In reply to Post #1
Not moulds as such but I have looked at the results of mould and yeast activity. Bacteria secrete all manner of enzymes onto the substrate which in turn creates various simple sugars/amino acids/short chain fatty acids etc which as we know are very attractive to carp. I've gone down the route of keeping a bait damp and warm and with an open texture to the bait could allow the bacteria/yeast to attack below the surface of the bait creating (hopefully) a more digestible bait via pro biotic.

In reply to Post #2
Maybe but some moulds also release toxins. Which is why sensible people don't eat mouldy food. I know carp have a different digestive system to people, but I'd still be wary.

In reply to Post #1
Have a look at sae baits, b1 or b2 boilies

In reply to Post #3
penicillin is a mould

In reply to Post #3
some are also spore forming and pathogenic

In reply to Post #6
I had a red letter day thirty, thirty five years ago with a ritchworth bait, I think they were
Tropical mango ?
In February with manky hook baits
I've never found the answer , maybe it wasn't the bait
I've experimented with hook baits only, I really draw the line at bunging anything rotten into a lake
that could be eaten
I've been out in boats during the winter and the bottom is covered in rotten baits
So maybe being rotten isn't the answer
Using enzymes could be an avenue worth following up, I'm still trying 😂
From my experience the moulds develop when I've got it wrong

In reply to Post #7
red better sounds better than the enzyme debate

I think common sense tells us when something isn't right in terms of moulds etc, a nice speckled bait that's going sticky screams (hopefully) edible mould/yeasts whereas a nasty green/blue says bin it... I always coat my birdfoods in a sugar solution when frozen and allow to turn for 48hrs, seems best at this time and very instant, more so than the same bait as a standard air dried bait.. Imo certainly worth doing

In reply to Post #8
I wouldn't want to embarrass myself talking enzymes
My methods are so simple , i like to enjoy my fishing , best bait additive by far 👍🏻
Back to fungi and moulds , there probably is something in it

Yeast and moulds are BOTH fungi.

Agree that Penicillium is the most probable species.

In reply to Post #11
There are several things I have witnessed carp refusing over the years..........mouldy boilies is one of them!
Over preserved baits is another
And right now at linear fisheries, the floor is covered with uneaten sweetcorn! Think carefully

In reply to Post #10


i wonder if theres all this bait fuss within the koi food industry?

In reply to Post #14
The Worldwide aquafeed industry value is around 65 billion dollars, around 30 % of that figure is associated with carp , the highest percentage relative to species.

The use of enzymes/ amino acids is one of the main areas of interest

The research and development budgets are substantial

In reply to Post #15
The industry is looking to make feed more digestible and therefore more sustainable
and also more also more profitable
I think this is the way forward , digestability
Reading back to my earlier post , I should of added I used to prepare my hookbaits in
advance with nylon and they were the only hookbaits I had available
I was just in the right place at the right time

In the 80's I used to make boilies out of tinned kitekat, the same stuff we used as a paste in the 70's, and just added a binder and boiled it for a couple of minutes. It would stink disgusting and you would be almost vommiting with the stench, but it was a good bait.

But, I would find it was at its best a few days after making it when it would be covered in white fungussy mould growing on it.