Food for Bug-out (storage time)

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rufus1

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So I go food shopping today and start buying canned goods for a bug-out kit that I can just throw in the RV and leave, then I start to think what kind of foods for long time storage and how long can they be stored and at what temps?
Anyone have some good suggestions on type of non-refrigerated food(besides MRE's) to be boxed up and ready to go at a moments notice?
How long will store bought bottled water last?
How long after the expiration dates on canned goods expire is the food still stable?
How long will dryed goods(pasta, rice, noodle soup,ect...) last if stored properly and what is the proper storage procedure for all of the above?
How about boxed milk?
I thought of vaccume sealing the dryed goods to prevent mice and insect damage and then boxing and storing in my conditioned gun/reloading room, but want to hear some ideas before I commit to sealed storage.
 
Good question

Last week I decided to do the same thing. MRE's are expensive. I went to the grocery store and literally spent an hour going over just about everything of the shelves. Not only did I find things I never knew existed here is what I decided:

Nothing that needed to be opened with a can opener
Expiration date of at least three years

Here's what I found:

Various tuna fish foil packages
Tuna fish cans
Canned fruit
Spam
Danish Ham
Canned chicken
Various kinds of canned soup

I bought about $25 worth of stuff, most of it is quite compact. Now that I've got the basics, every time I go to the store I pick up one or two additional items.

The problems I found with anything packed in paper or cardboard like soup and stuff is the expiration date is one year.

Anyway, I think I done good :)
 
"Nothing that needed to be opened with a can opener"

I've never seen a pull top tuna can :D

I figure I wil pick up a little each week also. I spent about $70 today and by cleaning canned stuff out of the cabinets and using the newly bought stuff, I filled a 30x30x14 box full, it weighs about 30lbs. :what:
 
For long term shelf life and economy, think beans and rice. Of course, the original packaging needs to be changed.

A little oil, some salt and pepper, and a little miscellaneous meat, and you can have a tasty and nutritious meal.

Other items add to variety, which is important. Still, beans and rice have been the traditional food staples for long term storage for centuries.

The price is right, too. :p
 
Back when I needed many more supplies to survive a week than are needed now, I set up a couple of shelves with lazy susans. I stocked these with staples we used in day-to-day cooking. I would use from these during the week and then refil the empty spots after shopping. The lazy susan would then be rotated 90 degrees and I would start using out of the next 1/4 round. This worked quite well to keep stocks fresh and we were assured of a diet to which our digestive systems were accustomed.

The water jugs were likewise rotated, with each drum emptied, sanitized and refilled on a regular rotation.

The long-term storage of rice, beans, pasta and canned meats were emptied out each Thanksgiving and restocked. The food moved out went to various shelters and kitchens.

This worked for us (family of 4 to a dozen, depending on the generousity of the kids to their friends.)

Pops
 
I have about 4+ months of food for my wife and I and our daughter, and about 1 month of water.

The food consists of lots of soups, pork n beans, chili, canned fruits and veggies, stews and such as well as about 100# of bagged rice, and 50 lbs of pinto beans, #25 lbs of flour (will up that to 100# soon) vacuum sealed, as well as a few other stable foods like pasta.

I have this all organized with together in plastic containers, food, water, ammo, and other supplies (radios, batteries, flashlights etc.). I can grab the food and water in a few minutes and be out the door with it all loaded in the truck or van.

I.G.B.
 
If you're worried about cans buy a couple of p38s or p51s. They're cheap enough to keep a couple on hand and they work without electricity. Do a search on the internet and I'm sure you'll find plenty of places that sell them. I just picked up a p51 at the Vermont country store while on vacation.
 
Many bottle water brands have an expiration date printed somewhere on
the bottle or jug.

+1 on the tuna packages. They survived just fine going in the mail across
Iraq on hot ground convoys.

You can never go wrong on jerky.

Don't leave the stuff out in direct sunlight.

Neither of those need water to consume, but I'd still recommend adding some
of the packaged freeze-dried entrees for camping.

The expense of the MREs is worth it. You will get more calories and nutrients
toward your survival. There's tobasco sauce included in case you get
constipated. :D
 
Posted on another emergency food thread, but I'll chime in here, as well. Several issues to be addressed.

Sealing rice or beans in plastic won't keep mice out. In fact, it won't keep bugs out, reliably. Trouble being, much of this stuff, no matter where you buy it, has insect eggs in it already. If you want to keep it bug free, there are a couple of do-it-yourself routes.

