# My 'grains' strategy...offered for your consideration



## Tacitus (Dec 30, 2012)

I downloaded the "Long Term Food Storage Calculator and Inventory Sheet". That spreadsheet recommended a certain distribution of grains up to 300 pounds per adult per year (second column below).

Another site recommended a different distribution of grains up to 400 pounds per adult per year (third column).










I went with the higher amount (400 pounds), since under the worst case scenario of me having to deplete these stores, I would be engaging in hard labor and would need the higher of the two minimum caloric intakes. I also adapted these percentages to my own usages.

So, what do you folks think? 300 lbs or 400 lbs?

Regarding the percentages: I went with lower wheat but higher flour since I have no grinder (those things are expensive). I added farina (which I like, and it doesn't require me to grind it). I raised rice to a much higher percentage because we use it a lot in our daily cooking. I kept pasta in the middle of the two recommendations even though we use it a lot (mainly because I didn't have a good bulk source for it, and I wasn't sure how it would store), but I am considering raising it more (perhaps at the expense of wheat and oats).

One thing I wondered was this: should I adjust the foods to our habits...or should I try to adjust our habits to the food recommendations...or both. But I didn't know if these recommendations were objectively ideal in any way, so I went for the first option (adjusting the percentages to our eating habits).


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## PackerBacker (Dec 13, 2012)

Tacitus said:


> I downloaded the "Long Term Food Storage Calculator and Inventory Sheet". That spreadsheet recommended a certain distribution of grains up to 300 pounds per adult per year (second column below).
> 
> Another site recommended a different distribution of grains up to 400 pounds per adult per year (third column).
> 
> ...


I would "adjust the foods to our habits".

We eat low carb/grain now and don't look to change that but I also see the advantage of storing grains.

Good questions though. I am currently debating many of the same questions and will be looking forward to the replys.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

Packer is right. If you don't eat it now however infrequently then you are better off spending your money storing foods you do eat.


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## Tacitus (Dec 30, 2012)

One thing I know is that as a family, we probably eat too many processed foods.

Even though I like wheat berry cereals and steel cut oats, my wife and kids go for the easy way out and get their grains primarily from Kellogs and General Mills cereals, and store bought bread.

My wife bakes from box mixes (which don't store well long term), not from scratch...and although I plan on baking some bread myself from scratch for fun, I probably will not try to get my wife to change her baking habits until TEOTWAWKI. (I have to think about preserving my marriage as well, and I don't think my meddling in the kitchen will be well received!)

I am storing some of those box cereals for a short term emergency, but I am storing natural grains for the long term. The wife and kids will just have to adjust to the natural grains in the unlikely event that we ever have to use our long term food insurance. I'm just not sure how long Cheerios will store.


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

We tend to eat meat & fresh veggies, not so much on the grains, too much processed, & we eat out way too often. In a SHTF scenario, we will have to make the switch. We have carefully chosen food & recipes our whole family likes that store well. That seemed to make the most sense to me, even though it doesn't include many wheat berries.


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## memrymaker (Dec 12, 2012)

Tacitus said:


> I downloaded the "Long Term Food Storage Calculator and Inventory Sheet". That spreadsheet recommended a certain distribution of grains up to 300 pounds per adult per year (second column below).
> 
> Another site recommended a different distribution of grains up to 400 pounds per adult per year (third column).
> 
> ...


I think you have to do both. It will be personalized, of course and will take into consideration your medical conditions and/or religious beliefs.

If you want food that will provide you with the calories and energy you may need for hard labor (working on a farm, building a new home, rebuilding after everything collapses,etc...) I would go with the foods that have carried man through time. Wheat, rice, corn, oatmeal, beans & meat are not all encompassing - but at the top of my list.

With that said, it is good to have as much variety, in your diet as possible. We practice now using our stored food and get used to the different tastes, textures and cooking/processing methods.

There are so many options (and thank goodness we don't have to worry right now about a harsh and limited diet). In a survival situation, our family would eat what gave us energy and kept our bellies from being hungry as we worked hard to get out of tough times!


