Why is it important to store bokashi bran correctly?
Bokashi bran contains billions of living microbes. It is this life that will ferment and break down your food. Therefore it is important to keep these microbes alive and healthy until you need to put them to work. If your bokashi bran is stored incorrectly then the microbes may be killed or weakened and your bokashi bin is more likely to go bad.
How to store bokashi bran
Our bokashi bran is thoroughly dried before we ship it. The drying process puts the bokashi microbes into a dormant state so that the bran can be stored for longer periods of time. Here are a few tips to correctly store your bokashi bran:
- Keep the bran in an airtight container. The re-sealable bags that we use to ship the bokashi bran are ideal. If you do need to change the container make sure not to use any biodegradable containers such as paper or waxed paper bags.
- Keep the bokashi bran out of direct sunlight. The ultraviolet light will destroy the microbes.
- Store the bokashi bran within a few degrees of room temperature. Extreme heat or cold may kill the bokashi microbes.
- Keep the bokashi bran dry.
If you follow the above steps you will be able to store our bokashi bran for at least 1-2 years.
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Hi
I’ve had a 5kg bag of bokashi bran stored inside a plastic container for a few months.
I opened it yesterday and the bran felt and looked dry compared to what I use.
Do you think it will still be effective.
Regards Kev
Thanks for the question. Bokashi bran should be thoroughly dried when stored. When dried, it can be stored up to 18 months at room temperature and out of direct sunlight. If there is no blue/green mold, and the bran has been stored correctly then it should still be effective. The best way to know, is to try it and keep an eye on your bokashi’ing food waste.
Happy composting 🙂
[…] viable. Bokashi bran needs to be fresh (less than 18 months old) and needs to be stored correctly (How to store bokashi bran). Bran that is old or stored improperly will have far fewer active bokashi microbes and be […]
My bokashi bran, stored in its original bag, tied tightly, has gone mouldy (full of spores & a grey green colour). It’s been stored in a dry garage, which has become very hot in our recent heatwave. Is this likely to have been the cause for it going mouldy? I’m keen not for this to happen again, so any advice you can give on storage is much appreciated. Thanks.
Thanks for the question. It sounds like some moisture has got in to your bran; maybe it was not fully dried. Unfortunately, if it is full of green mold, then this bokashi bran has gone bad. What brand of bran were you using?
I just learned (or relearned perhaps) that I should store the bokashi bran at or near room temperature. With the heat dome this past summer it is entirely possible my stored bran is now “dead”. How can I know if the microbes have been killed?
Yes, there is a risk that the high temperatures will have damaged your bran. The best way to test it is to use it in your bokashi bucket. You will quickly know if the microbes are dead as the food waste will develop blue/green mold and the bucket will start to smell. It is possible that some of the microbes have survived and the bran is still viable (just to a lesser degree than fresh bran). If this is the case, just be extra generous when adding the bran to your food waste.
Happy composting 🙂