So during the 1,000 year flood in SC I was able to order a box of MREs and stash them in my closet. They are still sitting there.

So I wouldn’t have to open it if I only needed to get by for a few days.  I bought a bunch of cans of this veggie soup that I like and a bunch of cans of ravioli that I kind of like. Then I bought two large deli pizzas.

I had to work my normal 12 hour shifts and there was only 1 night where I got off and had no dinner options because everything was closed. Luckily my power was on. I threw a pizza in the oven and ate like a king

We went with Mountain House freeze dried stuff.  Tastes decent, and has a 30 year shelf life.  

If the beans and rice will be in sealed mylar with 02 absorbers, why do you need the food grade buckets?

Attached File

As a second layer of protection in case the mylar gets ripped, and to be used as water storage if needed.

Store what u eat and eat what u store (rotate).

Long term food storage quantities

For mylar bags, 6 gal buckets, lids:

USA Emergency Supply

20 pound bag of rice
$7 for 33,000 calories.
$3 Bottle of veggie oil 11,500 calories

That’s 44,500 calories, 24 days of a single adult or 1 week for a family of 4.

Multiply as needed

I went into Aldi this morning and got 2 of the following:  burmans ketchup, burmans mustard, burmans 'A1' steak sauce, freeze dried coffee with a packet of burger buns under $12.  I am not suggesting condiments solely will get you through tough times, but they have a good shelf life and will be used regardless.

I think I’d rather eat my neighbors.

This is the best advice. stock staples like rice, beans, and oats to supplement main dishes. a pound of beans a pound of rice and 2-3 cans of a soup easily feeds 8 hungry people. make sure you also stock spices and flavoring. it helps a lot after the 20th day of the same 5 foods.

freeze dried is fine for the shelf life but you get a lot more bang for your buck on staples and building around them.

Yep - The mylar offers absolutely no protection against rodents, and little protection against really determined bugs.

The buckets are for physical protection, and the mylar is for spoilage protection.

Already said…rice and beans. Dried pasta. This is the cheapest approach you could take. If you get down to eating this stuff you will be thrilled to have anything even if it lacks variety.

Sorbet systems is a good source for Mylar and o2 absorbers.

Lowe’s carries food grade buckets at a pretty good price.

Canned, shredded chicken (sort of like tuna cans) is sort of perfect:

1. Stored in a can (vermin proof)
2. Keeps for a very long time in a cool, dry place
3. Is relatively healthy (and not carbs)
4. Can be mixed with other things (even used to make chicken soup) or eaten by itself

Many stores sell them in a 4-pack.

All the pre-prepped type foods are significantly more expensive per calorie than regular bulk foods.

They have their place in stored food supplies, but are much less cost efficient. Their main benefit is convenience (eg. Folks in hurricane zones might do well to keep things like MREs handy, where meal prep is as easy as pouring water in the bag with the heater pouch. Less time/energy on food prep when you've been clearing debris all day).

The most cost effective manner of food storage is to store the basics as mentioned; carbs, protein and fats, eg. rice, beans, lard/tallow/coconut oil etc.

Sealed in mylar bags with O2 absorbers and placed in 5 gallon buckets.  They will store for many, many years in a cool, dry location. Rotating them every so often is always good practice. While they may take longer to cook when stored for extended periods, the simplest solution is a pressure cooker. Even beans that have dried out from extended storage, can be cooked/rehydrated fairly quickly and easily in a pressure cooker. 2 or more smaller pressure cookers are better than one big one. Smaller volume = less volume to pressurize. 2 is one and all that.

Another thing about LFS Longterm Food Storage is persec in more ways than one. Not just teaching everyone in your family/group to STFU abiut what you have, but one consideration most people neglect is persec cooking.

6 months of LFS is a great start, but understand that you'll be waaaaay ahead of the average Joe/family. When they've been rationing their last 10 cans of soup and 5lb bag of rice for the past 3 weeks, they're going to be wondering about the smell of food that someone else is preparing.

