# just a basic question...



## relsken (Jul 6, 2013)

I would like to stash a three month supply for two. Needs to be a 20 year shelf life. Should I buy a pretty boxed kit, check with LDS, go to freeze dried sites? Just looking for something I can stash and forget about. But, I don't want to be hungry or bored when I do need to crack it open. Thanks


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## CapnJack (Jul 20, 2012)

Depends on your budget. Welcome to the forum, btw.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I buy the Augason Farms 30 day buckets when I find them on sale. I like them because not only do they have a higher calorie content the most thirty-day buckets they also include water filters and fire starting devices. They run between $60-85 each on sale. I believe they claim they have a shelf life of 25 years. 6-7 buckets would definitely create a buy and forget three-month storage supply for two people. Don't forget to store water too. Can't re-freeze-dried food without water. Salt and extra seasonings wouldn't hurt either.


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## Quills (Jun 14, 2011)

First of all, welcome! 

To answer your question, store what you eat, and eat what you store. Don't just buy a package and put it in your basement, work up a stock of food that you rotate and which gets used. The last thing you need, should TSHTF, is trying to adjust your body to unfamiliar foods, while you're dealing with other stress!

Make up a list of the 10-15 meals you eat the most, figure out what you need to make them, and then multiply by however long you want to store food for, and then work toward getting that stock stored. 

Making the Best of Basics, a book by James Talmage Stevens, is also a great resource for figuring out what you need if you're a complete newbie


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

Welcome!

Like so many newbies, you just want a quick answer to your quick question. It really doesn't work like that. 

What has gotten your attention?

Why 3 months of food for 2 that will last 20 years? Why not a years worth? Do you think in 20 years you will need 3 months of food?

1. You could visit the food storage section. There is lots of good information there. LOTS!

2. Prepping is not a purchase, it is a lifestyle. Having some food stored is one part of that lifestyle. Learning how to be self sufficient is a much larger part. 

3. Store what you eat and eat what you store.

4. Not into cooking from scratch? Sorry, your life is getting ready to be rough, rough, rough. Prepping with foods you want to store for 20 years means that is what you are currently cooking and eating.

5. Three month food supply is not necessarily purchased in a pretty package from someone or somewhere. There are many companies, including LDS, who have food that will last for years, but it will not be complete. You can buy canned meats at your grocery store. You can buy dehydrated meat from some food storage companies. You can can your own meat at home. 

6. LDS has some great basics at the BEST prices for those products, but you will NOT want to live on just that, although you could. But then again, if you are not used to eating that way, you won't! If you just have beans, rice, wheat, powdered milk, and oatmeal, do you eat that now without any other foods?

7. Spices and seasonings are personal and you will want to collect some of them.

Much more, but just some thoughts for now.


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## FatTire (Mar 20, 2012)

If the only thing i was interested in prepping for was to have a three month supply of food for 2 that a shelf life of 25 years, I would sit down and make a list of foods we like to eat, and start googling freeze dried foods and looking for sales.

This is where many people start, and theres nothing wrong with having a safe supply. This will put you well ahead of the people who dont see any reason to have a stock.

Keep an open mind though, you may find there are other methods that might be of interest you.


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## camo2460 (Feb 10, 2013)

Welcome to the site from Missouri. Food is a good thing to have along with water and shelter, but what if you're stuck in a situation where you do not have access to your stored/stashed supply? My point is that learning how to survive/thrive in less than ideal conditions, is in my opinion, is of the highest priority. Your brain and ingenuity is the best tool that you have, and knowledge is something that can't be taken from you or be lost. Remember that knowledge is power.


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## relsken (Jul 6, 2013)

Thanks for all the input folks...
My thought was ...3 months, try it, another 3-6 months...keep on keepin' on. Build to a point that I'm comfortable with. Again, not quite ready to wright off my present lifestyle...


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## Geek999 (Jul 9, 2013)

That sounds reasonable. There are a variety of factors to consider for the initial supply and for whatever you add to it. Cost is an obvious factor, as is having things you'll enjoy eating. I would add to that storage space both because of the amount of space food requires and the fact you'll want the temperature kept reasonable.

The route most often recommended is to buy extra of what you eat normally until you have the amount you want and simply rotate by using the oldest first and replacing it as you go. I think this is also the best way to meet the requirements you have laid out except for that 25 year shelf life. I would actually suggest doing this first, then adding long term storage foods.

You can get some staples in the form of the Augason Farms buckets Sentry mentioned and I would suggest that when you are ready to put away something beyond a 3 month supply for two. Once you have that in place you'll again want to return to the issue of taste and variety.

Somewhere along the line you'll want some MREs and MayDay or Datrex bars.

