# Long Term Food Storage Shelf Life Listing



## NavyKen

I wrote this post for another message board I frequent but felt that people here could also benefit.

If these items are properly packaged in 5 gallon buckets in sealed Mylar bags with O2 absorbers the following shelf lives can be applied. Once packed, they must be stored in a dry location where the temperature is at or below room temperature (75 degrees F; 24 degrees C) the cooler the better. If anyone can locate documentation to extend any shelf lives please let me know and I will edit this list.
Initially this list was only for the above packing method. I am now expanding it to include Canned (mason Jar) Items but I will note if its is a packing method other then Mylar.

Metal packed items like store bought green beans or carrots have a "Best By" or "Use By" date on the can, this is not an expiration date but merely a recommendation. Most items packed industrially by this method will still be good three and even four years past the "best by" date. If the can is bulging or the contents smell bad or off throw it away immediately and to not taste it to check. There are many, many posts on this forum about people eating canned foods way past the "use by" date with no ill affects.

>>> Some of the links will take you to an different preparedness message board. I apologize but that is where I found the information. <<<

*Indefinite Storage Life Items:*

Salt
Raw Honey (do not pack in Mylar... what a mess that would be)
White Sugar

*30 Year Items:*

Hard Grains (Whole)
-Buckwheat
-Corn, Dry
-Flax
-Kamut
-Millet
-Durum wheat
-Hard red wheat
-Hard white wheat
-Soft wheat
-Special bake wheat
-Spelt
-Triticale
Oats (whole or rolled)
Rice
Beans
-Adzuki Beans
-Blackeye Beans
-Black Turtle Beans
-Garbanzo Beans
-Great Northern
-Kidney Beans
-Lentils
-Lima Beans
-Mung Beans
-Pink Beans
-Pinto Beans
-Small Red Beans
-Soy Beans
Macaroni
Powdered Milk
Potato Flakes
Dried Apple Slices.
Dehydrated Vegetables

*20 Year Items:*

*10 - 15 Year Items:*

Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
Dehydrated Dairy Products
-Cheese Powder
-Cocoa Powder
-Powder Eggs
-Butter/Margarine Powder
-Whey Powder

*8 - 10 Year Items:*

Soft Grains (Whole)
-Barley
-Hulled or Pearled Oat
-Groats
-Quinoa
-Rye
Brown Rice
Shortening

*3 - 5 Year Items:*

Peanut Butter Powder
Coffee (Possibly Longer. Minor flavor loss in the first 2 weeks)
Bottled Butter (3 years google "bottled butter" or visit Wendy DeWitt's blog)
Chocolate (Vacuum packed in canning jars)
Meats** (See Note)
Brown Sugar (Vacuum packed in canning jars)

*1 - 2 year Items:*

Flours* and Other Products Made From Cracked/Ground Seed
Yeast (1 year if frozen)
Fresh Eggs 1 year (lightly coated in mineral oil and stored point down in a cool place. I have not tested this yet)

*Flour stored longer than a year or two will make perfect looking loafs of bread but the bread will taste bad. LDS package flour in #10 cans with O2 absorbers and give it a 10 year shelf life. SO this remains up in the air and I would suggest testing and erring on the side of caution.

**For the method of safely bottling meats please see Wendy DeWitt's blog below.

Useful Links:
Why to Keep Quiet About Your Preps. *<--Everyone read this*
Food Storage Mylar & Buckets By Wendy Mae << different forum
Food Storage Mylar & Buckets Video
Food Storage Calculator (A good starting point for the beginner)
LDS 30 Year Extension Message
Wendy DeWitt lots of good info
Other Shelf Lives
Stock Rotating Storage for Canned Goods
LDS Preparedness Manual


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## BasecampUSA

NavyKen said:


> 10 - 15 Year Items:
> 
> *Garden Seed or Sprouting Seed *<NOW A 12 YEAR ITEM SEE NOTE


... I don't think so...

You better start reading and experimenting hands-on with that before you stake your life on it...

The rest of the stuff I've been doing successfully as indicated for 40 some odd years... except the eggs, Sam & Ella love them!

-Basey


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## SaskDame

I like this list. Thank you.

That would be some seeds will remain good for 10-15 years. 

From personal experience: tomatoes have exceptional seed viability over time.
Parsnips are poor. Onion is way better than purported in the books, have had 5-7 yr old onion germinate. Germination rates go down but it still works.

I am not good at providing even moderately good seed storage, I tend to misplace them and find again much later. Squash seed will tolerate some horrible treatment and still grow.

We tried the egg storage thing starting a year ago. Wash, dry, coat with mineral oil. We used first in, first out rotation so the oldest I curently have is March '10 and half of them are good for baking although dried out somewhat. They were stored on the floor in the cold room over the summer where the temps rarely get above 70 degrees F.


