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Does fish food go off?


spedwards

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With the great price available for the big tub of NLS at the moment, I'm thinking about picking one up.

My concern is that I won't have the tank for a few more weeks, won't have fish for a few more after that and then they (the fish) aren't going to be that big for a while - ie. the food will be sitting around for some time.

Does fish food go off or lose nutritional value over time, or does it last pretty well so long as it's stored properly?

Cheer

Jon

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I keep the main tubs of food (any brand, including NLS) in the freezer & put small portions in little tupperware dishes above each tank.

Normally you can smell the food lose the fishy/prawny smell as it goes stale, frozen keeps it like that for months, possibly years?

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Hi Jon -

Welcome back (BTW). As others have said, fridge or freezer is the place to store it as it will go off less quickly. I'd fridge it myself.

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Welcome back (BTW)

Thanks mate, it's been a while and I'm very excited to be getting permission to setup a new tank bigsmile.gif

Hi spedwards,

Here is a link to what Pablo Tepoot, developer of NLS had to say about shelf life

http://forums.spectrumfishfood.com/viewtopic.php?t=8

I will gladly refund the money, if the food loses its potency within 1 year of your purchase.

Hope this helps smile.gif

Waruna

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Thing is with fish food, as with human food, you dont know if its lost its potency, fish will still eat it, but its almost impossible to tell if the vitamins are still active etc. You would have to be a biochemist and test the food in a lab to tell whether its still potent or not.

I guess the only thing we can do is store it properly, and hope that the batch of food you buy from whom ever is a fresh batch, and not a old batch that has been sitting on the shelf for the past 6 months!

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Freeze it anyway I say. I buy my food in 5kg lots and keep it frozen for up to 8-10 months. It comes out of the freezer fresh and my fish are doing well.

Ave

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More info.

"Pablo has conducted laboratory tests that show that after 2 years, under normal room temperature, exposed to air every 3 months, the shrinkage on Vitamins A, E, and C was surprisingly low, as little as 15%. During the manufacturing process he already takes into account a potential 35% vitamin loss, so New Life Spectrum is already way ahead of the game" (Niel Wegner, New Life Spectrum: Bringing New Life to your Fish)

Here is a link to the complete article.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/new_life_spectrum.php

Waruna smile.gif

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More info.

"Pablo has conducted laboratory tests that show that after 2 years, under normal room temperature, exposed to air every 3 months, the shrinkage on Vitamins A, E, and C was surprisingly low, as little as 15%. During the manufacturing process he already takes into account a potential 35% vitamin loss, so New Life Spectrum is already way ahead of the game" (Niel Wegner, New Life Spectrum: Bringing New Life to your Fish) 

Here is a link to the complete article.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/new_life_spectrum.php

Waruna smile.gif

Personally I would prefer to see independant lab results.

Has NLS been tested by another regulatory body?

I know the food well and have used it, and dont have an issue given the fish eat it, but I would like to know if there is more to it other than what the manufacturer says.

thanks

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More info.

"Pablo has conducted laboratory tests that show that after 2 years, under normal room temperature, exposed to air every 3 months, the shrinkage on Vitamins A, E, and C was surprisingly low, as little as 15%. During the manufacturing process he already takes into account a potential 35% vitamin loss, so New Life Spectrum is already way ahead of the game" (Niel Wegner, New Life Spectrum: Bringing New Life to your Fish) 

Here is a link to the complete article.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/new_life_spectrum.php

Waruna smile.gif

Personally I would prefer to see independant lab results.

Has NLS been tested by another regulatory body?

I know the food well and have used it, and dont have an issue given the fish eat it, but I would like to know if there is more to it other than what the manufacturer says.

thanks

Yes there is a lot more to it than what the manufacturer says. This is an article which was published on the PCS news letter.

DOES THE REVOLUTION CONTINUE?

