How can you best store and heat up the colostrum?
The first colostrum is the very best colostrum. We therefore strongly advise storing the first colostrum and feeding it to the calf on a second and perhaps even a third occasion. But then the colostrum must be carefully stored. “Bacterial growth in warm colostrum is tremendous,” explained Erwin. If colostrum is left standing for two hours, the number of bacteria it contains will have increased by a factor of 32.” Make sure you always have a refrigerator where the colostrum can be stored. Colostrum can best be reheated according to the ‘au bain marie’ method, in a warm ‘water bath’ at at least 60 degrees, in which the colostrum heats up slowly. “Place the bucket of colostrum in a bucket of warm water,” suggested Erwin. “Or use a zinc bucket,” advised Johan. “They heat up more quickly. Plastic is an insulator.” The water must not be too hot, and using a microwave oven to defrost frozen colostrum is absolutely out of the question. “That destroys the antibodies.” Colostrum can easily be stored frozen. It is a good idea to slowly warm frozen colostrum during the night. “So you can quickly feed some colostrum to a new-born calf, without having to milk the cow immediately,” suggested Erwin.