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## NavyKen

SaskDame thank you for the input. Could you please go into more detail on what you found with the eggs? I am very interested about this.
:congrat:


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## BasecampUSA

I speak from both personal experience as a seed grower, and also having worked for one of the largest organic seed dealers in the U.S. at one time.

I now do some seed viability studies for gardening groups up here.

You can choose to ignore facts and research if you like...
but your survival may depend on the _correct_ information!

Here are 3 sources:

*Source #1:* 
Iowa State University
Sherry Rindels, Department of Horticulture

How long will vegetable seeds last if stored properly?

Seed Type / Years
Asparagus 3 
Muskmelons 5 
Beans 3 
Onions 1 
Beets 4 
Peas 3 
Broccoli 5 
Peppers 2 
Cabbage 5 
Pumpkins 4 
Carrots 3 
Radishes 5 
Cauliflower 5 
Spinach 5 
Corn 2 
Squash 4 
Cucumbers 5 
Tomatoes 4 
Lettuce 5 
Watermelons 4

Seed Viability | Horticulture and Home Pest News
++++++++++++++++++++

*Source #2:*

LA Gardener

Asparagus Asparagus officinalis Liiaceae 3
BeansPhaseolus vulgaris (& others) Fabaceae 3
Beets Beta vulgaris Chenopodiaceae 4
BroccoliBrassica oleracea Brassicaceae 5
Cabbage Brassica oleracea Brassicaceae 5
Cardoon Cynara cardunculus Asteraceae 5
Carrots Daucus carota sativus Apiaceae 3
Cauliflower Brassica oleracea Brassicaceae 5
Celeriac Apium graveolens rapaceum Apiaceae 5
Celery Apium graveolens dulce Apiaceae 5
Chervil Anthriscus cerefolium Apiaceae 3
Collards Brassica oleracea Brassicaceae 5
Corn Zea mays Poaceae 2
Cress Lepidium sativum Brassicaceae 5
Cucumbers Cucumis melo Cucurbitaceae 5
Eggplant Solanum melongena Solanaceae 5
Endive Cichorium endivia Asteraceae 5
Fennel Foeniculum vulgare Apiaceae 4
Kale Brassica oleracea Brassicaceae 5
Kohlrabi Brassica oleracea Brassicaceae 5
Leeks Allium porrum Liiaceae 3
Lettuce Lactuca sativa Asteraceae 5
Muskmelons Cucumis melo Cucurbitaceae 5
Mustard Brassica cretica Brassicaceae 4
Okra Abelmoschus esculentus Solanaceae 2
Onions Allium cepa Amaryllidaceae 1
Parsley Petroselinum crispum Apiaceae 1
Parsnips Pastinaca sativa Apiaceae 1
Peas Pisum sativum Fabaceae 3
Peppers Capsicum annuum Solanaceae 2
Pumpkins Cucurbita maxima Cucurbitaceae 4
Radishes Raphanus landra Brassicaceae 5
Spinach Spinacia oleracea Chenopodiaceae 5
Squash Cucurbita moschata; 
C. pepo and C. maxima Cucurbitaceae 4
Swiss Chard Beta vulgaris Chenopodiaceae 4
Tomatoes Lycopersicon esculentum Solanaceae 4
Turnips Brassica rapa Brassicaceae 4
Watermelons Citrullus lanatus Cucurbitaceae 4

LA Garden : Common Seed Viability
++++++++++++++++++++++++

*Source #3*

Collards 5 
Corn salad (mache) 5 
Cress 5 
Cucumber 5 
Endive 5 
Lettuce 5 
Muskmelon ("Cantelope") 5 
Beets 4 
Brussels Sprouts 4 
Cabbage 4 
Cauliflower 4 
Chard, Swiss 4 
Chicory 4 
Eggplant 4 
Kale 4 
Pumpkin 4 
Radish 4 
Rutabaga 4 
Sorrel 4 
Squash 4 
Tomato 4 
Turnip 4 
Watermelon 4 
Asparagus 3 
Beans 3 
Broccoli 3 
Cabbage, Chinese 3 
Carrot 3 
Celeriac 3 
Celery 3 
Kohlrabi 3 
New Zealand Spinach 3 
Pea 3 
Corn, sweet 2 
Leek 2 
Okra 2 
Pepper 2 
Onion 1 
Parsley 1 
Parsnip 1 
Salsify 1 
Scorzonera 1 
Spinach 1

Storing Seeds
++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"If you are unsure of the seed quality, you can run a germination test. Count out at least 20 randomly picked seeds (50 is better, 100 is best). Spread the seeds on several layers of premoistened paper toweling and roll them up in the paper so the seeds stay separated from one another. Place the roll into a plastic bag and keep it in a warm place (70o to 80o F). Remember to label each roll with seed type. Check the seeds in two or three days, and every day thereafter for a week or so. When a root or cotyledon protrudes through the seed coat, the seed has germinated. When some seeds have sprouted, and a one-week wait indicates that no more are about to emerge, you can calculate your rate of germination. Divide the number of seeds germinated by the number of seeds tested to find out your germination percentage. If handled very carefully, germinated seeds may be planted in the garden (if the planting time is right) or in cell packs and peat pots for further growth. If the root or shoot is damaged in the transplanting process, the plant will not survive."

