# Best Food Value (Cost per Calorie)



## Suijuris (Apr 26, 2012)

I'm very new to Prep (just really started ramping up last month) and was wondering if anyone has done or found an analysis of the the dollar value for food in a SHTF situation. Something that breaks down the cost per calorie for items and the best value. I know that we should store what we like (which I am doing as well), but I'm also looking to have a longer term storage of items that if it gets real bad, I will be grateful for what I have. Having been a bit of a gym rat, I recently found a deal ( or a least I thought it was) on Weight Gain Powder. I know powders are not for everyone, but this powder gives me almost a total days (SHTF day) worth of calories at 1,040 (4gfat, 208gcarbs, 42g Protein and a host of vitamins). As it is for weight lifters, it seems pretty balanced. At $15.00, the 10 servings (10 days) works out to about $1.50. It weighs about 6lbs so I think it may be something worth vacuum sealing and keeping in my BOB. I bought three different flavors to last me 30 days. It would be great to hear other ideas regarding a balanced 1,000 plus calorie solution at a low/reasonable cost. For all I know $1.50 could be too expensive, but it seems cheaper than the dried foods they sell online. Thanks.


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## gypsysue (Mar 27, 2010)

Welcome to the forum! Glad to have you with us!

On my budget I don't think that hard! lol It was interesting reading your thoughts! Keep up the good work!


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## The_Blob (Dec 24, 2008)

Suijuris said:


> I'm very new to Prep (just really started ramping up last month) and was wondering if anyone has done or found an analysis of the the dollar value for food in a SHTF situation. Something that breaks down the cost per calorie for items and the best value. I know that we should store what we like (which I am doing as well), but I'm also looking to have a longer term storage of items that if it gets real bad, I will be grateful for what I have. Having been a bit of a gym rat, I recently found a deal ( or a least I thought it was) on Weight Gain Powder. I know powders are not for everyone, but this powder gives me almost a total days (SHTF day) worth of calories at 1,040 (4gfat, 208gcarbs, 42g Protein and a host of vitamins). As it is for weight lifters, it seems pretty balanced. At $15.00, the 10 servings (10 days) works out to about $1.50. It weighs about 6lbs so I think it may be something worth vacuum sealing and keeping in my BOB. I bought three different flavors to last me 30 days. It would be great to hear other ideas regarding a balanced 1,000 plus calorie solution at a low/reasonable cost. For all I know $1.50 could be too expensive, but it seems cheaper than the dried foods they sell online. Thanks.


Most of the discussions I remember (almost) on this topic had more to do with calories/ounce due to the weight constraints placed on a BOB (bug out bag). The general consensus was that edible oils (veggie, peanut, lard etc), being almost pure lipid, had the highest calorie content per unit-volume, but lacked all-around nutritive value. Seitan is excellent for high protein (being 80%-90% pure protein) but is not very cheap. Peanut butter is an excellent 'fuel' food as it contains many proteins and fats for energy and to prevent muscle catabolism.
Taking too much of anything is harmful for the body. Though including whey protein powder has many positive effects on the body, excess of whey protein powder can cause harm to the body's different working systems. Here are some of the whey protein powder side effects. Observing any of the following symptoms should be reported to a doctor immediately, who will determine what the exact cause is, and provide appropriate treatment to cure the condition. 
One of the common side effects of whey protein is experiencing an upset stomach. This condition is also accompanied by diarrhea, flatulence and stomach pain.
Since whey protein is obtained from milk, it is unfit for consumption by people suffering from lactose intolerance. It may trigger allergic reactions like skin rashes, sneezing and itching.
Another potential whey protein danger can be seen on the liver and kidneys. With the passage of time, the unmetabolized residue of this supplement tends to get accumulated in the kidneys and liver. This can result in the degeneration of the liver and lead to its damage. The main function of the kidneys is filtration of waste. In case of excess whey protein in the body, the kidneys have to function extra in order to eliminate waste from the body. In the process, whey protein may get accumulated in the kidneys and lead to the formation of kidney stones or calcium deposits, which can harm the kidneys.
Fat gain is also one of the side effects of whey protein powder. Exclusionary use can lead to an increase in calorie intake. This is because the unused dietary supplement gets stored in the adipose tissue in the form of fat. This can lead to excess weight gain and also increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases.