In 2003 David Boruchowitz, editor of Tropical Fish Hobbyist wrote an article entitled "A Feeding Revolution?" (January 2003) in which he discussed the proposal put forward by Pablo Tepoot of New Life International, that exclusive feeding of New Life Spectrum Foods was all that was needed to fulfil the nutrient needs of ornamental fish. Rather than attempt to substitute the feeding habits of fish in the wild by feeding aquarium fish a variety of foods, New Life International researched the needs of ornamental fish and produced a product which contained them all. This claim, as Boruchowitz said, lead to obvious questions: "One food for all fish? One formulation for marine and fresh? Herbivore and carnivore? Grazer and predator? What about the need for variety?" As Pablo explained, New Life Spectrum's 'one-size-fits-all' approach uses no artificial ingredients. All the things fish eat in the wild are combined in the food product, with a strong emphasis placed on the avoidance of hormones as this could lead to serious problems. -Boruchowitz was able to view videos and read various reports supplied by Pablo Tepoot, and was very impressed with the objectivity of a feeding trial which involved Lamprologus lelupi. The trial included various fish food products and the report, whilst noting the superiority of New Life's fish food, especially with regard to the extent of colour enhancement, also included favourable comments concerning other formulations.

Difficult Fish

Species noted for their inability to survive in captivity, for example the Moorish idol (Zanclus spp.), flourished with the New Life product. As Boruchowitz noted, the fish were "fat!" and observed in videos as being "plump, sassy, and chowing down on . . . food like little piglets." Pablo's response to questions about difficult fish is: "If they eat it, they'll live." It is more than possible that this food product will lead to fish otherwise unable to be kept in captivity, actually becoming available to the average aquarist. With regard to the question of the need for variety, aquarium raised fish do not demand a varied diet but they do require a highly nutritional and highly digestible diet that contains a wide variety of ingredients. New Life Spectrum is a varied diet, consisting of a multitude of the highest quality of raw ingredients available.

Money-back Guarantee

Spectrum foods give a money-back guarantee – their slogan is: We do not claim to be the "Best". We simply guarantee "Results". This guarantee is applicable only if the fish are fed exclusively with New Life Spectrum Foods for 10 days and if you fail to notice enhancement in colour and vitality of your fish. So the risk is completely with Spectrum foods, not the aquarist. Boruchowitz commented on the testimonials supplied by Pablo Tepoot. They were from renowned personalities within the fish hobbyists organisations in America, and were known personally to Boruchowitz, who said: "[These] . . . are people I know and respect personally, and whose word alone makes me stop and consider carefully." He is cautious when he comments about the use of this food as an exclusive diet, but admitted that the videos he viewed of fish thriving within this regimen were amazing.

The Man Behind The Product

Neil Wegner, in an article entitled "Bringing New Life To your Fish" wrote about the man behind the New Life Spectrum brand of fish food. Pablo Tepoot, sees as his goal the creation of the best fish food on the market. He refuses to use cheap starches and fillers, instead deals with the highest quality raw ingredients, and it was only with continued experimentation that he finally came up with the process which has been proved so successful. Colour enhancement is of major importance to all aquarists and Pablo has made a special effort to ensure that his food is very high in the same natural colour enhancing foods found in the wild. New Life Spectrum foods will not colour up a fish if the fish is not capable of achieving colour naturally. Genetics aside, good coloured fish will maintain their appearance with this product or even take it to the next level and make it look spectacular. Pablo is so enthusiastic and passionate about his product that he offers an online forum where he personally handles any queries or discussions regarding nutritional or feeding issues concerning his particular products.

New Life Spectrum food is highly nutritious, highly digestible and highly concentrated, so that a little goes a very long way. This food is also suitable for saltwater fish, and Pablo's 2000-gallon tank holds 300 of these species thriving on his food which is fed to them exclusively. Some of these are specialized feeders in the wild and in the past it was near impossible to feed a commercially prepared food to these fish.

Finicky Fish

A product called Spectrumax – Finicky Fish Formula, is a premium appetite enhancing fish food which contains mussel as the main ingredient, a most expensive and rare ingredient, that many fussy fish seldom refuse.

