Question about stockpiling...

[dancemommy]

My husband and I both agree that it is a good idea to have a stockpile of food- I'm not looking for a years supply or anything, but a nice supply in case of an emergency. I am great at shopping sales, using coupons, etc. But I have two questions:

1. How about expiration dates? It is great to stockpile, but if when you need it it is all expired then is it "dangerous"? I know a while back there was chatter about the danger in expired pancake mixes. Are there foods that don't really expire?

2. We don't eat processed or canned foods on a regular basis. I don't mind having some for an emergency, but honestly we eat a healthier diet than that- lots of fresh fruit and vegis, meats, and whole grains. So, do we stockpile "junk food"? I mean, in an emergency I think I'd be fine with everyone eating hamburger helper or whatever, but on a day to day basis we do not. What healthy foods do you stockpile?

Thanks!

[savvy_sniper]

Stock what you eat and eat what you stock. You have to rotate your stockpile; not just save it for emergencies. When buying items with an expiration date for stockpiling, look for the expiration date furthest out. Remember - FIFO - first in, first out.

You can dehydrate fruits and veggies and vacuum seal them for storage. Of course, for that you will need a dehydrator, a vacuum sealer, the bags, and probably some canning jars.

You should also look into canning. You can can all sorts of stuff for long term storage. THAT will be my next endeavor.

Have you looked at honeyvillegrain and emergencyessentials (online)?

[jas]

In good times yes it is wise to eat as fresh as possible. If in the situation where there was none or little fresh to be found you need to have some things stored that you can eat. It does not all have to be processed junk food.

This is a list of seven survival foods plus water storage.
Grains- can be a mixture of any grains you like, wheat berries, oats, and any combination of all grains available.

Legumes-dried beans and peas any combo

oils and salt

sprouting seeds

sweeteners

and powdered milk

with the wheat berries you can do a ton of things with just them alone. Grind them for flour, cook them whole and use like a cereal, sprout them for fresh live food.

It is a good idea to store ingredients to make a variety of things instead of just prepared items. Not saying not to have any of that type of food just not all that kind.

You can fill in with canned fish and meats and anything else you want to have on hand like condiments.

Like Savvay Sniper said store what you eat, eat what you store so you not only rotate, but get used to using and eating the things you store. It is not a great idea to have to switch from eating one way normally and then in an emergency have to go to a different one on an instant notice.

Just some thoughts pass to on.

There used to be a poster here, she was great and very wise about storing foods. You should look up some of her old posts her name was

grainlady

I don't know why she left but is really missed!!!

[Ceashels]

I am slowly adding to my stock pile of dried fruits and veggies, as well as flour and sugar. I keep a rather "healthy supply" of legumes and will most likely start purchasing more of my favorites to store for longer term use. I am trying to vacuum seal things soon after I get them and keep a mason jar handy for the ones I use most often.

We have a cabinet full of canned veggies that I will occasionally use in our meals but since they tend to have a slower rotation, I can probably replace one can a month and still have a good emergency supply.

I've been slowly building this by purchasing an extra can or two every time I go to the market.

[2ndGenGranola]

We are turning more towards the dried foods.

We eat mostly from the CSA on a regular day. I do have some canned items in rotation that are getting ready to be dried foods. For grains, I keep wheat berries and rice in the 2nd fridge. We also keep dried beans. The kids are getting used to dried foods (and even preferring it) so if there ever was an issue, we would have some workable goods.

[buffy871]

I have the same problem about canned foods. I generally eat a very fresh diet with a few convienience foods thrown in. What I did was buy some a small amount of canned food and invest in a food dehydrator. In the spring you can buy fruits and veggies, dry them, and have healthy food in the event of an emergency. They just need to be rehydrated in water, juice, or broth.

[brennasmom]

Rotate, rotate, rotate. If I find I have over-bought and don't think we will use something by the expire date I donate it

[Anna43]

I don't store mixes. Plain flour will keep practically forever in a cool dry place..and wheat even longer. I found a missed box of pasta from 1999 and could not tell difference in quality from new.
Shortening will keep for a fairly long time but older cans will go rancid faster when opened. Mainly shortening & oil & mixes containing them will go rancid in storage but most other things kept cool and dry will be fine. Chocolate chips will get a white "bloom" but are fine in cookies.

The expiration dates are more about companies protecting themselves or meeting .gov rules. Canned goods remain usable as long as the cans are not bulging or leaking. The quality will not be as good and the ingredients may taste "tinny". I've been reorganizing my pantry and found an older (2001) can of carrots. It was intact but the contents did have a tinny taste. Not something that appeals but in a shtf situation I would eat them.

Apply a lot of common sense. Does it look good, smell good, taste good ... then ignore expiration date. If in doubt, throw it out.

[lparker]

I made this posting on my FB page yesterday about it -

I read the headline and thought "What?? They want to take wicks out of candles so they don't present a fire hazard!" But, no, the cpsc wanted them recalled because of ONE reported meltdown of the container the tea candle was sitting in. Does anyone out there think the CPSC is really needed??? And WHY?? This isn't the first of what I would call a frivolous recall.

[MsMarieH]

I too tend to use fresh or frozen veggies, rather than canned. However, I decided to buy a case of each veggie (12 cans) I commonly use to have on hand for "just in case". My plan is to use 1 can of each per month (thrown into a soup or stew in the crockpot for instance), and then buy an additional case when it gets half empty. This way I will always have some vegetables on hand in canned form and they will be part of a rotation form, but they won't be my primary food source throughout the year. This is actually quite useful if I don't correctly remember what I have in my freezer anyway. There's many times when this could come in handy.