Posted: 6/25/2007 8:23:38 AM EDT
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Guys: A few months ago I bought a few 10# bags of white rice at the local supermarket (large chain called Meijer's). One of the three bags grew hundreds of weevils.  . I bought these bags to cache on my BOL in ammo tubes, but now I am not sure if it will be edible* when I need it. How long does it take for the weevils to grow in rice? Does it happen in the first time they are kept in a warm area like my closet? Do they just grow whenever it's "time"? Short of not chaching rice, what are my options? I know that you can get rice in buckets that has diatomaceous earth in it, but buckets are bigger than my ammo tubes.. *Yeah-Yeah, extra protein. Whatver 
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That would be diatomaceous earth, and by "add" I hope you are meaning in some sort of premade desiccant pack and not just pouring it into your rice. |
Why's that? |
I don't like chewing on ground up abrasive fossil dust do you? |
I really don't care one way or the other. I don't use the stuff personally. I was just curious why you didn't think it should be added directly to the grain since that's the only way the stuff's gonna work. It won't work if you put it in a some sort of segregated container, such as what you suggested. 
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What dessicants do you use that you have to dump them out of their container to get them to work? All of the ones I use are enclosed in either a perforated metal tin, and a perforated bag of some sort. ETA: after reading on the net, I found 1 place that advocated adding diatomaceous earth directly to grain.www.homestead.com/ipmofalaska/files/DE.htm I still don't see how this could be a good idea, as it would be gritty and abrasive on your teeth, just like one of the listed purposes, toothpaste. |
True enough, but diatomaceous earth is a "mechanical dessicant" with respect to insect control. It works by getting on the insect and abrading/cutting through the insect's exoskeleton. The insect then dies from dehydration which occurs because of the breach in its exoskeleton. It doesn't "dessicate " insects the way dessicants pull moisture from the air......and that's why sealing it in some sort of dessicant container won't work. 
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Yep I know that, but I just went back and read what I had originally quoted, he mentioned the DE for bug killing, not just regular dessication. So yea, it would not work in a sealed container for bugs, as it would as a desiccant for moisture control. |
Bano, you are wrong. Don't get your feelings hurt, just learn a little more about DE. |
I admited being wrong, I just can't see how the same stuff they use to make toothpaste abrasive, could not make grain the same. |
I've been using DE for the past three or four years. It does cut the baby bugs to death. Protein is protein  First I most HIGHLY recommend that you DO NOT eat your rice raw. I think most people are going to cook their food before eating it. With rice that means that you rinse the grains once and then pour water to cover and then heat. The DE is added like flour to your rice grains - I use about a cup per 7 gallons mixing an rolling the plastic containers to evenly coat the rice. So far not a bug to be found. Many of the DE advocates recommend taking a teaspoon of DE straight. I've seen plenty of kids eat plenty of dirt and sand ... 
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Living in Florida and Georgia for the last 23 years, 20 of which I've been actively storing food, I have NEVER had a problem with bugs in rice. Reason I stated the location is that this area of the south is bug central. I don't care how clean you keep your house, your GOING to have bugs in there unless you use NBC regularly. I'm not sure why people seem to have this problem. I'm guessing there is too much lagtime. Either they are buying stuff that's sit on the store shelf for too long or they are letting it sit at home too long before packaging. You solve the first one by buying at a store with a high turnover- like Sam's, Costco, etc. Joe Joe's Minimart is likely to have had that 40 lb. bag of rice sitting on the shelf for quite some time- as most sheeple buy it the stupid way- a 1 lb. bag at a time paying upwards of $1. a lb. Sams/Costco on the other hand is turning there's over much more quickly at $.26 cents a lbs. You know, even the really old stuff, that I packed by just placing in clean buckets and sealing the lids with caulk (circa 1986-1988) NEVER had any bug issues either. Three folks from the board here ate some of this at a public campout we held in May, so they can attest that the stuff had not deterioated (sp) that bad nor did you have to pick out bugs from it. I believe that was my last bucket from that era. I should have kept one bucket from that time period and checked it at the 30 year mark just for a history lesson. It had successfully reached the 20 year mark If you have access to Frugal's, there's a short video showing you how to correctly pack food on the Emergency disaster and Preparedness board that will greatly help you. Lowdown3 |
The store I got it from is a fast selling large chain. The bag is a 10 lb'er, still sealed. This means the bugs were in there from before it was packed. Just gotta find a way to kill off the eggs before they hatch. |