Emergency Food Supplies

[brerrabbit]

I kinda looked over my survival situation this past week. I feel that I am in pretty good shape overall but I have no actual emergency foodstuffs. I feel when TSHTF I should not have to add wondering where my next meal is coming from to a growing list of other worries. I also have the capability of feeding myself WTSHTF, but eating rabbit and beans gets old pretty quick.

I'm getting ready to order a one year load of Mountain House emergency canned food. Supposedly the cans will keep for 20 to 30 years. Has anyone tried them before? How economical are they compared to other emergency foodstuffs? Can anyone suggest a better supplier that can supply a years loadout of food?

 

[Sam]

Brer,
I haven't tried that brand. I would caution you to try some before you buy,
I'm sure they offer a sampler that lets you try some for palatabulity.

Contact the local LDS ward and ask them for reccomendations. They have it down to a science.

Sam

 

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

What are "LDS wards"?

 

[dpesec]

LDS= Later Day Saints, AKA Mormons.
I think they tend to stock 7 years of food in their homes

 

[Texpatriate]

LDS Wards = Mormon (Later Day Saints) Churches. Not sure why they call them "wards".

 

[Texpatriate]

Doh! You beat me to it.

 

[dpesec]

Sorry Tex.
Oh, IIRC ward is the same as Parish in the Catholic church

 

[coylh]

"Properly storing whatever we have, using the methods that are best suited to our areas. The Church recommends that we store at least a year’s supply of food and clothing, and, where possible, fuel. A supply of water is also important. The food we store should be appropriate to our diets, beginning with the basics and adding what we are able to from there. (See Ensign, May 1976, pp. 116–18; November 1976, pp. 121–22.)"

-- http://library.lds.org/nxt/gateway....estions about home production and storage.htm

 

[Sam]

I see that you have deciphered it.

They really do have the food and SHTF stuff down to a science.
I would not ignore any suggestion they might make.

Sam

 

[Fred Fuller]

brerrabbit,

You might find that a good part of the country has made the same decision, and most of them went to Mountain House. Unless you find a distributor with the #10 cans in stock and order quickly, it may be a bit before you get your food, last i heard the company was out of stock on cans. Got this yesterday from someone I know who deals with them:

"- I just spoke with Mountain House about their backlog. They are right now expecting the #10 can products to be out of stock until early October when they hope to again be shipping."

I suggest you spend some time at http://athagan.members.atlantic.net/PFSFAQ/PFSFAQ-1.html . The lessons you learn will be well worth while. Taking a do-it-yourself approach will save you a ton of money in the long run and you will wind up with a food storage program tailored to your own likes. The LDS folks are often kind to us outsiders, they have sure been nice to me over the years.

IN SHORT: Start by increasing what you buy at the grocery store as far as staples, canned goods etc are concerned. Set up a pantry at home. Use it as your 'grocery store' and stay ahead of what you consume by keeping it stocked.

Freezedried equals expensive but quick to fix, super long shelf life, still requires water to prepare. Dehydrated costs less, still requires water to prepare PLUS prep time and a heat source. Canned goods store for a much shorter time, but often are 'ready to eat' as they sit and usually require no additional water to prepare. Smart people mix and match from the above categories to suit their diets, taste and needs.

NUMBER ONE THING TO REMEMBER: Store what you eat, eat what you store.

Good luck, and don't back off/slack off on this one. It is important and a better investment than money in the bank.

lpl/nc

 

[armoredman]

Dinty Moore! :d

 

[scott.cr]

This is a part of a Word doc I found online. It's not all-encompassing, but I thought it was a good start for the preparedness newbie. (If you want to see the whole thing, email me and I'll forward it.)
---
A disaster situation will be stressful enough without you having to worry about where your next meal is coming from. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) suggests having a three-day survival ration stored at home, but consider that it was five or more days before Katrina victims received relief.

When thinking long-term storage, most people immediately consider canned food. While this is not a bad idea, there are many other nonperishable foods that don't come in cans. Also, sustenance from canned beans and corn for three to five days isn't something anybody would look forward to. Some additional ideas on storable foods would be:

-Instant pancake mix that requires only water. Krusteaz and Aunt Jemima make this.

-Cream of Wheat type hot cereals or oatmeal. If you get a bottle of pancake syrup you can put it on your pancakes and in your Cream of Wheat.

