Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How Do I Feed LRS Foods To My Aquarium?
A: There are three primary methods to feed our foods:
1. Thaw out an appropriate amount of food in a small amount of water for about 5-10 minutes. Using a fork or spoon you can agitate the food while in the cup should you desire to break the pieces up for smaller fish. After thawing you can simply pour the food into the aquarium or use a tool like a baster to spot feed your corals, fish or anemone. You do not need to strain the foods, but some hobbyists with few corals or smaller systems prefer to strain the food every 3rd feeding or so to minimize the amounts of micro sized coral foods added to their system.
2. Others like to simply drop a frozen chunk of food into the water and then let the fish nibble at the floating chunk of food. This method results in more food being ingested by the fish and less floating around the aquarium for the corals and inverts to consume. You can also use a clip to hold the food.
3. Some reefers enjoy holding the frozen food in their hands and "mushing" it up so they can hand feed their fish and make sure the food is consumed by everyone.
Q: Are There Any "Fillers" or Binding Gelatins in your foods?
A: The only blend which has an unflavored gelatin is our new Fertility Frenzy™ breeder food. For all other foods we use only the premium ingredients listed on the food description pages, and nothing else. When we process our seafood the natural proteins help "bind" the food together. When you thaw it out you can leave it together in a "clump" or agitate it with a fork or turkey baster to break it up for smaller fish. It is a "one size fits all food blend!" Some users take a sharp knife and chop it while frozen for smaller fish.
Q: Are there Phosphates in your foods?
A: You betcha! There are phosphates in EVERY aquarium food. The marine animals such as shrimp, fish, oysters, etc. have phosphorus in their tissue, especially their bones and skeletons. I am not a miracle worker and able to eliminate them, and nor would I want to. If a food product of any type has "Contains No Phosphates!" printed on the package it is an untrue, misleading statement. If the ingredient label has a once living animal listed as an ingredient, then it has phosphates! At LRS we strive to minimize any additional phosphates added to your tank by NOT using exoskeletons and hand filleting every fish to strip the bones out. We also rinse the heck out of all our seafood ingredients with several strainers and sieves. Sourcing fresh seafood BEFORE any preservatives are added is one BIG difference why LRS foods are superior to other food blends or DIY mixes available. Our seafood wholesaler has been in business for 30+ years at the Carolina coast and due to our six-figure annual purchasing power we are able to specify that NONE of the fresh shrimp, fish, scallops, etc have any Sodium Tri-Phosphate (STP) rinses added while on the boat or after. We know of no other fish food manufacturer who has this access to chemical free, fresh seafood.
We have numerous reports from hobbyists who state their nitrates and phosphate levels dropped after switching to our foods.
Many people do not realize that grocery store seafood or the frozen "Asian Seafood Mixes" used in DIY recipes are soaked in Sodium Tri-PHOSPHATE (STP) rinses as a preservative. STP is used to make the seafood retain water to appear plump and attractive in the display case.
Well you know what? The seafood used in our blends never gets coated with STP because we source shrimp, fish, oysters, scallops, clams, etc at the docks where my buyers secure us fresh, unmolested seafood! In the event we need to use a frozen product due to seasonal changes, it is always a bulk packed, non-processed seafood which was frozen by the same supplier and stored for us. We pre-order tens of thousands of pounds of seafood when the harvest season ends so we have a supply to hold us over. At LRS Foods we use the highest quality seafood you can find to make our blends superior!
Q: How Much Garlic Is In Your Foods?
A: **UPDATE >> Since 2016 NO GARLIC IS ADDED TO ANY LRS BLEND**
Great question. A large segment of the reef keeping community believes Allicin, the active ingredient in garlic, has anti-parasitic and immunity boosting qualities. While many reports of its effectiveness are anecdotal, a whole lot of hobbyists are convinced adding garlic cures "Ich." We are unable to find any studies which demonstrate garlic provides any benefit to eradicate cryptocaryon irritans. Garlic may entice a fish to find food due to the pungent aroma, but the truth is if the food ingredients are fresh enough you shouldn't have to add garlic. Surveying the available foods on the market today reveals that many have garlic listed on the label. We believe this is a case of "the tail wagging the dog" and most food makers likely add garlic due to believing hobbyists desire it in their foods. Our foods elicit a naturally strong feeding response so there is no need to add additional garlic or flavor enhancers.