This isn't limited to folks living where they can hit their neighbors with a slingshot. This applies even when your closest neighbor is 2-3 miles away. Something that most folks aren't aware of and don't consider is that although the hot air (and scent) from cooking food rises, as it cools when it rises, the air and scent comes back down. On a still day, you may not smell the burgers on the BBQ from 50 yards away, but you will potentially smell them 500 hundred yards to 2 miles away, wind/weather conditions depending. Persec-wise, a BBQ grill is about the worst possible option for SHTF cooking possible.

Personally, rice, beans, lard/tallow/coconut oil etc. + salt, seasonings and the Mountain House stuff is simply supplemental seasoning. Instead of a single #10 can of Mountain House feeding 2 people for a day (and even then, that's at ~1000 calories per person on meager rations), used as a flavor topping, you can stretch it out much longer, if the main calories/macros are from the bulk sources.

Likewise, I tend to store protein powdet for longterm protein storage. I use it regularly, so it gets rotated all the time, but a single 10lb bag of Now Foods whey isolate has 162 x 25g servings of protein, for a total of 4,050g of pure protein. Sure, chicken is cheaper, but are we considering the loss of power/refrigeration for LFS? In that case, it severely limits the longterm protein storage. There's a difference between supply interruptions etc. vs interruptions that include a loss of utilities. Preparing for both is always smart.

A #10 can of MH freeze dried chicken has 14 x 25g protein servings @ ~$40 vs the Now Foods 10# bag with 162 x 25g protein servings @ ~$75 - $90 (price fluctuates). Price per gram is ~5x. The protein powder can easily be mixed into what you're cooking to supplement the protein.

Spitu-tein

It's a protein to make milkshakes, comes in several flavors. I tried many, it tastes best.

For buy it, stick it in the basement, and forget it, the bulk Mountain House from Costco is almost half the price as anywhere else. This makes them just as cheap as the emergency freeze dried brands, but the MH actually tastes good and uses real meat. Keep in mind that you'll also need to store water along with freeze dried food.

I have a bunch of canned food too which is much cheaper and doesn't need additional water, but it all expires within two years of purchase date. While they technically last longer with the expiration date mainly for flavor, I've had expired non-dented cans explode in my air conditioned closet which makes me worry about botulism.

Bulk packed rice and beans in Mylar bags and buckets is super cheap, but I worry about getting my young kids to actually eat them. Plenty of stories of young kids refusing bad-tasting food while starving to death. I still have a stash as a final resort since it's so cheap though.

Protection PLUS ease of handling/moving/stacking.

Lemme share my recipe for pinto beans -

Soak 1 lb. of dried pinto beans overnight, drain and discard the soak water. (NOTE: Add several teaspoons of baking soda to the soak water if the beans are really old and hard).

Add :
30 ounces of water
3 teaspoons of cumin
3 teaspoons of onion powder
3 teaspoons of garlic powder
3 teaspoons of chili powder
3 teaspoons of Knorr Chicken Bullion powder
2 10 oz. cans of whole or diced tomatoes
1 5 oz. can of Hormel Smoked Ham
1/2 teaspoon of Minor's Ham Base
A few dashes of Colgin's Liquid Smoke

(If canned tomatoes are unavailable, substitute Knorr Tomato Bullion With Chicken Flavor for the chicken bullion instead.)

Heat to a low boil for 5 minutes, and then put it in your Thermos Thermal Cooker to finish cooking over the next 5-8 hours.

Attached File


Makes 8-10 servings.

Severe with rice or cornbread.

Now that I'm not on my phone...

5 Gal bucket - $5
Airtight lid - $8

Thats under $15 for the storage. Now just add the calories. I mix loose rice or beans along with canned goods. So have AT LEAST 2 buckets, one with rice and one with beans. A Costco membership is super helpful to get this done on the cheap.

Basmati rice 20lbs - $20
Beans will run around the same weight and price. 20 pounds isnt enough to fill a 5 gallon bucket, so you need to add some extra in each bucket which is where canned goods (Or spices) come in handy. Toss in a 6 pack of cream of something, toss in some canned meats. Whatever. Point is you can get a hell of a lot of calories into a 5 gallon bucket and you can do it pretty cheaply.

The freeze dried stuff is a good option, but cost per calorie its definitely at the bottom of the list. Since this is considered "emergency" type food, I like the bucket route since I can get a lot packed away pretty cheaply. Even better, it should tend to compliment well with what you already have in the panty.

