"In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a
foolish man devours all he has."
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Multiple layers of food storage |
Whether it's a hurricane, tornado, earthquake or a man made
disaster, there isn't an area to live where you shouldn't prepare
to provide for yourself or your family in the case of a
disaster.
If you've read my website for any amount of time, you have probably noticed
me mentioning (in passing) food storage, stocked pantries, cooking in my
solar oven, dehydrating foods, reviewing freeze dried long term storage
products, etc.
Even though food storage is a passion of mine, it's not a topic I preach on;
but it is a way of life for us, and millions of people in America.
This used to be a way of life for almost everyone. It's only in the
past 30 years that people have started to rely on everyone but themselves in
case of emergencies; small or large and it's gotten especially bad in the
last 8 or 9 years!
The thing is, it's not the governments job to take care of you in
case of emergencies. It's your job to take care of you (and
your family). We all have personal responsibility. Sure, they may send in help eventually, and they will send out a
humanitarian effort, but even the government itself tells you to have an
emergency bag you can grab if you need to evacuate your home quickly and to
have at least 3 days food, water and medications in your home at all
times.
"All food, water, medications and other items you might need in the event
of an emergency of any type as it may take the federal government or other
personnel up to 3 days to get help to you."
Anything is better than nothing at all.
There is no one plan that will fit everyone! Every family has different dynamics. Likes and eats different foods. Has different medication needs, physical needs. Different skill sets and interests. Different focuses on what is important to them. Live in different areas of the country where you need to change your preps to accommodate thus. Different budgets. Different fears.
A 'basic' plan will include;
- Shelter and comfort
- Water
- Food
- Protection and safety
You should have a "get home bag" in your vehicle to help you get home
from work or traveling if something happens while you are on the
road.
A 72-hour bag ready to grab and go in your home in case of a fast
emergency evacuation.
A stocked pantry and cupboards with at least a bare minimum of 3 days
worth of foods for your family - preferably 10 days.
Special items for babies, toddlers, medically dependent family members
and the elderly.
Don't forget your pets! Got extra bags of food tucked away for
them?
Ways to store and/or purify water.
Ways to heat water and cook food.
Candles or other lighting.
Home security of some sort that you are comfortable with.
A communication plan for your family and a meeting place or emergency
plan in place.
Sanitary conditions may be effected depending on the situation; meaning -
toilets may not be usable.
Ways to clean your clothes if you
anticipate the power being out for any length of time.
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1 Timothy 5:8 New American Standard Bible
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This is the ground beef I purchased in the photo above (this one from
Amazon) although you can find Mountain House almost anywhere
camping/emergency/hiking food is sold. I have bought from various
places over the years! These are #10 cans and are best for 'longest
term' storage as they last longer than any other way of storing meats.
You can buy 'kits' or 'packs' of almost any kind of freeze dried food,
from meats to vegetables, fruits and even baking supplies. If you
compare pricing, you often save money buying a 4 or 6 or 12
pack. If you want to try it first to see how you like it, or
your budget only allows for a few items, buy them single until you can bulk
up a bit.
Freeze Dried Apple Slices - this is one of the most popular things I've seen people want for food storage. Great to snack on but you can make pies, jelly, applesauce, cinnamon apple breakfast rolls, apple brown sugar oatmeal, etc. from them.
There are plenty of breakfast items available - you don't just have to store plain oats! This Breakfast Skillet is a popular one. Also, hugely popular are the scrambled eggs with or without ham and sausage and peppers added. Lots of options out there. 
Did you know freeze dried cheese (of many varieties) was available? Like this mozzarella - which I like to stock for... pizza!
I love love love You can use this link to search for all the NutriStore meat, poultry, vegetables and fruit in the freeze dried section of Amazon.
Augason Farms is another brand I have personally bought.
And ReadyWise Foods - which I've bought from them back when they were called the Wise Food Company. They make a lot of the pouch style foods and bucket kits.
Mountain House of course! They've been around for years and years and are a leader in freeze dried foods.
Many of my dehydrated foods are from Hoosier Hill Farms... their cheese powders are fabulous.
I've bought a lot of Mother Earth Products in 2021 and 2022. They've really ramped up what they have available and it's all great quality. I personally have all their beans and legumes as well as dehydrated veggies from them.
OMeals are the ones I have for road trips, travel, camping, etc. as well as emergency. They are different from the ones listed above because Omeals are actual foods, cooked and ready to eat, but not freeze dried. They come in pouches with a heating element and they are self-heating with just a bit of water. I've literally made these in the car while on the road. Just cracked open the window to let the initial steam escape and then let them sit and heat for about 10 minutes. Hot pizza, spaghetti, tortellini, chili, hashbrowns and much, much more. They even have cookies and brownies!
Here is an example of what the Omeals look like - these are the pepperoni pizza kits!
Ok - I've given you enough ideas to get you started on your emergency food storage... have fun browsing and looking and planning on what you want/need to build food storage for your family!