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

Keep in mind, there's more to raw grain than just grinding it into flour. In the winter you can throw wheat berries in a pot of soil, set it on the windowsill and have sprouts in a couple weeks. Sprouts are loaded with vitamins and minerals that might be missing in your diet when you can't get them in the things you normally eat.


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## memrymaker (Dec 12, 2012)

**On the kitchen interference, suggest that YOU want to make the next birthday cake from scratch - you will be amazed at the difference in taste! (make sure to use cake flour) If she likes your cake, she may start to see the up side to having meals and desserts from scratch. Just a thought...


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

memrymaker said:


> **On the kitchen interference, suggest that YOU want to make the next birthday cake from scratch - you will be amazed at the difference in taste! (make sure to use cake flour) If she likes your cake, she may start to see the up side to having meals and desserts from scratch. Just a thought...


My DH is the only one who eats bread in our house. For this reason we just buy 2 loaves from Costco and freeze one. I do have about 70lbs of flour stored. I have been wanting to bake some bread to get out of the habit of just buying things out of convenience. Once homemade bread becomes a regular part of our diet and lifestyle I'll invest in the whole grains and a grain mill.


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

Grimm, I got my grain mill because I "want" it for grinding grain, but I "NEED" it for grinding dehydrated scrambled eggs into breakfast preps. Now I have DIY powdered eggs ready to go!

Also, the one I got has metal and stone wheels, I can make my own nut butters too which I'm really tempted to try, especially after I buy a place hopefully in the next month or two, I'm going to start planing trees. I'll buy a few pounds of each kind of nut tree that would be a good producer and see which ones I like, and then go from there on what I buy to plant


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

Eat what you store & store what you eat ...

Best of luck ...


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Just want to make sure you know that the nutrient make-up of the "grains" vary a lot, a site like this http://nutritiondata.self.com/ might help if you are interested and stick to the real numbers, not the charts.
My only concern would be that by substituting rice and pasta for oats and wheat (hard red spring for instance) there is a HUGE drop in protein, fiber, and most nutrients. Rice is lower in a huge list of vitamins and minerals than HRSW and higher in none as far as I know.
Today this may be covered up by enriched cereals and such so you should consider whether you would become deficient if relying on stored food, or if you have other sources, IMHO.


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## Caribou (Aug 18, 2012)

I use lists to see if something is missing in my preps. None of us eat exactly alike. I shop out of my own "store" except for perishables. When something goes into stores it is dated. If I am using any item faster than anticipated then I know to increase the quantity of that item. I don't worry about adapting my system or my taste to long term storage as I eat out of my preps daily. I took the adage "store what you eat, eat what you store" to heart many years ago. 

If I go to the "store" and I don't have an item then I purchase one for the home and at least one for storage. There are certain items that we use so little of that I still find holes in my stores. To be honest this has become a hobby as much as anything else and I really do enjoy it. I guess I could collect butterflies. I do have some supplies that are only for long term storage but very few. 

First in first out keeps me from losing much if anything. About a year ago Costco quit carrying a product we like. It is a product that might not keep well so we are getting low now. I guess that most of their customers ran out a long time ago. If they bring it back of I can find it elsewhere we will store more next time.


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## CrackbottomLouis (May 20, 2012)

Nobody ever mentions barley when talking grains. Stores well, good nutrition, can be used for bread and just about anything else, and has stood the test of time. If I am not mistaken, it was the primary grain of the Egyptians and also makes good beer


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## DJgang (Apr 10, 2011)

CrackbottomLouis said:


> Nobody ever mentions barley when talking grains. Stores well, good nutrition, can be used for bread and just about anything else, and has stood the test of time. If I am not mistaken, it was the primary grain of the Egyptians and also makes good beer


Has anyone research some of the very first wheat or barley from egypt?

Your post reminds me of the book 'wheat belly' have ya read it?