Top it all off with some oxygen absorbers. Stuff it in the back of the cloest and bam. Peace of mind. (Mine are stored under the stairs)

Keystone canned meat.

Good for 5 years.

Also My Patriot Supply makes good stuff. I generally check out the on sale page and buy the boxes for half off.

LOL. A NON issue hiccup nearly brought the country to its knees last summer.


Imagine what happens when the issue is not largely fabricated.

OP, here is what works for us and style of management for this area that I've come to after trying other means.

Layers.

You want every day food to be the "Eat what you store and store what you eat" as much as is healthy,  convenient and possible. This larder allows buying on sale, only. It produces no shock to the system by "switching to my survival stash" when grocery becomes unavailable because you're already using it.

Also included in everyday food would be fresh meat and veg, preferably at least some from garden, fishing, hunting if feasible.

To augment  every day food is longer term foods that mimic every day food that can be regularly incorporated. Dehydrated veggies, canned meats, etc.

A given amount of grab and go/ immediate disaster meals. MRE/ freeze dried.

A deep stash of affordable staples. Wheat berries, rice, beans, sugar, salt, yeast, oats, corn, etc. These should also be used regularly not for rotation purposes but to be accustom to eating and preparing.

freeze dryer

I was recently looking over my stock pile of canned chili...... and my balance of toilet paper stocks does not seem to be sufficient to this survival strategy.

Canned food isn't bad if you spruce it up some. Canned chicken or beef would have also worked in this dish. Dehydrated onion, too.

https://www.ar15.com/forums/general/Pantry-cooking-it-s-what-s-for-supper/5-2474224/

Go to Walmart. Buy more of what you eat.

Soup
Noodles
Rice
Beans
Spices
Baking goods
Canned fruits
Canned vegetables
Canned meat
Yeast
Flour
Sugar
Chocolate
Tang

Mushroom soup is a higher fat ingredient that can be added to rice or noodles to make a stew. It is quite often overlooked.

Chocolate is overlooked too. A bit of chocolate or the ability to bake up some brownies in a bad situation will raise people’s spirits.

Tang contains all your necessary vitamin C.

Consider buying stuff as trade goods in case society really goes down the crapper.

Common can goods and honeyville.com.

If you want to do it right. Get a Home Freeze Dryer you save save left overs and freeze dry fresh stuff when it goes on sale.
the medium one is about 3.5k I use the normal oil vacuum pump and filter the oil every batch.
I free the oil and all thee contaminants get stuck in the ice/water then run the cleaner oil through a britta filter using a toilet paper filter. (lots of people do it this way it's all on line).
So when i go camping etc.. I can always have my wife's cooking. We have lots of stored meals without all the salt or other crap they put in it.

If you don't have a system and tools in place to make rotation easy, simple and nearly automatic it becomes a dreaded chore that eventually doesn't get done and you start wasting food to expiration.

Tilted shelves is one way. Feed in the back, take from the front. Standard shelves work too, but you have to shove in from the back toward the front. Need access to both sides of the shelves, obviously. The storebought serpentine can dispensers are nice but not cost effective.

We're still working on how to rotate through the freezer. We basically try to use from one end and when that's getting low, we shove everything down to that space and fill in the back when we get deals on meats.

Condiments are an overlooked but HUGELY important item.

I wouldn’t rely on frozen food. Electricity can fail and than you have nothing. I am not saying not to stock frozen food, just don’t make it your only backup.

We're working on that part. Right now I just tell her not to put certain foods away herself, I'll do it. Looking at buying a rack for cans like the stores have, contemplating just building one myself.

We have a long way to go to get to where I want to be (our house is small as is the power panel, built in 1958), but we do with what we have and sometimes we have to get creative with space.

You can buy no salt added canned vegetables. I watch my sodium and a typical can of corn has 350-400 mg, the no salt add is 10 mg.

Dont listen to this guy, go about your plan, OP.

i should add: whole spices double vacuum packed, garden seeds double vacuum packed.

This was the only fully thought out post.

