People prepared for emergency situations are often called “crazies” by others. After an emergency, however, prepared people will be referred to by another name: survivors. One of the most important aspects of your survival is a reliable and nutritious food source; this means that in order to fully prepare for a disaster, you need to have a stock of food. This doesn’t mean that you need to purchase costly MRE’s and build a huge stockpile. Rather than focusing on the amount of food, focus on the quality of the food you store.
When creating your emergency stockpile, make sure that your food is not only easy to store, but also has maximum nutritional value. Since your funds are most likely limited, you don’t want to spend too much on a stockpile that you will (hopefully) never use. When shopping, purchase the following low cost, high benefit foods:
Peanut butter
Peanut butter is packed with protein and calories, which are both essential to sustaining life. Peanut butter is a good choice to stockpile because regardless of the manufacturer’s expiration date, it can last up to 5 years.
Salt
Salt lasts forever and improves the taste of food, which can be useful in preserving your group’s morale. Salt can also be used to cure meat, so if you do catch an animal it can be preserved.
Honey
As stated by Apocalypsesurvivalist honey can last for centuries if stored in a sealed jar. In fact, edible honey has been found in Egyptian tombs. The sugar found in honey is essential for your body, and like salt, can be used to improve the taste of your food.
Sugar
Another way to improve the taste of food, sugar can last up to 10 years. Like salt, it is also essential to the process of curing meat.
Canned fruits and vegetables
You need to eat fruits and vegetables in order to avoid diseases such as scurvy.Canned fruit and vegetables can last as long as 5 years, which is long enough for you to plant a self sustaining garden.
Rice
There is a reason rice is a food staple in many cultures-not only does it last for years, it is also loaded with carbohydrates, calories, vitamins, and minerals. Rice is also easy to cook-just soak it in boiling water for 30 minuets. Rice can also be soaked in warm water for 1-2 days before eating, meaning that if you don’t have access to fire, you can still eat rice.
Pasta
Much like rice, pasta is a staple of many diets. Also like rice, pasta is high in carbs, calories, and other beneficial materials. Unfortunately, pasta has less shelf life than rice-so make sure to eat pasta before moving on to rice.
Canned fish
Canned fish lasts at least 2-3 years, meaning that it has one of the longest shelf lives of canned foods. If you can, try to get canned salmon because not only can you eat it right from the can, it contains proteins and healthy fats.
Lard
In everyday life lard is a taboo product, but in an emergency lard can save your life. Not only is it packed with calories, lard can also be used as a cooking oil. Lard used for cooking can be reused, meaning that you don’t need to waste space storing it. It can also be used as to lubricate and protect metals.
Beans
Beans contain so much protein that vegetarians are encouraged to eat them to replace the protein found in meat. Beans also contain many essential nutrients and can last for 10 years if stored in an airtight container. Since most beans have all these qualities, you can vary your diet by purchasing different kinds of beans.
