So, now that you know where to go to get this information, lets go on to talk about food and water storage. I will tell you some different categories of things you should be getting. What kinds of things should you store?
1- Water
2-72 hr kit food or 2 weeks of very easy to prepare food
3- Three months supply and
4- Long term food storage.
WATER
Your number one goal should be to get water. Water can be free. If you won't drink water from a bottle you filled yourself, at least fill juice bottles or a 55-gallon drum to use for washing. (Half of the water you need is for washing.) Then you only have to pay for bottled water for half your supply.
72 hour kit food, or 2 weeks of very easy to prepare food
We are very vulnerable to hurricanes and ice storms in this area. For the first 3 days or 4 days after a major disaster you will be totally on your own, and probably without electricity. Either evacuating to somewhere else, or sheltering in place.
Prepare to have every necessity of life, especially water. Plan to do no cooking or minimal cooking. These would be the same types of food my sons take on a backpacking or camping trip. These are convenience foods, so they will cost some money, but you don’t want to be messing with lots of ingredients and preparations when dealing with a disaster.
This is not necessarily a balanced diet, just to keep you alive. A lot of it is similar to food for a school sack lunch, and would keep for about 6 months. Lots of people rotate their 72-hour kit food every General Conference.
I have lots of lemonade and koolaid and chocolate milk to make the stored water or powdered milk taste better.
3 month shelf stable food. Everything for every meal for 13 weeks.
“We can begin ever so modestly. We can begin with a one week’s food supply and gradually build it to a month, and then to three months.”
Gordon B. Hinckley, “To Men of the Priesthood,” Liahona and Ensign, Nov. 2002, 58.October 2002
I will describe Wendy Dewitt’s method. She thought about food storage, and she decided she wanted good food, food that she already liked to eat. She wrote down 14 dinners that her family liked, wrote down all the ingredients right down to the teaspoon of salt, multiplied it by 26 times, and bought that amount of food, so she could eat that meal every other week. Then she knew she had all the ingredients to eat dinner for a whole year.
She also did the same with breakfasts, and ingredients for one loaf of bread a day. This plan is all described in her booklet.
But I don't want to overwhelm you, so consider doing her method and basing it on Three Months. Just plan out everything for 13 weeks or three months instead of a year like she did.
Store what you eat. Eat what you store. Rotate, rotate, rotate.
The ladies on FoodStorageMadeEasy feel that it is okay to keep meat in the freezer for their 3 month supply. Wendy Dewitt doesn’t keep her meat in the freezer, she cans it. She doesn't want to rely on the power grid.
Ask yourself, How often can I stand to eat this dish? If you can eat it every other week, buy 6 or 7 meals of it.
If you can eat it once a week, buy 13 meals of it.
Canned goods can easily last 1-3 years, no problem.
Boxes can get bugs in them, rotate them quickly.
My family's plan: Here are some of the things in my three-month supply.
Taco Soup. We can easily eat it twice a month. Twice a month for 3 months = 6 times. So I bought 6 bags of Fritos at Sam's, and all the cans of beans, corn, and tomato sauce, bought a big jar of Taco Seasoning Powder, and canned some ground beef. Now I have all the ingredients except lettuce, and we could eat it without lettuce if we had to. (If you don't want to can the beef, just keep it in your freezer.)
Spaghetti. Twice a month. Spaghetti noodles, spaghetti sauce, powdered Parmesan cheese, oil. Buy enough for 6 meals.
Canned Soup- I buy it on sale. We have lots and lots of this.
Hamburger Helper, Asian Helper. One can of chicken for 2 boxes. Oil. Powdered milk.
Snacks and desserts, not just main dishes. Cake mix, can of frosting, oil, powdered eggs.
Jellos and puddings- two per week for 3 months. Remember to store ALL the ingredients. Jello just needs water. I store evaporated milk or powdered milk to make the pudding.
Eat cold cereal half the days for 3 months-11 boxes for our family. I have the powdered milk stored just in case, but for now I'll buy the milk at the store.
(Remember to store food inside the temperature controlled house, not in attic or garage.)
WHEAT GRINDERS
I wanted to mention wheat grinders. If you don't have a wheat grinder, you could use your blender to make Blender pancakes. (I'll put that recipe up in a few days.)
No grinder? Why don't you ask your visiting teachers or the women you visit teach. If they have a wheat grinder, start bringing 8 cups of wheat with you every time you visit, and grind it for wheat flour and start using it throughout the month. Grinding 8 cups of wheat makes about 14 cups of wheat flour, and you can make 4 loaves of whole wheat bread with that.
Also, you need to store everything else you need for three months. Make a goal to be totally self-sufficient in your home, imagine you can't go to the store for three months. Start listing all the things you need on a daily basis and store the right amount. Remember: Baby formula, diapers, feminine hygiene, toilet paper (one person approximately 1 roll per week, 13 rolls for one person for 3 months), charcoal, propane, cleaning supplies.
Tomorrow' subject: Long term food storage
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