The book talks about how we have changed wheat since the beginning of 'time' aka since the Egyptians grew it. A lady went to Egypt and found some of the ancient wheat, she grew some, ate it and didn't have any reactions to the wheat. The book talks about how these changes are what makes lots of people gluten intolerant. Makes sense doesn't it?

We need to store ancient wheat!!! Yea!!! :scratch


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## CrackbottomLouis (May 20, 2012)

I haven't done the research I just like barley in my soups and just about anything else really. Maybe I should read up on it.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Barley is great and seems to be available everywhere unlike some of the grains. Up in Alberta they raise a lot of cattle but almost no corn for feed, barley is the grain of choice for livestock there, maybe not as versatile as corn but it does great for many purposes. It is generally a mid protein grain, depending on whether it is 2row or 6row, intended for malt or feed, not as high as hrsw but higher than rice or corn. Can make good beer from wheat as well but I love the flavour of malt.


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## ras1219como (Jan 15, 2013)

This is some information I found about ancient Egyptian wheat called kamut. It apparently isn't actually wheat but something similar.

https://www.usaemergencysupply.com/information_center/all_about_grains/all_about_grains_kamut.htm


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## Tacitus (Dec 30, 2012)

CrackbottomLouis said:


> Nobody ever mentions barley when talking grains. Stores well, good nutrition, can be used for bread and just about anything else, and has stood the test of time. If I am not mistaken, it was the primary grain of the Egyptians and also makes good beer


I am now looking at barley to provide some variety to my grain selection.

Do you buy pearled barley or hulled barley? Which is best to store long term? Which is best in your bread and soups...and beer?


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## db2469 (Jun 11, 2012)

According to my research, grains are overated as a nutritious and desirable food...we eat a much lower carb diet than most in this country, mostly meat, eggs, cheese and vegetables. It's highly unlikely one will become diabetic eating that kind of diet..


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## Tacitus (Dec 30, 2012)

db2469 said:


> According to my research, grains are overated as a nutritious and desirable food...we eat a much lower carb diet than most in this country, mostly meat, eggs, cheese and vegetables. It's highly unlikely one will become diabetic eating that kind of diet..


I hear you. I eat too many grains, and I am trying to cut back on grains and increase meats and vegetables in my daily life. I have been having some success.

However, while I understand that you should store what you eat, I cannot store a year's supply of our usual meats and veggies. My wife cooks with fresh foods almost exclusively, and then frozen foods. She won't go for dehydrated or canned. (She will obviously have to change her ways if the SHTF...but then so will we all.)

So, I store what I can of our usual foods for shorter term emergencies, and then I store other foods for longer term emergencies.

Grains store very well for the long term, and in a SHTF situation (or God forbid a TEOTWAWKI situation), I tend to think that grains will be an excellent source of energy in a time in which I will be doing a lot of hard labor (I won't be sitting around watching TV).


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

Tacitus said:


> I went with lower wheat but higher flour since I have no grinder (those things are expensive).


One thing to keep in mind is the storage life of processed flour versus raw grain. Grains can be stashed away for 20 years but flour has a much more limited storage life. Also, if it's whole wheat flour that your storing keep in mind that the oils in the flour are going to go rancid and limit the storage life unlike white flour where the oils have been removed.

Other people here can detail the storage life particulars for you from their own wealth of knowledge. The thing about raw grain is that nature has provided the grain with a shell to help retard oxidation and when the grain is processed into flour that grain shell is cracked and the oxidation process starts immediately.

A way to wholly or partially circumvent this issue is to simply avoid planning for multi-year storage and rotate your stock every year thus insuring that you always have a years worth of flour on hand and you always bake with flour from your stores and replace it with newly purchased flour.


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## gam46 (Jan 24, 2011)

Tacitus said:


> I am now looking at barley to provide some variety to my grain selection.
> 
> Do you buy pearled barley or hulled barley? Which is best to store long term? Which is best in your bread and soups...and beer?


I choose hulled barley as it is less processed than pearled. May take a bit longer to cook although I generally soak whole grains overnight before cooking so cut down on the direct heat time needed.

I just keep it in canning jars and have had no spoilage issue over a couple of years.


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