Q: How Long Can I Keep Your Foods In My Freezer?
A: We are producing fresh batches of food on a daily basis, and strive to ship our foods to stores within 2 weeks of production. We operate on a "first in-first out" inventory system to avoid back orders, yet still deliver the freshest foods on the market to the stores. We have many customers who buy in bulk and store the food for 6-8 months with no ill effects. The "key" to the storage of frozen fish food is to keep it sealed in an additional zip-lock bag, and also if storing for more than a month, wrap the bundle in a brown grocery bag. You MUST avoid exposure to the constant freeze-thaw from opening the freezer daily which allows condensation to form. Even if the pack of food you are using gets a little "crystalized" after the third week, it is not harmful. I advise everyone to place the opened food pack in a second zip-lock bag as an added measure to keep it fresh. Many customers break up the food into proportioned squares and place it in tupperware containers to make daily feeding easier. DO NOT leave your food on the counter when taking it out to food as this lets condensation form.
Q: Will You Be Releasing LRS Foods In A Cube Package?
A: We get asked this question frequently and have investigated the options to purchase the equipment to produce "cubes." However, further discussions about this revealed our blends are not really suited to be "squished" into the industry standard 4x6" cube tray. In fact, a long time reefer and business owner told me "Larry, the day you grind your food up so fine that it can be placed into small cubes, will be the day it is not worth using anymore." Several foods such as mysis and bloodworms can be "cubed" much easier than our foods, which are textured, and have pieces of seaweed. At this time we have been recommending the end user simply create their own custom sized cubes by using a knife and a cutting board.
If you order 5 packs or 500 we have you covered!
Our foods have minimal water in the blend which permits them to be cut into cubes with little effort as shown. Water freezes into ice and you cannot slice ice! Many aquarium service companies purchase our foods to cut up for their clients in pre-portioned feeding squares. They realize this is a small chore since LRS foods keep their clients' aquariums so much cleaner!
Q: How Did You Decide On The Final Recipes for your blends?
A: When we began making food we searched the web for popular DIY recipes, compared studies on topics such as lipids, Head and Lateral Line Erosion (HLLE), fatty liver disease, phosphates, and even contacted public aquariums to learn everything we could about nutritional requirements for optimum saltwater husbandry. In 2012 we mailed out HUNDREDS of food samples to stores, biologists, reef clubs, Facebook fans, and public aquariums. Many nationally accredited aquaculture facilities and marine breeders have guided us over the past 4 years to create the products which are currently sold in stores under the LRS brand. All LRS Frenzy foods have been tested by accredited laboratories with the guaranteed analysis is printed on each label. LRS Foods is a fully insured pet food manufacturer.
Q: Why do LRS foods have an orange tint to them?
A: In 2014 we began to supplement our foods with a very expensive additive which is sourced from micro-algae. This 100% natural D. salina algae is standardized for 3% beta carotene and used in many aquarium foods, both in frozen and pellet forms. In addition to being a food for invertebrates and clams, it increases health, vibrance and immunity in aquarium fish. The whole aquarium benefits from this additive.
Q: How can I get your food if my local store does not carry it?
A: EASY!! Simply contact your favorite store and introduce our foods to them by forwarding our information, such as the link to our website. If you have no local source for LRS and order food directly from us I can include product literature for you to pass on to the local store. Typically, when a customer asks a store to stock a product they will gladly do so. Our dealer network continues to grow each week as more and more consumers spread the word about our foods on social media. You can contact us by clicking the link below so we can help you get LRS foods in your area.
844-LRS-FOOD
Advance, NC 27006, USA
LRS Foods is a HAZMAT certified shipper with Fed-Ex and DHL.
It doesn't matter if we are shipping 10 packs to Charlotte or 100 packs overseas to Japan, we ALWAYS insulate the food from impact damage during transit. We then use ample amounts of dry ice over a barrier to prevent contact freezer burn.
We are frozen food shipping specialists!!