We have just started to use the Marukyu SFA400 Krill powder, as it has been highly recommended by a number of people, and reports from a number of matches have mentioned it works well.
Maggots
First we started by using it on dead red maggots. Firstly you need clean maggots with no maize on them, or riddle them until the maggots are clean. Put them in to a sealable bag, add half a handful of krill powder for each pint of maggots. Remove all the air from the bag, give them a good shake, and leave them in the fridge for at least 2 hours. The maggots should have expanded, so now separate them out into bags of about 1 pint, remove all the air, seal and one final shake before putting them in the freezer. You will need to leave them for at least 48hrs, as I have found that some are still alive after 24hrs.
Remove them from the freezer the night before you are fishing, and put them in the fridge until the morning. As they start to thaw out, they will draw in the krill powder which give them the flavouring. Only take out what you will need for the day, as I have tried refreezing them, but when you come to use them next time, they turn black very quickly.
There will be a bit of krill powder that is not taken up as they thaw out, and this can either be used kept for adding to the next batch, or added to any groundbait you are using.
Testing the krilled maggots against live and un-krilled dead maggots, there seems to be a slightly better catch rate, but nothing spectacular so far.
Luncheon Meat
When targeting waters with carp, we often use luncheon meat which works quite well. So we tried dusting the krill powder on some 6mm cubes, and noticed a good improvement in the catch rate on the day. Not having used all the dusted meat, the rest was taken home and put in the freezer. The next time we were heading off to the Great Danes, I took the meat out of the freezer and left it in the fridge to thaw out.
The powder really seemed to have absorbed in to the meat a lot better after it had been frozen, and did not rub off as easily. Having fished the Great Danes regularly, we have found that the carp tend to feed on and off. Although conditions had improved slightly at the water, using the frozen meat seemed to keep them on the feed all day, and we had the best bag of carp so far ( plus 2 gudgeon) including an 11lb mirror.
Overall
Although quite expensive at around £7.99, it does seem to go a long way and certainly improved the catch rate when using the meat after freezing it. Sonubaits have a range of krill products out now, but they are not produced with pure krill, so not sure what the results would be like.
You can add the powder to number of other baits which may enhance your catch rate, so always worth having some with you.
Score = 8/10