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## JoKing (Mar 11, 2012)

The_Blob said:


> Most of the discussions I remember (almost) on this topic had more to do with calories/ounce due to the weight constraints placed on a BOB (bug out bag). The general consensus was that edible oils (veggie, peanut, lard etc), being almost pure lipid, had the highest calorie content per unit-volume, but lacked all-around nutritive value. Seitan is excellent for high protein (being 80%-90% pure protein) but is not very cheap. Peanut butter is an excellent 'fuel' food as it contains many proteins and fats for energy and to prevent muscle catabolism.
> Taking too much of anything is harmful for the body. Though including whey protein powder has many positive effects on the body, excess of whey protein powder can cause harm to the body's different working systems. Here are some of the whey protein powder side effects. Observing any of the following symptoms should be reported to a doctor immediately, who will determine what the exact cause is, and provide appropriate treatment to cure the condition.
> One of the common side effects of whey protein is experiencing an upset stomach. This condition is also accompanied by diarrhea, flatulence and stomach pain.
> Since whey protein is obtained from milk, it is unfit for consumption by people suffering from lactose intolerance. It may trigger allergic reactions like skin rashes, sneezing and itching.
> ...


Through all of your technobabble(much appreciated), I could almost ascertain, that is why MREs are only reccomended for 21 days of exclusive use. I think it is more of a fuel than a nutritional balance. Just a thought...


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## SlobberToofTigger (Dec 27, 2011)

I think your idea of using weight gain powder is a good one. Especially if you supplement your intake of the powder with foraged foods. 

The concern I have with the powder is shelf life. It is a highly processed food and so I suspect, in the best case, it is only good for five or so years. This may cause your cost per calorie to go up because you will have to replace the powder on a regular schedule. Whereas when compared to wheat which will last for fifty or more years when stored correctly will probably have a much lower cost per calorie. With that said I still think that the weight gain powder has its place for a short term solution until you can get to your long term solution.

Great idea!


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## gypsysue (Mar 27, 2010)

Blob, you always have such wonderful information, and I've learned a lot from you! I didn't realize those powders have Whey in them. I didn't plan on using them, but I couldn't anyway. I'm allergic to dairy and have to use almond, rice, or soy 'dairy' products! I have to be diligant or I pay for it. Thanks for pointing that out.

I'm sure it's a good idea to present all different types of food storage so people have more choices to consider. Some things aren't for some people, others are.


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## Suijuris (Apr 26, 2012)

SlobberToofTigger said:


> I think your idea of using weight gain powder is a good one. Especially if you supplement your intake of the powder with foraged foods.
> 
> The concern I have with the powder is shelf life. It is a highly processed food and so I suspect, in the best case, it is only good for five or so years. This may cause your cost per calorie to go up because you will have to replace the powder on a regular schedule. Whereas when compared to wheat which will last for fifty or more years when stored correctly will probably have a much lower cost per calorie. With that said I still think that the weight gain powder has its place for a short term solution until you can get to your long term solution.
> 
> Great idea!


I'm not sure about shelf life. I plan to vacuum seal (foodsaver) some and store some in Mylar. I will test a packet of each a few years past expiration (2014). We'll see how it goes. Thanks for response.


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## gypsysue (Mar 27, 2010)

That seems like a great way to store it. I wonder if it would keep even longer if it was in Mylar with as much air as possible pressed out, then sealed in the Food Saver bags? :scratch:

Then keep it in a cool, dark place that doesn't get a lot of daytime/nighttime temperature fluctuation. A steady temperature helps keep food longer. I'm sure it would keep quite a ways past it's expiration date. In the meanwhile, do you plant to use and rotate it, or are you primarily storing it for when the SHTF?


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## SlobberToofTigger (Dec 27, 2011)

gypsysue said:


> That seems like a great way to store it. I wonder if it would keep even longer if it was in Mylar with as much air as possible pressed out, then sealed in the Food Saver bags?


Not really. Both systems are trying to accomplish the same thing. Oxygen is the big culprit in the decay of dry foods (I am assuming reasonable storage temps). The food saver system sucks some of the air out of the bag, whereas in the mylar bag system you usually use an oxygen absorber. The food saver system is less effective because the bags used are more permeable to oxygen so over time some gets into the bag to replace the O2 that has already started ravaging your stored food. The mylar bags are very impermeable to gases so after your oxygen absorber consumes most of the O2 and water vapor you end up with a mostly nitrogen based atmosphere for your food. In short out of the two systems the mylar bag and O2 absorber is the best with the food saver coming in a very late second. In fact the mylar bag system is so much better that combining the systems provides no added benefit.


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

Since this thread has taken on general food discussion, I moved it out of "Introductions" and into the General Food And Foraging forum.