-Any type of dry pasta.

-Pasta sauces in cans (not jars).

-Boxed soy milk, dry milk and dried eggs.

-Smoked meat products in heavy plastic bags.

-Instant dried potatoes.

-Cooking oil.

-Bisquick, instant coffee, non-dairy creamer, sugar and salt.

From an economic standpoint you would be best off purchasing these items from Costco; second in line is a 99-cent store. Grocery stores will have higher prices but sometimes you can find things on sale for a song. For a little money at Costco you can purchase a month's survival rations.

It is very important that you taste-test these things before putting them away for a rainy day. Last night we had dinner from the "survival kitchen" consisting of canned chili and biscuits made from nothing but Bisquick, powdered milk and water and fried in vegetable oil. It actually wasn't bad-tasting at all, and now we know this can be relied on as freshly-cooked food when nothing else is available. "Idahoan" brand instant potatoes come in various flavors and are actually quite tasty… but we would have never known unless we tried.

If you have more money than room to spare, consider military "Meals Ready to Eat," otherwise known as the MRE. An MRE is a square meal packed into a heavy plastic envelope and contains an entrée, dessert, powdered drink mix, crackers and an accessory pack with a spork, wet-nap, Tobasco sauce, jam or peanut butter for the crackers, matches, chewing gum and toilet paper. A case of 12 MREs will run about $45-$60 and the food in them is quite good. Better MREs will have a little self heater to heat your entrée. (Email me for the best places to get them if you're not sure; MRE quality varies from place to place.)

###

 

[karlsgunbunker]

http://beprepared.com/Default.asp?

Good source for mountain house foods.

Mre's
http://www.longlifefood.com/

Food Bars

http://www.quakekare.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=7

http://www.survivaly2k.com/index.htm

 

[BerettaNut92]

I wouldn't get such a big load. I'd break it up into smaller ones so they don't all expire at the same time. Rotate your chow.

 

[Tokugawa]

Don't forget some treats- your favorite brand of hot sauce, spices, etc. will go a long way toward makiing basic food palatable over the long run- my nightmare is running out of soy sauce......

 

[atlctyslkr]

I do alot of backpacking and sometimes use MRE"s. They're hard to get now because of the war but they can't be beat. 30 days worth of MRE's, water, and a few other staples and you should be set. Ramen noodles work well too as well as beef jerky and chocolate bars in airtight containers.

 

[Lonestar]

You can try out Mountain House stuff by buying the single serve Foil pack meals that are sold in camping equipment stores (Some Walmarts also carry them). While the #10 cans are awesome because they last 20+ years, I personal don't like them basically because its expensive and you need to have add boiling water to eat it. While I totally respect the Mormons and I thank the previous posters for giving insight, however most of us would be clueless on how to make food with wheat, sugar and lard. One thing I am going to borrow from the Mormons is planting more fruit and nut bearing plants around my yard and starting a small garden.

Personally I got a lot of canned stuff and I'm a big fan of Dinty Moore too. I figure it has both meat and veggies, my kids will eat it, and the gravy will cover any "foraged" stuff I add to it. Another thing I'm looking into is Ramen noodles. Their shelf life is only a year, but it is incredibly cheap to buy (25 cents or less a packet if you look around) and easy to stock up on. It is also light weight and does not necessarily need to be boiled (the noodles will soften if you keep it in a container of cold water for 30 minutes).

 

[hso]

however most of us would be clueless on how to make food with wheat, sugar and lard.

Boil water, add wheat, sugar and lard, remove from heat, let sit 2 hours. This takes a minimum of fuel expenditure.

For something more complicated, grind wheat, add to boiling water with sugar and lard, eat when cooked like oat meal.

Fruit and nut trees are a great idea on any property. Pecans do especially well being native to the U.S. and easilty shelled.

 

[bruss01]

I kinda looked over my survival situation this past week. I feel that I am in pretty good shape overall but I have no actual emergency foodstuffs.

Uh, dare I ask in what way your survival situaion is in pretty good shape if you are missing something as PRIMARY as food?

Got generators, fuel, water storage, emergency equip like chainsaws & bolt cutters, satellite phone or shortwave for comms, batteries, hand tools and raw construction materials... what? Or just guns, guns, guns and two metric tons of ammo?