Words of Praise

Ken Davis, well known in America in the fish hobbyist area – Advanced Hobbyist and Breeder of Rare Fish, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the American Cichlid Association, President of the Atlanta Area Aquarium Association and Member of the American Live Bearer Association made a statement about New Life Spectrum which is worth considering:

The food intensified the colour in the Victorian Cichlids like no other food I have ever used. It is readily accepted by all my fish, from guppies to frontosas. I encourage anyone who shows fish to try this food. All my show fish are now fed this twice a day.

Charles Rambo, President of the American Cichlid Association says, on the web site www.nlpublish.com:

In working with Lake Victorian cichlids, I have found that only the best foods will bring out the colours in fish. In the past I have fed frozen bloodworms, high quality flake food and have had very good results. . . . After feeding your food to my fish for three days I notice a dramatic improvement. The dull red fins of the males were now a bright tomato-red colour. My existing colonies showed brighter colours.

Further comments on this web site include:

Eric Cohen, Wholesale Dealer, Los Angeles USA:

I have never seen a food that so many different types of fish take to so quickly. Personifer and Scribble Angels were eating this food within three days after arrival. Our fish losses on the biggest and most expensive fish have really gone down. From Damsels to Parrotfish, they all attack it with aggression.

Barry L. Wisebram, Freshwater and Marine Fish Wholesaler, Atlanta Georgia USA:

The Spectrum food you sent me to sample has kept my fish in immaculate condition for over 8 months now. My Powder Blue Tang, Atlantic Queen Angel, French Angel and Harlequin Tusk are all as bright and fat as the day I took them home. They have been fed exclusively your food the entire time.

In the past 18 years I have been in the fish business, I have used almost every brand of fish food on the market - - Spectrum is by far the best I have found.

Jeff Magnus, Author and Hobbyist:

I have been using New Life Spectrum for nine months on my Uaru amphiacanthoides. They have grown dramatically from 6 inches to 11 inches and have produced beautiful and intense blue colouration. Finally, a natural growth and colour food that really works!

David Boruchowitz editor of Tropical Fish Hobbyist, invited his readers in January 2003 to contact him with any comment concerning New Life Spectrum foods. He has since indicated that he is still interested to hear from people using these products and you may email him on: editor@tfh.com

References: Boruchowitz, D.E. Tropical Fish Hobbyist "A Feeding Revolution?" pp.114-118 January 2003.

Wegner, N. "Bringing New Life To Your Fish" sponsored article, New Life International Inc. Jan 2005,

on web site: www.cichlid-forum.com

New Life International Inc. web site: www.nlpublish.com

Boruchowitz’s complete article A Feeding Revolution?

Can be read here: http://nlpublish.com/fishfood/promotions/tfh.cfm

Here is some more

“Congratulations to New Life Spectrum for creating a high quality fish food that all of my fish love! I have been keeping fish for over 15 years and have tried every single leading brand of food. New Life Spectrum is the only food that produced great results. I am no longer looking for ways to improve the health and color of my fish”.

Arjuna Ratnachandra - Owner www.addicted2fishforums.com & www.addicted2fish.com.au

“I have been using New Life Spectrum for over three years in our retail aquarium store. I have never seen a food that so many different types of fish take to so quickly. From small Tetras to large Powder Blue Tangs and Malawi Cichlids; this range of foods is the answer to all your fish’s dietary requirements. If you have not tried this food yet, do yourself and your fish a favor and try it now”.

Liam Southam

Manager Perth Aquarium and Display Center

“We feed a lot of NLS to the fish in our store - no food is more accepted by newly imported marine fish and other fussy eaters. I also exclusively feed NLS to all my personal fish - nothing touches the tank floor and they exhibit great colouration and health. There is no other food that I recommend more to my customers”.

Patrick Smith,

Manager, Vebas Aquariums & Water Gardens

To whom it may concern,

After much research I took the advice from several articles in various publications and tried the New Life Spectrum range of foods. I must admit I was skeptical that one food could keep my very diverse range of Malawi and Tanganyika Cichlid healthy and without the fuss of using several different foods to make up a complete diet for each species. I was amazed to see a huge difference in color of my breeding males within two weeks. Most interesting of all, even the fussiest of eaters, would launch at the food as soon as it hit the water, something I’ve never seen with my delicate Tanganyikan’s before. Another interesting benefit of the food I believe is my females are better conditioned and produce more fry since I have started using the food.

