Preparing to Build Up Food Stores

It is a good idea to have stored foods in the home in case of an emergency or catastrophic event that would limit travel, or access to food for whatever the reason. A good place to start would be to develop a plan to permit having at least a 3 day supply of food in one's home. Best way to start is slowly and methodically. This way cost and expenditures can be kept at a minimum while one builds up their available stock of supplies. Keep in mind that foods you store should be rotated; this way older or likely to expire foods are used before other foods that may be kept a bit longer.

Climate and expected activity will affect what amount needs to be stored. How your food is stored is a consideration. For ease, canned foods and dried foods are recommended. Canned foods may be done at home, or can be purchased at stores. Many people have considered canning and pickling from gardens, then using mason jars to store dried goods. In an urban environment, that may not always be feasible.

Many of my friends like to store what are considered to be survival food supplies. There are different types of survival food, from power bars to dried and powdered food, as well as dehydrated food. Often these types of foods are available in bulk.

There are complete dishes that have been cooked, then freeze dried, and then packaged. These are very popular among preppers. To prepare these, generally one adds boiling water into a pouch, shake, and wait, and serve.

It is a good idea to think about what we can find and store that we are willing to eat for an extended period of time. Knowing the types of things that interest us, then we can begin a plan of accumulating a desired amount, and appropriately storing them for long term.

It has been suggested to keep some store brand fiber capsules (psyllium) available. A change in diet plus stress can sometimes result in binding. A lack of fresh greens may also increase likelihood of constipation.