I worry about folks who are up to their neck in firepower, who have less than a weeks worth of real survival necessities like food and water. Makes me wonder where they think they're going to get the necessities (and HOW they're going to get them) when they realize they can't eat lead & brass and drink powder. Gives me the shivers. Some folks have actually bragged about this strategy publicly, and I'm afraid there are a lot more that are thinking it privately. And of course, there are many many more who will turn to it not by design, but thru simple necessity caused by lack of planning and preparation for the obvious. * more shivers *

Glad you're thinking about this now. Actually, food (and water) should have been at the top of the list when thinking "survival". Hope you get stocked up soon.

 

[rustymaggot]

i ate a single size mountain house beef stew that was 20 years old about 6 months ago, just to see how it was. tasted about as good as a mre. i dont like either of em but if its a emergency ill eat em gladly.

i am a big fan of peanutbutter and crackers. a jar of pb has a 10 year shelf life, and doesnt need to be refrigerated after its open. i am also a big fan of ensure plus in the chocolate flavor. 350 calories per can and the chocolate ones taste really good. i like the ensure because its liquid. helps to keep you hydrated and doesnt use valuable water to prepare.

EDIT..... the ensure cans are only 8 oz. they are small and light to carry if need be. and the container is very strong, will survive a good fall intact. i just tossed one out my 3rd story window onto contrete to make sure i was giving good info, and it stayed intact.

 

[Sistema1927]

Food imay not be high up on your list, especially in a 72 hour situation, based upon the "Rule of 3's":

You will die in 3 seconds if you panic
You wil die in 3 minutes without air.
You may die in 3 hours without proper shelter from the elements.
You will die in 3 days without water.
You will die in 3 weeks without food.
You will wish that you died in 3 months without love/companionship.

A good thing to keep in mind when you prepare. If you are looking for TEOTWAWKI, then make sure to have buckets and buckets of food. If you expect that rescue is 3-5 days away, then food isn't as important, except for the "comfort" factor.

I was amazed at the people who were already resorting to filtering flood water through coffee filters 5-7 days after Katrina hit. In some cases they had plenty of food, but had given no thought to potable water.

 

[ilbob]

most people have a lot more food and water storage then they realize.

a typical hot water heater has 30 to 50 gallons of water already there. many people have bottled water. Five 5-gallon water cooler bottles is 25 gallons of stored water.

many households have 4 or 5 boxes of breakfast cereal, along with boxes of crackers, and cans of various kinds of food that could be eaten without requiring preparation. i would bet most homes have a week or more of food stored and don't even realize it.

dog food is perfectly safe for humans to eat. you may have to be really hungry to eat it, but fido is more than happy to share his grub with you.

i think sanitary facilities are one of the most overlooked issues, yet one of the easiest to deal with. A five gallon pail with lid, a few garbage bags, and a couple bags of kitty litter and you are all set.

 

[rustymaggot]

i hear ya on the water thing.

i go to alot of outdoor parties and its usually a thing where people are camping out overnight so they dont risk driving home drunk. some show up thinking they are prepared(case of beer, a 2 liter of soda and a blanket) most show up with nothing and drink up our booze, and a precious few bring extra stuff to help out others. i always bring a few extra gallons of dringking water, and some extra food. most of the time extra sleeping bags and other things too.

way i see it, most peole arent any more prepared for a disaster than they are for a party. an easy way look at your gear is to build up a party bag. plan it as if you were going to a kickin party out in the desert lasting a week. then cross most of the booze off your list cause you wont need it.

 

[Ferrari308]

i am a big fan of peanutbutter and crackers. a jar of pb has a 10 year shelf life, and doesnt need to be refrigerated after its open.

What brand of PB are you buying? I left a jar of PB out of the refrigerator for a month once, and the oil seperated from the soilds. It didn't look that good. The brand was Jiffy or one of the popular brands sold in grocery stores.

 

[Ferrari308]

i think sanitary facilities are one of the most overlooked issues, yet one of the easiest to deal with. A five gallon pail with lid, a few garbage bags, and a couple bags of kitty litter and you are all set.

You've peaked my interest. Exactly how would you make a toilet for people using kitty litter? How much of waste would a family of 4 make per week? Would it be better to dig a hole outdoors and use that?