# FOOD STORAGE: 3 Days, 6 Months a Year? Whats Enough?



## pat4us (Aug 16, 2012)

*Friends and Preppers. Lets talk about FOOD STORAGE & HOW MUCH to store. 3 Days, 6 Months a Year?*

The short answer is that it all depends upon what you are preparing for and who you ask. 
The Gov will tell you 3 days is enough. Well, in a perfect world 
with a good economy, a job that cant be lost, a world with no disasters I guess 3 days 
would due. But really? 3 days? 

*Some possible times we might need emergency preparedness items we've stored away.*

*1) Loss of job & or Income:* How will your family eat? Do you think 3 days is enough?

*2) Natural Disaster:* Do you think the stores will be open in just 3 days if a major natural disaster hits? We can explore news articles later that show the answer is a resounding, no. Don't count on it.

*3) Economic Collapse:* What if the faltering economies in Europe fail? Do you really think the USA will be immune? Economists world wide are predicting not a possible collapse but an inevitable collapse. We hope they are wrong, but if they are right do you think 3 days of food and water will be enough?

*4) Civil Unrest & Martial Law:* If there is an economic collapse, there will likely be civil unrest. Is 3 days enough if the world gets crazy for awhile?

*5) Astronomical Natural Disaster:* That is an asteroid or other such celestial body hits the earth and causes several major disasters. If food supplies are cut off do you think 3 days rations will be enough?

*6) War:* What if our government does something stupid or some outside government attacks us. Do you think 3 days food and water will due?​
_*:congrat:WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF FOOD STORAGE?* I feel it must beat least 3 months, with a better goal being 6 months or more. _*Lets talk!* 
:ranton:


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## Moby76065 (Jul 31, 2012)

I think I'm in the same boat your in. My first goal is three months, then augment until I get three months of GREAT foods stored. Then 6 months. Then out to one year but rotating. Beyond 6 months I'm really just shopping deals and buying bulk when things are on sale.


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

Obviously everyone is in different positions, but for me, we try to have enough food to get us to the next growing season. If it's something I know we can't grow ourselves, I try to stock up a little more on that item.


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## pat4us (Aug 16, 2012)

:congrat:*Thanks Moby76065. * I started out by doing the walmart thing. We pretty much purchased some *can goods with the highest expiration dates we could find.* The items that last the longest that are available in walmart are: Canned salmon, canned chicken, Spam and canned beans. Note on spam. Spam is a GREAT low cost MRE. They are high cal, low cost compared to a regular MRE and have a pull top. They are ready to eat, no cooking and have lots of calories. Great backpack, wet ready to eat food.

We started out this way but have evolved. Ill let other reply then ill hit back. There is a lot to talk about on this topic. Here is the thing, this approach is good if you can't afford to buy bulk grains or freeze dried foods but the expiration dates are short. On the other hand, if your budget is tight, then buying a few cans a week is great. Don't forget the dry rice and beans...

I found some other lower cost ways to do it. Ill be back  *BY THE WAY<<<< I LOVE YOUR QUOTE!* I also like this one...

*If Good Men Do Nothing In The Face Of Evil, that is in of itself Evil. *


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## pat4us (Aug 16, 2012)

*Good point siletz.* Isn't it amazing how our for-fathers were so ahead of the curve? I mean this is how they lived. They stored food for the winter by canning and other methods. We are now (at least my family is) learning all of their _long lost_ skills! Thank God for grandparents. _Oh, and their freedom loving constitutional politics weren't to shabby either _

Going by this old school (coming back in style) paradigm, *we should have at least, what,, 8 months of food ready?* * How long do you prepare for the between growing seasons?*



Moby76065 said:


> I think I'm in the same boat your in. My first goal is three months, then augment until I get three months of GREAT foods stored. Then 6 months. Then out to one year but rotating. Beyond 6 months I'm really just shopping deals and buying bulk when things are on sale.





siletz said:


> Obviously everyone is in different positions, but for me, we try to have enough food to get us to the next growing season. If it's something I know we can't grow ourselves, I try to stock up a little more on that item.


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## boomer (Jul 13, 2011)

The real kicker is how much storage can you manage and keep inventoried. Storage is pricy, even if a one time purchase. If you live in an apartment while saving up for a larger property, then you will be far more limited than if you live in a big old house with lots of cellar and spare rooms and yard and outbuilding, say an old stable etc.