This link is inaccessible without password: 


> Seeds are now listed here as a 12 year item verifiable by this link. Thank you vtxtexan << different forum


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## NavyKen

Ok Basecamp we will take that one off the list for the time being.


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## SaskDame

NavyKen said:


> SaskDame thank you for the input. Could you please go into more detail on what you found with the eggs? I am very interested about this.
> :congrat:


I have a very good nose and break eggs into a fruit nappy one at a time before using. We have a coldroom with a concrete floor and we stored the eggs DH oiled in styrofoam egg cartons sitting on the floor. The temp in there is fairly stable over the summer and then again at just above freezing over the winter.

Do not know what else to tell you about it other than I used 9-10 month old eggs making the Christmas Cake this year and needed 13 eggs to make a dozen and now the spoil rate at 11 month old eggs is close to 50%. So up to a year without refridgeration is pushing it a bit, but not a lot. Have not tried it with refridgerated eggs.

I received the following instructions from a participant on another preping forum when I asked about dehydrating eggs at home for long term storage. I will not be trying this one until the chickens start laying more eggs again.

"I take 4 dozen eggs at a time and scramble them up and cook them. Never use any fat of any kind including cooking spray. You can season the eggs with salt, pepper, spices but no fat at all. After cooking the eggs I pour them into my big roasting pan to cool down. Once cool enough to handle I break it up in to very small pieces. I spread it out onto my dehydrator trays in a single layer. Dry until very dry. Then run a little at a time through your blender to make a powder. 12 dozen eggs will fill a #10 can. I'm starting to fill quart jars with my dried eggs and vacuum sealing them and marking them with how they are seasoned. Making several with no seasoning at all for baking. Hope this helps you!"


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## SaskDame

More on the seeds.

What I do manage to do which is helpful is put the date purchased/collected on the seed packets. Particularly helpful for the 1 year only items.


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## ra5451

OK...So If I wanted to store store bought items for a long period of time, Pasta would be the only thing that I could use right off the shelf? What I'm trying to figure out is whether or not I can buy typical stuff (not oats, wheat etc) off the shelf and store them without rotations? Like canned items etc...


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## Asatrur

You mention brown and white sugar, but what raw sugar, where they have not removed the molasses?


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## LinsRage451

*Thank You*

I am new here so I expect to "fumble" around for a while. Thank you for this thread. Just what I needed in the right place at the right time! 
Looking forward to reading more. :2thumb:


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## neldarez

SaskDame said:


> I have a very good nose and break eggs into a fruit nappy one at a time before using. We have a coldroom with a concrete floor and we stored the eggs DH oiled in styrofoam egg cartons sitting on the floor. The temp in there is fairly stable over the summer and then again at just above freezing over the winter.
> 
> Do not know what else to tell you about it other than I used 9-10 month old eggs making the Christmas Cake this year and needed 13 eggs to make a dozen and now the spoil rate at 11 month old eggs is close to 50%. So up to a year without refridgeration is pushing it a bit, but not a lot. Have not tried it with refridgerated eggs.
> 
> I received the following instructions from a participant on another preping forum when I asked about dehydrating eggs at home for long term storage. I will not be trying this one until the chickens start laying more eggs again.
> 
> "I take 4 dozen eggs at a time and scramble them up and cook them. Never use any fat of any kind including cooking spray. You can season the eggs with salt, pepper, spices but no fat at all. After cooking the eggs I pour them into my big roasting pan to cool down. Once cool enough to handle I break it up in to very small pieces. I spread it out onto my dehydrator trays in a single layer. Dry until very dry. Then run a little at a time through your blender to make a powder. 12 dozen eggs will fill a #10 can. I'm starting to fill quart jars with my dried eggs and vacuum sealing them and marking them with how they are seasoned. Making several with no seasoning at all for baking. Hope this helps you!"


I would love to do this but my question is: how do I know how to measure eggs into a recipe? if it asks for 2 eggs, what would I do? Do you mix the powder with water before putting it into a recipe? Thanks...


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