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## Suijuris (Apr 26, 2012)

gypsysue said:


> That seems like a great way to store it. I wonder if it would keep even longer if it was in Mylar with as much air as possible pressed out, then sealed in the Food Saver bags? :scratch:
> 
> Then keep it in a cool, dark place that doesn't get a lot of daytime/nighttime temperature fluctuation. A steady temperature helps keep food longer. I'm sure it would keep quite a ways past it's expiration date. In the meanwhile, do you plant to use and rotate it, or are you primarily storing it for when the SHTF?


I really don't eat weight gainer (I have no problem gaining weight-it's taking it off that's the prob). So, I will keep this for as long as I can and swap it out. I really only plan to use it as a high calorie source in my BOB.


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## Suijuris (Apr 26, 2012)

SlobberToofTigger said:


> Not really. Both systems are trying to accomplish the same thing. Oxygen is the big culprit in the decay of dry foods (I am assuming reasonable storage temps). The food saver system sucks some of the air out of the bag, whereas in the mylar bag system you usually use an oxygen absorber. The food saver system is less effective because the bags used are more permeable to oxygen so over time some gets into the bag to replace the O2 that has already started ravaging your stored food. The mylar bags are very impermeable to gases so after your oxygen absorber consumes most of the O2 and water vapor you end up with a mostly nitrogen based atmosphere for your food. In short out of the two systems the mylar bag and O2 absorber is the best with the food saver coming in a very late second. In fact the mylar bag system is so much better that combining the systems provides no added benefit.


Thanks for the info. I've been using a foodsaver but think I'm going to switch to Mylar exclusively. Thank you.


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## defaultCharacter (Apr 25, 2012)

Hi all,

At first I was buying the #10 cans like the kind you can get from Mountain House, but that got too expensive (at anywhere from $25 to $35 per can, with about 10 servings each), so I did research and have managed to save a lot of $. I am now no longer really in favor of the #10 cans as a primary way of prepping from a budget standpoint. If you don't have time to spend prepping, then simply buying a couple of the cans can be an answer, however.

I bought dry pinto beans and white rice in bulk and have stored these for the long term (in food grade buckets/mylar bags/oxygen absorbers... see this video on how to do it: 



 ). Rice & beans aren't that exciting, but combined, they are a complete protein, and you won't starve.

I was inspired by this thread to do some calculations, and here's what I came up with.

*Meal/Cost, Nutrition info:*

*Beans:*
Shelf Life: 30 years (at 70F)

Cost: 25 lbs. $21.49 at Costco

Per 8 oz (cooked) serving (4 oz dry):
$0.215 per serving
15 g protein per serving
245 cal. per serving​*Rice:*
Shelf Life: 10 years (at 70F)

Cost: 50 lbs. $20.99 at Costco

Per 8 oz (cooked) serving (4 oz dry):
$0.105 per serving
4 g protein per serving
240 cal. per serving​*Total Per Serving:* $0.32, 485 calories, 19 g protein

At 3X per day, that's $.96, 1455 calories, 57 g protein

So I would say you'd save a lot more $ buying dry food like this (and make sure you have water and a way of cooking them!!! I suppose you could just soak and eat them as is, without cooking... but that doesn't sound very tasty).

You'd have to factor in the cost of the mylar bags, oxygen absorbers, buckets, but that still ends up just being a few more pennies. Of course living off of rice & beans isn't exactly nutritionally complete (and pretty bland). You'd need to figure out how to spice this up and add other items for variety. I bought some tomato powder, minced/dried onion and other spices to add. Since I don't have a dehydrator (I should probably get one, not sure), I bought some freeze-dried fruit & vegetables (and the tomato powder) at www.emergencyessentials.com, which we'd use to add to some of the meals.

I have other foods stored, but I just wanted to give the OP some food for thought. 

Also, I would point out that while the protein powder might seem to have enough calories and protein, you definitely aren't getting much bulk, and might end up feeling hungry all the time. Kind of like eating a single protein bar for lunch. 

Oh yeah -- a note on the shelf life. I got the estimates from http://survivalacres.com/information/shelflife.html, but that doesn't include the fact that I stored them in the mylar with the O2 absorbers; I'm sure the food will stay good much longer.


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## SlobberToofTigger (Dec 27, 2011)

defaultCharacter said:


> ...
> 
> At 3X per day, that's $.96, 1455 calories, 57 g protein
> 
> ...


Very well done post. Thank you for the numbers! I have always believed you could eat for less than a dollar a day but have never done the math.


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## defaultCharacter (Apr 25, 2012)

Not sure how we would like living off of rice & beans, but it'd be better than having nothing to eat. I've read that one should store food they normally eat... but I can't see storing yogurt, bananas, tuna, fresh veggies and steak.  IMO, it's a lot easier and less expensive to store rice & beans. 

