Food Storage
What would you do for food after a natural disaster - or even during a long-term power outage? Most individuals and families would not be prepared for such an incident. When you look in your own cupboard, you will notice you have just enough to last about a week - and a significant percentage of these items are perishable. You are like everybody else, however. Most households have less than a week's worth of food on hand, and in the event of a natural disaster, in which help might not reach you for a few weeks, you and your family are unprepared.
No matter if you live in a region prone to hurricanes and tornadoes or not, build up long-term food storage. Not everything needs to be purchased up front, however. Rather, individual items can be purchased over time, and if you need a starting point, begin with the basics – grains, beans, dehydrated milk, sugar, salt, oil, and seeds. Incorporating freeze-dried food from manufacturers AlpineAire, Mountain House, and Provident Pantry gives your emergency food storage some variety, and allows you to consume 1,100 to 1,800 calories per day.
Building up to a year's worth of food for you and your family is recommended, but the lifespan of such items is one question many have about creating long-term food storage. Emergency food storage kits by Mountain House and other manufacturers are made to last up to 20 years when not opened, but external conditions have an effect. Exposure to oxygen, moisture, heat, and light can shorten the lifespan of your basics and freeze-dried items, and using an airtight environment allows you to get the most out of your investment.
#10 cans by Mountain House, AlpineAire, or Provident Pantry contain multiple servings of freeze-dried or dehydrated food, all of which need water to make a meal. To get the most out of your food storage, make sure that all opened cans are kept in a cool and dark place, and ideally, the leftovers should be stored inside a bag inside the #10 can. If this isn't possible, have a resealer available or opt for frozen storage. Once the package has been opened, the remaining dehydrated or freeze-dried food inside lasts up to a year, although the nutritional value may diminish.
Aside from being cool and dark, the location for your food storage needs to be temperate - between 50°F and 60°F ideally - and above ground. Basements, closets, and dry crawl spaces are common places for food storage, but burying your supply inside the ground is not. These dry spaces, additionally, should not be near chemicals, including cleaning products. Although seemingly innocuous and contained, even household cleaning products generate fumes that can enter your food storage. Additionally, trash cans and liners, for this same purpose, should never be used for food storage.