The point is to mix it up. You might also want to start thinking beyond that first 3 month supply and just plan on budgeting a certain amount each month to get you to your ultimate goal.

I would also suggest that if this is your first foray into prepping that you consider whether you want to store for more than two people. For instance, my immediate household has 4 people. I am prepping for 16 as I know that some relatives are likely to show up and I won't want to turn them away.


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## Caribou (Aug 18, 2012)

There are plenty of foods that will keep for 25 years or more. As previously mentioned buy what you eat and eat what you store. You might want to read the LDS Preparedness Manual, this will provide you with answers to questions you have yet to think of.

https://www.ldsavow.com/PrepManualGeneral.html


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## Lake Windsong (Nov 27, 2009)

relsken said:


> Thanks for all the input folks...
> My thought was ...3 months, try it, another 3-6 months...keep on keepin' on. Build to a point that I'm comfortable with. Again, not quite ready to wright off my present lifestyle...


While comparison shopping, keep in mind the cooking and meal preparation methods you are most comfortable with. If you've ever experience a power outage, use that experience as a guide for how you will prepare your food, as well as for sanitation.
Also, keep in mind that some of the prepackaged kits are a little stingy on serving sizes, so what the package says may or not be equivalent the serving size you expect.
Many of the 'store for decades' meal kit items can be purchased in smaller quantities so you can try out your preparation methods and taste test the foods. In case of a job loss, local disaster, or even something bigger, you'll appreciate not adding to a stressful situation by having foods that are difficult to prepare or that y'all just don't like.


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## PreparedRifleman73 (Nov 2, 2012)

weedygarden said:


> 2. Prepping is not a purchase, it is a lifestyle. Having some food stored is one part of that lifestyle. Learning how to be self sufficient is a much larger part.


That's the best advice you'll ever get here!


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## MsSage (Mar 3, 2012)

relsken You say your not ready to write off your current lifestyle ....sorry but you already have in essence. Once your eyes have been opened there is No Turning Back......GAWD I wish sometimes I could BUT you cant. What you need to understand is Your not going to go all grizzly adams leave everything behind and live off the land LOL It will be slow positive change. You will decide what your good at and what you enjoy doing. The more you learn the more you want to learn and start a plan for the rest of your life. You will have more confidence and have peace in knowing "I can take care of myself like my Grand/Great Grand parents did". Dont look at this like you have to give everything up, you dont its only a more balanced approach. 
When things do change I am now of the thought its already has cuz its been slow and steady lulling people into thinking nothing is happening.
If it makes you feel any better get 2-3 times what the bucket says for 2 people for 3 months ( 3 buckets = 2 people for 3 months then get 6 or 8 buckets)

Welcome to the board.


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## Tacitus (Dec 30, 2012)

MsSage said:


> relsken You say your not ready to write off your current lifestyle ....sorry but you already have in essence. Once your eyes have been opened there is No Turning Back......GAWD I wish sometimes I could BUT you cant.


Cypher: You know, I know this steak doesn't exist. I know that when I put it in my mouth, the Matrix is telling my brain that it is juicy and delicious. After nine years, you know what I realize?
[Takes a bite of steak]
Cypher: Ignorance is bliss.


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## Tacitus (Dec 30, 2012)

There are obviously two schools of thought:

"Store what you eat"; and
"store and forget."
I personally think both are valid and should be balanced. But, if you can eat the "store and forget" foods every day, then you will have perfectly mixed the two schools of thought...and you will have achieved *total consciousness*...which is nice.

Many in this forum are there; I am just an aspirant.

It sounds like you want to start with some store and forget options, which is how I started. (If I was the one in charge of our pantry and our meals, I might have started the other way.) My initial focus was: What is the bare minimum that I need so that my family doesn't starve. As family patriarch, I figured that would satisfy my first obligation on this world. First thing I did was go out and buy rice, wheat, oats, and beans. Initially I bought #10 cans from LDS--still a good source. Then I found a source where I could buy 50 pound bags at a time, and I stored that in 5 gallon buckets. This bulk approach is the cheapest. Stored properly, this stuff lasts forever. Peace of mind in a bucket.

Once I felt like my family would not starve, I started looking for things to make life better...things to make my rice and beans tasty, and more of the everyday items I eat.

You are only looking to feed 2 mouths, though. You may just want to go straight for freeze dried food, as others have suggested (or just double or triple your pantry items if you eat a lot of canned goods). That is more expensive, but with only 2 mouths, that may be fine.


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## Geek999 (Jul 9, 2013)

I don't see any reason you can't keep your lifestyle and prep. For the skills part of prepping you need to practice things enough to be able to do them when needed. You don't need to do them every day. If you currently never cook, then cook one day a week.


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