Ideally, I would like to be able to keep one full growing cycle, which I suspect for most of us is a year plus an extra year as crop failure insurance. The extra year would sure be handy if living in one of the extreme drought area's this year.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I had always just counted on what I had in the house (normal stock). Then we did an experiment; we stopped buying groceries to see how long full cupboards and freezers would last. The only thing we kept buying was milk (lots of kids). Turns out that without rationing we have about 2.5 weeks worth of food in the house until we have pretty much nothing left but frozen meat, which of course would keep us going if need be. So I consider my stocked household a 3 week semi-rationed supply. I have added a mere 2 weeks of long term food storage beyond that in my quest for the 3 month mark. After that I will just add 1 more week until the oldest stuff needs to be eaten or disposed of. Then when I run out of space I will stop or build a shed. My primary stores are canned goods, but my old boss is a General with a National Guard unit and promised me several cases of MRE's for free, so that will help.


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## prep4life (Jul 16, 2010)

We have about a year's worth of food here now for the 2 of us.
Kids & grandkids coming here (soon) means it's about 6 months worth.
We're putting every spare dime into buying food preps, tools, fuel, storing water, buying an alternative to an electric pump on the well, etc.
I truly feel we are in the last really free times in this country. Prep & pray.


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## pandamonium (Feb 6, 2011)

I currently have maybe two months of food, mostly canned goods, veggies and tuna. Gonna start getting some canned chicken and the spam. I definitely need to get the rice and beans going. I have about 20 pounds of fruits that I dehydrated. I try to keep 20 cases of bottled water in stock, sometimes I get down to 13 or 14 cases before I grab a few more. Space is a bit tight but I squeeze it in where I can. Overall I am looking to have a years worth stocked.


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## phxrising (Jun 24, 2012)

I am working toward a 3-month supply and it's a lot of planning to make sure I buy stuff that 1)we are used to eating 2) we will actually eat 3)that I have all the components of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks we normally eat. 
I live in a very small apt so a full 3 month supply is challenging my available space.

I bought a book called "Not Your Mother's Food Storage" and that has helped a LOT. It basically states that you should write out what your family has for breakfast and how many times a week each is eaten (for example 5 days cereal, 2 days pancakes), then multiply by servings and by 12 weeks to get a 3 month supply. Repeat with lunches and dinners. The dinners I've planned a 2-week menu that rotates 6 times in the 3 months. You also store 3 months worth of toiletries, condiments, etc... basically anything you use that doesn't fall into the category of a "meal".

The next principle is that you utilize your storage as a grocery store and just buy replacements and perishables. This saves time, money and makes sure you are storing what you will actually eat.


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## lucaspm98 (Apr 23, 2012)

We have about a week or two of food in our cupboards, and a month or so in storage if we eat a lot of rice. We also have 20 or so gallons of bottled water + a 50 gallon rain barrel that we can filter.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

We have a year's supply of food and 1500 gallons of water. Not buckets of dried beans but standard canned goods. Things we can make meals with that we eat right now. We bought a lot of canned chicken at Wal-Mart. We'll use that in chili and hamburger helper instead of hamburger. We have a lot of canned beef stew, canned fruit, canned vegetables, rice, baked beans, noodles, one pound canned hams, mac and cheese, ramen noodles, Campbell's Soup, Campbell's Chunky Soup, dry cereal, and a lot of premium blueberry instant oatmeal.

Based on our meal planning we'll be having two suppers a week without meat. On those days we'll have baked beans, rice, a canned vegetable, and some canned fruit.


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## xxxillusion (Aug 13, 2012)

So I was going through all of these posts and as a new prepped I feel way under prepared for anything I have some gear but im way behind the power curve when It comes to the food storage


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

pat4us said:


> *Good point siletz.* Isn't it amazing how our for-fathers were so ahead of the curve? I mean this is how they lived. They stored food for the winter by canning and other methods. We are now (at least my family is) learning all of their _long lost_ skills! Thank God for grandparents. _Oh, and their freedom loving constitutional politics weren't to shabby either _
> 
> Going by this old school (coming back in style) paradigm, *we should have at least, what,, 8 months of food ready?* * How long do you prepare for the between growing seasons?*


I do think that our grandparents had it right. Each summer we home can the produce out of the garden that will last until next year's harvest. We use Tattler reusable canning lids so that we don't have to buy lids either. Another piece of this puzzle is growing things through the winter. Many greens like kale and lettuce can be grown in a cold frame or hoop house over the winter to give you fresh food. I believe that food storage will only take you so far. At some point, you need to become a food producer to have more food security.


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## Genevieve (Sep 21, 2009)

I have one year stored the hubby and I. The majority is in the form of freeze dried and dehydrated. Lasts longer.