I would not hesitate on recommending anyone keeping Cichlid's to try this great food with the added benefit that New Life Spectrum is the only food that I know of that comes with a money back guarantee if you are not completely satisfied.

Keep up the great work New Life Spectrum as I am convinced that my fish have never looked brighter or healthier.

Stephen Green

Perth Cichlid Society President

We have now been feeding New Life Spectrum fish food on our display tanks exclusively for six months and the results speak for themselves. The colours and growth rates have been outstanding; so much that we now feed all the fish in our store your food. I would recommend Spectrum to anyone who wants naturally vibrant colours in their fish and great breeding results.

Steven Massey

Owner/operator, Exotic Tropical Fish

Wangara, W.A.

I have been keeping and breeding fish for more years than I care to remember.

Spectrum foods are excellent for conditioning and bringing out the natural colour of

Your fish. It is especially beneficial with fussy fish and aids in promoting

Successful breeding of difficult species. My Tropheus colonies breed constantly when feed with Spectrum.

I thoroughly recommend the Spectrum food range for the serious aquarist.

Peter Ponting

Proprietor

Annerley Aquarium

“Out of all the different foods available to customers, I feel that Spectrum has the highest impact on my fish in terms of health and colour. I recommend NLS to everyone who loves their fish”

Amy

Trans Aquariums, Canley Vale NSW

I have noted an improvement in disease resistance in fish fed with Spectrum foods, especially in the case of Thera A. I highly recommend all my clients feed mainly Thera A for 2 weeks prior and 6 weeks after the introduction of new fish to aquaria. Thera A is a fantastic preventative for parasitic infestations.

Michael Regnis,

Aquarium, fishpond & Aquaculture Consultant. NSW

Check out the User’s Reviews on Cichlid forum, 104 revieves and the overall rating is 9.41. Not bad huh? Please check the other brands while you are at it.

What's better than having 104 tests performed by fellow aquarists? wink2.gif

Also the food gets tested on 800-1000 40 gallon fry tanks that Pablo Tepoot, Developer of NLS owns himself.

Here's Pablos 2000g tank, NLS has been tested in his tank for over seven years exclusively.

http://forums.spectrumfishfood.com/viewtopic.php?t=66

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Thing is, no matter what people say, who has really compared one fish food to another, I mean how can you tell its 'better performing'. Thats just subjective opinions, and even if they are opinions of 'experts' in the industry, can they really tell the difference between feeding their fish with food A or food B. I really doubt that.

Its like the vitamin/supplement industry, how can one vitamin or supplement be better than another brand? Other than the manufacturers claims, theres not alot more to go on. Of course every manufacturer will boast about their food, otherwise they wouldnt sell much.

Alot of fish food i have seen, have very similar ingredients. There is variation, but not a whole lot, well not enough to make a big difference. Having fish food that is 40% protein vs 50% (if the label claims are correct) will not make a noticable difference to fish.

I will probably open up a huge can of worms here, but its just an opinion.

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So much for Pablos site.

It has been hacked, and unless you want a virus transmitted I wouldnt be visiting there.

HACKED BY ConnectioN & CouTioN

AYT l AY YILDIZ TEAM l

Consider this a warning, but anyone who clicks on waruna's link does so at there own peril.

(according to phpBB advice logs it has been hacked by one of the new php trojan scripts)

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Thing is, no matter what people say, who has really compared one fish food to another, I mean how can you tell its 'better performing'. Thats just subjective opinions, and even if they are opinions of 'experts' in the industry, can they really tell the difference between feeding their fish with food A or food B. I really doubt that.

Its like the vitamin/supplement industry, how can one vitamin or supplement be better than another brand? Other than the manufacturers claims, theres not alot more to go on. Of course every manufacturer will boast about their food, otherwise they wouldnt sell much.

Alot of fish food i have seen, have very similar ingredients. There is variation, but not a whole lot, well not enough to make a big difference. Having fish food that is 40% protein vs 50% (if the label claims are correct) will not make a noticable difference to fish.

