Posted on 10/01/2012 12:20:57 PM PDT by djf
As food prices continue to skyrocket, having a bulk supply of food is a great investment. But it also provides security and peace of mind against potential emergencies.
By now most people should be aware that grocery stores only have about 3 days of food in stock when crises strike. So if anything was to disrupt the food supply chain for an extended period of time, there would be untold chaos in most communities.
Any number of events could trigger mass disruption to a fragile food system, many of which are well documented and even predicted. Even NASA has warned its staff to prepare for potential disasters with survival foods and other precautions with their "Family Preparedness Program."
Prepping for disasters can seem overwhelming with so many aspects to be considered. However, for those just beginning to recognize how perilous these times are and are new to prepping, you can find many great survival foods at your local grocery store.
There are many fancy freeze-dried food companies offering light-weight storable meals. These are cost effective and great for new preppers. But if you don't have $1000 laying around to by a large supply, it may be better to pick up a few key items each week at the supermarket to build up your food bank gradually. And by buying base foods at the store, you'll ultimately save money.
It's best to keep your survival food list simple, and concentrate on storing foods with the highest amount of calories and the longest shelf life. This list is geared toward foods that will help you survive a crisis that lasts for extended periods of time.
Here are the ten best and cheapest survival rations available at any store:
Rice: Every time you go to the store you should buy one 10-lb bag of rice. You can find them for around $5 at most supermarkets. Rice will stay in good condition for 10 years or more if stored properly. It offers high carbohydrates which is especially important if you are exerting a lot of physical energy during a crisis.
Beans: Beans are known to be one of the best all-round survival foods. They're high in protein, and if sealed in food-grade buckets with a small amount of dried ice, they'll stay for up to ten years. Make sure to store them in a cool, dry, dark location. Buy a 4-5 lb bags of dried beans every time you go to the store. All dry beans are good to store; black beans, red beans, pinto beans, lentils, etc.
Cornmeal: All-purpose flours are good to store, but cornmeal may be the best overall. Cornmeal is packed with dense carbohydrates and contains oils that helps extend its shelf life. Additionally, if the power grid is down during a mega disaster, it is much easier to make good corn breads and tortillas with cornmeal in a simple skillet or solar oven, where refined flour will need yeast and oil to make decent bread or biscuits. Get a 5-lb bag of cornmeal ($10-$15) at each grocery visit. Seal and store the same way as beans (buckets, salt and dry ice), and it will safely keep 8 months to 2 years.
Lard: If you're a health-conscious reader, hydrogenated lard does not sound very appetizing, but in a survival situation you can't afford to be picky. Animal lard or vegetable shortening both offer much-needed calories during times of crisis, cooking oil for multiple uses, and it will keep longer than cooking oils because of the hydrogenation. Buy a 6-lb can ($12) and store in a cool, dry, and dark place and it will stay good for 2-3 years or longer.
Salt: Salt is one of the most useful survival food items. It's used for storing food, curing beef, and flavoring most meals. Salt will stay forever, so always buy extra when you're shopping.
Canned Fruit & Vegetables: These are another obvious survival food, but not as practical as many would think. They're heavy and somewhat costly for the calories they deliver. Additionally, acidic fruits and any cans with tomatoes will not keep as long as most people think. But most canned food is good for 5+ years. Buy green vegetables and fruits like peaches and pears for long-term storage, but more importantly, buy what you already eat in case you need to rotate them into your diet before they go bad.
Canned Meat: Canned meats like ham, tuna, and chicken are excellent to store. They typically will keep for 6-10 years and they're an excellent source of protein. However, if the grid is down for a long time (apocalyptic), hunting and fishing will likely provide most meats. Therefore, it may be sufficient to buy extra canned meats every other time you go shopping.
Sugar: Brown and white sugar will add much-needed flavor and calories to a survival diet and they'll keep for ten years or more if stored properly. Honey is also excellent as it will store forever. Make sure to buy extra every other time you go grocery shopping. You won't need too much, but they'll be well worth having if a crisis strikes.
Pasta: Pasta is a good light-weight storable food that is also a great source of carbohydrates. Pasta will not keep as long as rice, but it can stay for around 5 years in good conditions. Pasta is also very inexpensive and extra should be bought at each trip to the store. It will take up more space in your food bank that rice, beans and cornmeal, so plan your space the best you can.
Peanut Butter: Peanut butter is a terrific source of protein, fat, and calories. Plus, it's just a great treat to have on hand. Peanut butter can last up to five years in root cellar conditions. Stock up whenever there are good deals at your grocery store. You'll be happy you did if the SHTF.
If you consistently buy these items 3-4 times per month, you'll quickly acquire a year's supply of survival rations for your whole family.