I've got a booklet I've yet to read about foraging wild plants, and that is one thing I think is critical to being healthy, which would be desirable to supplement the stored food. You need the vitamins from fresh plants, especially vitamin C. As a back-up, I stored some vitamin C crystals in small handmade mylar packets (with the O2 absorbers again -- have no idea how this will turn out); I read that it should stay good for a long time, being entirely ascorbic acid. 

Note for anyone that is seriously concerned about getting enough vitamin C, you can make a tea from boiled pine needles and get plenty of it. But I have to do more research (I just found a link saying that some people can be allergic, and pregnant women shouldn't drink it, and yew needles are poisonous).


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## SlobberToofTigger (Dec 27, 2011)

defaultCharacter said:


> Not sure how we would like living off of rice & beans, but it'd be better than having nothing to eat. I've read that one should store food they normally eat... but I can't see storing yogurt, bananas, tuna, fresh veggies and steak.  IMO, it's a lot easier and less expensive to store rice & beans.


I agree. The FIFO method only works if you eat a lot of canned foods or like rice and beans a lot... Grin.

If your diet consists mostly of fresh foods then FIFO does not work and so finding very long term storage foods makes sense. A good supply of rice, beans, wheat, corn, sugar, salt, oils, and some canned items to spice it up is the very basis of the Mormons long term storage plan. Build it and forget it for 25 years. If the SHTF does not happen feed it to some pigs and buy a new supply. And for the 25 years your LTS is waiting for you don't worry about the world ending because you are set (you will still need a few skills etc).


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## mdprepper (Jan 22, 2010)

I would suggest that if you normally do not eat rice, beans or use wheat berries that you do at least learn to cook them now. When I first started my food storage I had never cooked a dried bean before. My family was not used to those kinds of food. I started adding one bean/rice meal every 2 weeks to make sure I could cook them and make them palatable before I needed it to survive. It took a bit of trial and error but now I can cook everything that we store to have complete meals that are tasty. Since I starting doing that we have eliminated "boxed" meals and just keep the ingredients to make them from scratch on hand. They get familiar tasting foods, I get to save money and know what they are eating isn't full of preservatives and chemicals.


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## The_Blob (Dec 24, 2008)

mdprepper said:


> I would suggest that if you normally do not eat rice, beans or use wheat berries that you do at least learn to cook them now. When I first started my food storage I had never cooked a dried bean before. My family was not used to those kinds of food. I started adding one bean/rice meal every 2 weeks to make sure I could cook them and make them palatable before I needed it to survive. It took a bit of trial and error but now I can cook everything that we store to have complete meals that are tasty. Since I starting doing that we have eliminated "boxed" meals and just keep the ingredients to make them from scratch on hand. They get familiar tasting foods, I get to save money and know what they are eating isn't full of preservatives and chemicals.


:congrat: :congrat: :congrat: :congrat: :congrat:

Beans & rice are definitely 'boring' by themselves, but the additions make all the difference between 'food that keeps you alive' and a 'meal that you might actually look forward to'.

great, now I can't get "beans & rice, beans & rice... Momma even sometimes cooks us twice!" out of my head. 






if this PSA were made today, it would be considered "RAYCISS!"


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## mdprepper (Jan 22, 2010)

Thanks, now it is stuck in my head! I loved School House Rock. I bought them all on VHS and made my kids watch them. Now I need to find them on DVD.


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## lazydaisy67 (Nov 24, 2011)

Wouldn't the whey milk be ok to mix with things as the milk ingredient? It's cheaper per ounce than powdered milk. How about cans of evaporated milk. The milk thing has me stumped. My dang goat better not ever die, lol.


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## SlobberToofTigger (Dec 27, 2011)

lazydaisy67 said:


> Wouldn't the whey milk be ok to mix with things as the milk ingredient? It's cheaper per ounce than powdered milk. How about cans of evaporated milk. The milk thing has me stumped. My dang goat better not ever die, lol.


Got to admit I had never heard of Whey milk beverage. It looks like it can be substituted for milk in most cooking and it does have some of the milk proteins. I think I will stick with powdered milk, but if that is what you can get then go for it.


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## mdprepper (Jan 22, 2010)

lazydaisy67 said:


> Wouldn't the whey milk be ok to mix with things as the milk ingredient? It's cheaper per ounce than powdered milk. How about cans of evaporated milk. The milk thing has me stumped. My dang goat better not ever die, lol.


I don't know anything about whey milk. You can make your own evaporated and condensed milk from powdered milk (and lots of other stuff including cheese) from powdered milk. Here is a great link for information on powdered milk.

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/powderedmilk.htm


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