I will probably open up a huge can of worms here, but its just an opinion.

This is one interesting thread I read not long ago, (Thanks to Neil)

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtop...days=0&postorde

Please tell me you still don't think all fish foods are the same, after reading this? smile.gif

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So much for Pablos site.

It has been hacked, and unless you want a virus transmitted I wouldnt be visiting there.

FYI - the site was hacked by some mental midget in Russia, ho-hum, no big deal, other than the ISP seems to be taking forever to resolve the issue. I visit every day, most days numerous times, and my computer is spanky clean.

There are no virus's (or any other nefarious computer nasties) being transmitted via his forum.

Personally I would prefer to see independant lab results.

Me too, know of any that are willing & able?

Has NLS been tested by another regulatory body?

Has any fish food?

At some point one needs to have faith in the manufacturer they are dealing with. In that regards, I have complete trust in Pablo Tepoot and his New Life Spectrum line of fish food. His background is unlike any other commercial fish food manufacturer on the market. Some of them have no more than a single aquarium, and have yet to breed a single fish. (no names mentioned)

Pablo has been importing, breeding, and selling fish for over 30 years now. At one time (approx 1970) he was one of the largest saltwater importers in the USA. He also raised & bred Discus back in the late 60's, early 70's. In approx the mid 70's Pablo & his wife settled in Homestead Florida & began specializing in African cichlids. Pablo currently maintains 120 ponds (approximately 30,000 gal. each), 1500 concrete vats (250gal.-500gal. each) and 1,000 40 gal. fry aquariums on 2 five acre farms. I seriously doubt that you'll find any other fish food manufacturer that has the 'hands on' experience with raising & breeding fish as Pablo Tepoot.

Although Pablo breeds & sells live fish as a business (a very successful one at that), is the author of 4 aquarium/fish books, and and approx 8 years ago branched out to create what is now a very successful line of fish food, IMO he is still a hobbyist at heart. Pablo lives & breathes fish 24/7, and will talk for endless hours on the subject. Pablo & I talk on the phone almost every other week, sometimes several times a week, and he always makes time to discuss anything related to fish in general, or fish nutrition. He doesn't need to go look something up in a book & get back to me, or have his manager or secretary call me back with the info I requested, he has always been able to answer anything I throw at him, immediately, with no hesitation. IMO this is what sets him apart from all of the other 'suits' that manufacturer fish food.

Due to the high costs of the raw ingredients used in NLS, Pablo will never have a profit margin like some of the larger manufacturers in this market (that load their foods with cheap grain fillers), but Pablo's goal was never to be the biggest, his goal was to simply be the best.

I explain in more detail in the link below what sets NLS apart from all other dry formula fish foods.

http://forums.spectrumfishfood.com/viewtopic.php?t=66

Try keeping fish such as the species shown in the link above thriving on any other dry fish food formula on the market ..... good luck with that.

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Thanks for the detailed response Waruna,

I've been convinced, so im gonna order some NLS.

EDIT: Spelling

Any time mate, Glad to help wink2.gif

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And advertisements help keep the forum up and running so you have something to chat on, sounds a bit like TV now doesn't it? shock.gif . Maybe if everyone that used the forum donated to it we wouldn't need "infomercials" or sponsors dntknw.gif

Regards

Gavin

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Gavin, there was no inference made as to what sponsors do, more the stagnant tone of some of the replies.

Yes, people are interested, but quit the copy/paste routine. Maybe I sense an inferiority complex? why? people use the food, so let the people speak about it, not what Pablo says or what he has done. Fish dont care about that, they just want good tucker and that is the bottom line.

Getting back to the subject, yes, fish food goes off, we would have to be silly to think it didnt

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so im gonna order some NLS.

EDIT: Spelling

Don't know about the cut and paste this is only my 3rd post dntknw.gif But your obviously passionate about your point of view and that's nice, but in the end I was mearly suggesting to a possible buyer where they might purchase some product. I'm sure you have bought from a store at some stage?

Regards

Gavin

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