Absorbers

Step 1: Make sure the containers you plan to use are clean and completely dry.

Step 2: Make sure your food is free of any contamination such as gravel or rocks.  Then add it to the containers you’ve decided to store it in, but do not put the lid on yet.

Step 3: Oxygen absorbers will begin to soak up oxygen immediately.  You will need to work quickly.  You should store any absorbers you aren’t currently using in a tightly sealed mason jar.

Step 4: Pull out one oxygen absorber and seal the rest in your mason jar.  Add the one oxygen absorber to your first container.

Step 5: Seal the container as soon as you add the oxygen absorber.

Step 6: Label Your Food.  Make sure you include what is in the container as well as the date you packaged it.

Step 7: Repeat steps 4-5 for each container.

Where can You Buy Oxygen Absorbers?

There are thousands of oxygen absorbers suppliers, but when it comes to finding a reliable supplier, you shouldn’t look beyond AgileNobel. AgileNobel is a well renowned for providing solutions to some of the country’s most diversified industries. The oxygen absorbers they provide is stringently monitored on varied quality parameters before supplying to the clients. In addition to oxygen absorbers, the company also provides humidity indicator cards, desiccants, oxygen absorbers, temperature and humidity data loggers, and many more.