How to store it?
A really basic way to store the rice, beans, cornmeal, sugar and pastas is to buy several 5-gallon seal-able paint buckets or food-grade buckets from your local hardware store. Put a cup or so of salt into a sandwich baggie (opened) at the bottom of the buckets. Then fill it with food stuffs and add a couple of ounces of dried ice (found at large grocery stores) which will remove the oxygen from the bucket after it's sealed. Finally, label each bucket with its contents and the date, and place it in your cellar.
Please let us know what other food items you think will be useful for new preppers....
Not the orange or the blue, many have the white, You just have to look for them.
thanks for the response. I’ll have to pick up some coconut oil.
However, I still would like to know if there are any detrimental effects to putting veg oil in the fridge. Does it help extend shelf life? inquiring minds want to know.
Thanks. Got the pressure cooker, but haven’t canned meat so far. I will look into that.
{:0)
Sorry I didn’t respond to that part.
The answer is yes. Any kind of oil will last much longer if kept in the fridge. For the maximum lifespan, DO NOT open a new bottle (all that would do is allow more oxygen in), and place in fridge or freezer.
I have a large bottle of ultra virgin Olive oil in my fridge I never opened. I suspect it would last up to five years unopened, especially since OO has alot of natural antioxidants in it.
“I get frustrated reading these articles, because I’m no where near prepared for such a situation and for one big reason: I live in Florida. It’s often very humid, water gets into everything over time, and storage of things like rice, beans, and pasta is often measured in months and not years.”
If you get professionally hermetically sealed cans or buckets, like from Walton Food, and keep them in your air conditioned house, they will be fine. You couldn’t store them in a garage, of course. I am in more southern Texas humidity and mine are in my house. They stay cool and dry.
I would say 2 or 3 of those brussels sprouts would make a meal.
They really are Green Giants!
Water table level?
A person can buy the silica crystals drying gel by the pound at Amazon.
Also, the “Hot Hands” hand warmers are basically the same as the industrial oxygen absorbers.
And usually much cheaper.
If anyone and their family eats paleo or primal style and also is storing things long term, what have you decided would be prudent to store? Please please ping me to your suggestions.
We are moving so I won’t attempt this til after the move.
Here’s what I was thinking of putting away.
MSG-free (hard to find but I think I’ve found one) grass fed beef jerky (I react terribly to MSG)
White rice (I hear Lindbergs rice is arsenic free)
Dried fruits
Peanut butter
Grass fed non isolate whey protein powder
Maybe almonds but they don’t store for long...
What else? What else is still paleo/primal but good for long storage?
We eat all those things above, so I would buy a lot, then use it and restock as I go.
Bloody impressive!
Bisquick doesn’t have a very long shelf life.
Probably because it contains oil.
Processed pork products. And it is fine. I want hunks of pork meat to simmer all night in some great northern beans.
> {:0)
Um wow!!! Amazing stash! I’m comIn’ to your place! If only to use your bathroom after “it” happens - you’ve got enough TP!! What is that on the bottom shelf, cans? Or bottles?
Same thing happened to me. the powder sticks to the inside of the mylar. we wiped them off waited til they dried. half took. gonna order from lds next time. rice n beans easiest to mylar seal.
Chocolate does not go bad, though if it gets too moist it can “bloom” with a white coating, which is not mold, and you can still eat it.
Cases of bottled water.
I haven’t been stock piling (I probably should) but as I live alone and live in a small garden apartment with very limited storage space - tiny kitchen, tiny and very few cabinets ; ( , I don’t have a lot of room to do so. But I do buy brown rice and whole grain pasta, just not more than I can use over a few weeks or a month. I have stocked up on those Uncle Ben’s brown and basmati pre-cooked rice in the vacuum packs when they are on sale and I have coupons - I don’t know what the long term shelf life is, but they are convenient to make a quick and healthy meal.
Plus evident that every couple of months, even though I’ve not seen not one single bug in my apartment since I’ve lived here, the management has had a pest control company come in for a “general” spray several times recently. About eight weeks ago they left roach baits in my kitchen cabinets and it freaked me out – I really didn’t like roach baits in my cabinets where my food and dishes are stored BTW! Then they came in about two weeks later to spray again. In fact I came home just tonight and there was yet another notice taped to my door that the pest control company was going to do another “general spray” in my apartment tomorrow – the same notice was posted on everyone’s door BTW. This leads me to think that, while I’ve never seen bugs (roaches) that there is a problem in my building. ; ( and it really pisses me off because I keep my apartment very clean and I keep all my food stuffs like flour, cereal and rice in plastic containers with tight fitting lids rather than in open bags or the boxes they came in.
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