As for storing for just the time between growing seasons....what happens if theres a drought? Or a crop failure from pests,etc? Then what? You need to have extras for that problem.


I have enough health and beauty aids to last for a number of years.
I have my meds covered for almost a year. Almost. I'm working on it as we post.

I also have enough firstaid supplies to cover a couple of minor surgeries. Scalpels,hemostats,sutures,benzodine,ect. Also gauze pads and rolls and bandages.

I have extra boots,socks,coats,shirts,etc put back along with extra blankets,quilts,sheets and towels.

I only have around 2 months worth of food for the dogs. It's not something I worry about. They can and do kill small animals and if they're hungry enough, they'll eat. lol They're outside animals after all so it's not like they'd not be in their "element".


Food is well and good to have but the bigger thing to have is WATER. You can go without eating. You HAVE to have water.
You should have a way to get and purify water and have containers available for storage.


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## Genevieve (Sep 21, 2009)

xxxillusion said:


> So I was going through all of these posts and as a new prepped I feel way under prepared for anything I have some gear but im way behind the power curve when It comes to the food storage


Don't worry about it. You just started. One step at a time. None of us had stuff until we started. lol I suggest you start with the water. If it's just yourself, I'd go with a good sport bottle with a filter. Like the ones from berkey. They can filter a lot of crap out.If it's more than you then save up or sell something to get the extra money to buy one of the bigger filters.
Then, when ever you get some extra cash, go buy some extras of stuff you eat everyday ( which I'm hoping is NOT microwave crap *wink*). I started years back by making only $10 of the grocery money to go to food storage.I'd also take one grocery trip and make it ten dollars worth of either firstaid or soap,shampoo,deodorant,etc.

I found a discount grocery that had damaged and dented foods and I can save tons of money there on stuff. I now save up every week and go once a month. I can get cans of coffee for only a $1.50!! talk about cheap!

Don't get overwhelmed. just take it one step at a time.


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

xxxillusion said:


> So I was going through all of these posts and as a new prepped I feel way under prepared for anything I have some gear but im way behind the power curve when It comes to the food storage


It all takes time and all of us were once where you are now. How fast you can put up supplies is a matter of how much time and money you can spare. It took me a while to get to where I am today, I started with some extra canned goods each week. The once a month sundry shopping I would buy and extra box of band-aids, second bottle of shampoo, extra brick of soap&#8230; as I had the money.

Anyone here who says they have two years worth of supplies started out with only what is in their cupboards and I doubt there are many of them who feel they are 100% good to go.

I started out with what I could get at the local grocery and built up a few months supply. I then switched strategy and saved for FD goods for their shelf life. I buy them once and they will be good for as long as I am around.

My current preps involve getting what I might need a replacement for. Say a garden rake or a second long handle square shovel in case one breaks or gets stolen. As I build up that security I have lately been doing more PM buying, silver eagles. I'm converting whatever is of value but not essential to survival into green pieces of paper and trading them for precious metals. I see the fiat money systems currently in use today crumbling and want to conserve as much wealth as I can for when things get better. And they will get better! It just might take some time.


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## DKRinAK (Nov 21, 2011)

*What do you think is the right amount of food storage*

Good question, as everybody has different needs and different lifestyles/space/income and so on.

So
3 days is better than no days.

3 weeks is better than 3 days... And so on.

It's not just food of course, it means the energy to cook the food, a means to clean up after cooking, water to cook with - the list is extensive.

As many on the board are just starting, as are many lurkers, may I suggest a structured approach, based on a dollar amount, may work a bit better than buying a single item at a time in bulk.

Taking a few minutes to plan now and making a list of items to pick up as part of your regular shopping cycle will help keep costs under control. Since you know what you and your group enjoys to eat, these are suggestions to follow when planning your disaster kit food menu choices.

(volume or measure per pound) - Item - cost - calorie per pound

(2.5 cups uncooked) Rice $0.40/pound and 1500 calories/pound
(2 cups dry) Pinto beans $0.42/pound and 1400 calories/pound
(2 cups) Black beans $0.79/pound and 1360 calories
(3 cups) Oatmeal (fast) $0.89 pound and 450 calories
(3.25 cups) Cornmeal $0.96/pound and 1436 calories (premium) 
(2.25 cups) peanut butter $2.78/pound and 2720 calories
(4 cups) dry milk (NINDO) $3.94 pound and 2400 calories 
(2.25 cups) sugar $0.68/pound and 1755 calories
(3.75 cups) white flour $0.52/pound and 1650 calories