1) Dry ice in the bottom of a 5-gallon plastic bucket. It sublimates to gaseous CO2, which WILL kill any emergent pest. CO2 is heavier than air, so it will fill the bucket as it sublimates. Put down a chunk (deck of cards size) in the bottom, cover w/ paper towel or something to keep the rice off it, fill w/ (beans/rice/Ramen noodle packs/whatever) and put the top on, un-sealed. Once the bottom of the bucket is no longer cold, hammer down the lid without removing it first.

2) Freeze the stuff subzero for a week, and then pack as above. Note: You need to let it re-warm to ambient before packing, as you don't want condensation in the container you're packing. This will kill the critters already in the package, but does nothing to prevent re-infestation.

3) Use O2 absorbers in plastic other containers. This is kinda new stuff, as readily available, relatively cheap 02 absorber packs have only recently hit the market. I have used them in a Mormon cannery, and they work okay when there's little air in the relatively small (#10 can) container.

There's lots of good 411 out there. See http://www.waltonfeed.com/self/upack/index.html for more directions. I have done business with these folks (Walton feeed) and believe them to be reputable. As with any thin market, when bad news hits, it's too late to get in line for scarce product and expect a timely or inexpensive solution.
 
Check out lifeboat rations - they have the vitamins and nutrients needed and are forumlated not to cause thirst. They store for 20 years and you can buy 36,000 calories worth for $80. The military recommends 3,600 calories a day for troops in the field engaged in combat operations. So even in pretty extreme calorie requirements, you have 10 days worth of food (just for fun, do some comparison shopping at the grocery store and see if you can do a 3,600 calorie balanced meal for less than $8). They are also compact.

The downside is eating lifeboat rations is going to get monotonous real quick; but they would make a good basic staple to be supplemented with the occasional real food.
 
rufus1,

Keep looking-I've seen pop-top tuna here in CA. Some of the companies are starting tp package tuna in soft-sided bags, like an MRE ration, but more attractive. :D

Also, look at yard sale anf thrift stores for vaccuum sealers. A lot of them are still in the box.
 
I agree. there are many cheap and filling and nutrient rich foods available. Already spoken of are the tuna packets, same with chicken and I found some shrimp packets too. packets of flavored rice.
butter flavored crisco. add a bit instead of oil. several small cans of spam. cut up and used in a fried rice dish is quite tasty.

I spent some time on sail boats and there are lots or foods that will survive a long long time without refrigeration too. some of the irradiated foods have self lifes of years. waxed irradiated eggs. cheeses in bags. if you are going to use cans, wiping them down with a parafin sealer will prevent rusty cans and perhaps an outbreak of botulism.


http://www.alpinesurvival.com/shelf-life.html

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0UQX/is_67_5/ai_103194634

http://extension.usu.edu/files/foodpubs/fn502.pdf a very detailed description of the whole matter,

www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mse/equiplists/160046.pdf

http://www.nitro-pak.com/index.php/cPath/38_60

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4221838.stm

http://www.hotpackmeals.co.uk/survival-rations.html

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

http://www.quakekare.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=6
 
Do not know about canned fruit, but for everything else canned I have eaten food over 5 years past the expiration date with no ill effects.

Not out of bulged cans, of course. ;)

Just keep in mind that MREs are lightweight rations for your backpack, for a vehicle or home you can use anything you want, so long as it is food that you will honestly eat.

I like food such as chili and thick meaty soups with lots of crackers, so I can stock those knowing that I will eat them sooner or later.
 
Those new tuna envelopes are the same technology as an MRE, and should be good for quite a long time.

I've also seen ground beef and krab in them.

ANd yes, there are pull-tab cans of tuna. Mostly smaller ones though.
 
If you don't eat it normally, consider it an expense as you have to rotate it out and throw it away. Or you're gonna be having some meals which you wouldn't ordinarily eat.

Lesson: Buy stuff you like to eat.

If something requires heating or lots of water to cook (i.e., Ramen, dried beans, pasta, etc.), it could just turn into something to pack around.

Lesson: Buy stuff that doesn't need prep.
 
Retort packaged Indian food is available in most Asian food stores and even in some supermarkets. Meat and vegetarian choices are available. They are much less expensive than MREs. Needless to say, you'll have to experiment to find out what (if any) you like.
 
Just how long do they last?
Click to expand...

Last night I ate one that has been in my closet for 3-4 years and tasted just fine.

Mmmm, Jamaican Pork Chop.

Keep them out of the heat and they'll last a lot longer.
 
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