If you're not gardening, you're not preparing. Learn to grow all year round. We harvest greens and root vegetables through the entire winter.  We built a hoop house and are constantly expanding the growing area for food crops.
Only store what you regularly eat.  Store large quantities of it and rotate through the drums as you consume.  
Stock your house like it is your personal grocery store full of the foods you and your family loves.

You're delusional if you think you can live off of mountain house meals for weeks or months at a time and be effective. Learn to cook from shelf stable foods.  There are a lot of modern cookbooks that are not about survival that still appreciate shelf stable food.  Alison Roman is a cook my wife loves and she makes loads of shelf stable meals from her cook books.
Vegetarian meals are looked down upon by the survival crowd, but many vegan and vegetarian recipes can be made with shelf stable goods and taste fresh.  
Foraging is learned skill and requires practice.  Mushrooms, greens, roots, berries...learn what is in your area and try it, maybe learn to like it.

Just don't pigeon hole yourself with 1980s ideas of eating spam and military water rations to get you through hard times.

Kind of wondering what to get to go with rice and beans.

Canned vegetables?

What about fruit? How do you store that long term?

Half the world lives on rice and beans.  Add some chicken and you have a complete protein.  
Mylar bags are awesome.  Once you open the bags of o2 absorbers you have to put them in the mylar bags and close them up.

I swear I'm not trying to pimp this company, but MyPatriotSupply does sell freeze dried fruit for a reasonable price point.

I also have canned/jarred fruit I just don't know how good it will be in a couple decades

https://mypatriotsupply.com/collections/long-term-food-storage/products/fruit-veggie-and-snack-mix

I prefer to get 50lb rice bags put them in a mylar bag vaccum seal with oxygen absorbers and put it in a 5gallon bucket with gamma lid. That will give you 250 servings. Did a test in this method 7 years and was fresh.

Good thread. I have decent short-term supplies but I need to get cracking on some long-term stuff. I was looking at My Patriot Supply but after reading the posts here I think I’ll do my own with the 5 gallon buckets and rice, beans, etc.

Yeah there definitely wasn't a run on food and virtually every basic supply literally last year, and just about everything wasn't hard or impossible to find for a good month or two

I would go with oat groats or rolled oats instead of rice.  Bit more calories and nutrition in them.

Instead of beans you might want to look at lentils as they are easier to cook and you don't have to soak them.


Azurestandard is good for grains along with honeyville.

The best place I've found for lentils is surprisingly Walmart, but you might be able to find them at a local Indian market if you have one nearby.

Beans and oats is indeed a popular dish.

I think it’s good to store a variety of beans, rice, and grains.

But particularly I like how versatile beans and rice are. Soups, salads, together or separate. You can make bean patties, soups, or dare I say…chili. Rice can be eaten as a dish or in soups, tacos, even deserts.

Is there something specific that has you concerned to be doing this now?

@skydivesnake

They are available in stainless steel, hard-anodized aluminum, and regular aluminum. Is the stainless steel model worth the extra cost?

I just added four four packs totaling sixteen cans of canned chicken to my already existing collection of canned meats tonight.

Albeit I use it up in rotation I have a ton of excess.

Mice.

I don’t know how good this is but it’s on clearance.

I dont think the question is "why buckets?" The question is "why food grade?"

just become morbidly obese and buy a few jars of vitamins

you can go a year with no food if you're fat enough and have some salt/electrolyte/vitamins to intake with your water

Sure, that kinda goes without saying.  But for anything other than a grid-down scenario, frozen foods are one of the most palatable forms of emergency supplies.  We just went through almost a full year living primarily off our survival stockpile, between COVID and my work contract coming to an end at a most inconvenient time.  The frozen stuff was what helped keep life most like "normal" times; the ultimate goal of any preparedness strategy.  The other things that helped the most were our chicken flock and gardens.

We're prepared for a blackout too, though.  Generators and fuel for them will keep the freezers running long enough to get what's in there canned or dehydrated if worse comes to worst.  But yeah, like any other survival topic, having multiple options is the only real solution.  I'm just relaying what was most useful for us over a year of unplanned "downtime".  Beyond that, you'd best be geared up to start producing, rather than just storing your own food anyway.