10 pounds oatmeal $8.90 and 4,500 calories
10 pounds cornmeal $9.60 and 14,360
10 pounds white flour $5.20 and 16,500 calories
25 pounds rice $10.00 and 37,500 calories
10 pounds pinto beans $4.20 and 14,000 calories
15 pounds black beans $11.85 and 20,250 calories
5 pounds sugar $3.40 and 8775 calories
sub-total $53.15
Milk 3.52 pounds (1 can) $13.88 and 8448 calories (Nido dry milk)
peanut butter 5 pounds $13.90 and 13600 calories
subtotal $27.78
total cost $80.93

Leaves $19.07 for 
Baking power
Vegetable oil
Yeast
Salt
tea or coffee

It follows then, that a balanced food plan or menu is necessary for your health . Assuming you will be doing some work, a 2000 calorie/day diet should work for most folks. 
Having a set of basic foodstuffs, like I listed about, will allow you to do some menu planning, and as you have more funding, you can purchase more of the basics, and add-ons like spices, and prep without driving yourself into bankruptcy.

Good luck.


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## Jimmy24 (Apr 20, 2011)

My preps are basically the same as BillS and some others. I have a combo of different foods, store bought canned. Home canned in jars. Some dried. About 2500 of water for whatever use, along with 350 gallons of strictly drinking water.

And a big garden….

I would say be careful purchasing dented cans and such from discount/salvage stores. I did for a while, until I started losing cans. Though a dented can may not be leaking and show no external corrosion, that does not mean that all is good. When a can gets dented, there is a good chance that the interior walls of the can are damaged. That is as bad if not worse than exterior damage. Most cans are galvanized or enamel which both can be easily damaged from a dent.

Last thing you want is, to open a dented can and find mush….just saying

Jimmy


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## stayingthegame (Mar 22, 2011)

i have always had at least 2 months of food in my pantry. don't know why, I just had it there. that was way before most people heard of prepping. it was something that I just did. now with prepping, I have close to 6 -9 months, longer if I ration a bit. I live by a spring feed lake and don't store much water. I know where two of the springs are.  I am still adding to my preps, but hubby was out of work for over a year due to a heart attack and is now only working part time so money is very tight. but we still try to keep ahead of what we need.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

*The more the better*

There are many schools of thought about how much food to store. If you were to think of not being able to replenish your food supply, but to only be able to live on what you have stored, how long could you live?

Many people believe in a year's supply. Once they have arrived, they are only rounding it out and polishing up the details. A few believe in 7 years of food storage. I believe this is based in some biblical teaching. Others have more.

Think of not having access to food and never being able to buy food again. Think of no government hand outs. Think of food becoming more valuable than gold.

Some people who have never gardened, say they will garden when they have to. I have been gardening for years and some years are a bust, while others are wonderful. A year of a serious drought does not make for a good garden. But people who garden are full of hope. They continue to sow seeds and hope for the produce from them.

Store a variety of foods from wheat grain (cheap, easy to store, many ways to use) to dehydrated to canned. Don't keep all your eggs in one basket as my grandparents used to say.

I have always kept a well stocked pantry. I buy extras when food is on sale. I have built up other long term food items. I do not buy food in paper or cardboard container from the store without adding a couple more layers to keep it safe (mylar sometimes, oxygen absorbers, plastic buckets with sealed lids and metal cans sealed with dried goods inside).

The more the better, the sooner the better. I don't want to minimize, I want to maximize. So much of what we have and do today will probably be gone soon.


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## pat4us (Aug 16, 2012)

*You mentioned an alternative to an electric pump on the well. *Well,, i was thinking the same thing. In fact, I looked around and did a lot of research on the topic and came up with FlowJac. Our company does not sell it "yet" but it is a great product. You can get it directly from the manufacturer at their web site http://www.flojak.com/ (they are not us) we are PatriotStock and not affiliated with them at all. At any rate, this pump is *SELF installed, and a DIY style. *Its only about $400 bucks. Amazing price, unlimited water!

Very cool option to water storage. However, in a earth quake, many *wells will become useless.* Something to keep in mind. A good Berkey or other water filter system will allow you to get water from ponds and such.

Even with those, I would still have actual water storage in tanks or bottles of some kind. 
:beercheer:



prep4life said:


> We have about a year's worth of food here now for the 2 of us.
> Kids & grandkids coming here (soon) means it's about 6 months worth.
> We're putting every spare dime into buying food preps, tools, fuel, storing water, buying an alternative to an electric pump on the well, etc.
> I truly feel we are in the last really free times in this country. Prep & pray.


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