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Long Term Food Storage

What To Know When Building Your Long Term Food Storage

long term food storage

Thinking about starting a long term food storage? It's really one of the smartest things you can do these days.

With the world getting crazier by the day, many people are shifting back towards self-reliance and storing food, water, seeds and other supplies - just in case.

But where do you start? And what kind of foods do you store? This article will help you answer those questions.

Where Do You Start?

Well, it's pretty simple really. Do you want enough food for 1 month, 3 months, 6 months - 1 year?

A lot of people think having 6 months to a year is reasonable. That's why you can find long term food storage packages at places like Nitropak that cover you and your family for up to a year.

You can also find a variety of long term food storage packages here starting from $1254.

Buying a full package up front has the advantage of getting it all done one time. And you save money by buying in bulk.

On the other hand, buying an entire year's worth of food can be a bit pricey for some people. So you can also choose to build your long term food storage piece by piece.

For example, buy some freeze dried fruit here, some dehydrated meats there, some Mountain House cans of beef stroganoff as your budget allows, etc.

This has the benefit of being easier on the wallet - however just make sure you've got all your bases covered. You don't want 2 months worth of dinner meals and but 8 months worth of eggs and bacon - with no fruits or veggies.

Plus you may end up spending more if you do it this way. You're not getting a bulk discount - and as food prices go up, you'll also see this reflected in the survival food prices as well.

What Kinds of Food Can You Store?

Well, you have a lot of options here. The most popular survival emergency foods people choose are freeze dried and dehydrated meals and sometimes some MREs (Meals Ready To Eat).

long term food storage

You can get a variety of freeze dried foods - from meals like lasagna and spaghetti to specific foods like fruits, veggies and even ice cream.

The advantage of freeze dried foods is that they have a long shelf life (7 - 25 years+) and have a better taste and texture than most other emergency foods.

For more information see the article on Freeze Dried Foods

Dehydrated foods are similar to freeze dried foods - but they tend to be more affordable. On the downside, they also don't taste as good in general.

So it's a tradeoff. However you can often balance cost and taste by purchasing a bit of both (or a package that has a bit of both).

For more information see the article on Dehydrated Food

Meals Ready to Eat are self-contained meals with high calorie content. They usually come in durable containers which makes them great for outdoorsmen, campers or hikers.

People like them for their high calorie count and for the fact that you don't even need to add water - everything is included in these meals.

For more information see the article on MREs

So those are some of your options when building a long term food storage. You have some great options - and thankfully prices have not risen on these foods too much yet.

While you want to take your time and research your options - make sure you don't wait to store up food. You'll be more than happy if something happens and you have to use it.

Related Reading:

One Year Food Storage
Learn which 1 year food storage packages offer some of the best values for the money.

Food Storage
What you should know about food storage 101.