Having something like a survival food kit meant you were labeled a "prepper," as it that is somehow a bad thing. Preppers used to be laughed at and called "conspiracy theorists" for their beliefs in preparing themselves and their families for any and every upcoming hiccup that life might throw their way. However, since the pandemic, hackers shutting down gas pipelines and meat manufacturers, rising food costs, weather disasters, and threats of war, everyday people are starting to think that maybe they, too should at least keep a survival food kit at the ready.
Getting started with building a survival food kit can seem
overwhelming to many at first. What foods to add to the kit for the best
nutrition? How long will the food last? How should I store the kit once I have
it set up? These are just some of the questions you may be asking yourself, and
the reason this is so is because you're used to just buying what you like to
eat and only as much as needed for the next week or so each time you go to the
grocery store. Building a survival food kit doesn't have to be overly
complicated if you take on the process one step at a time.
Step 1 - Decide on the purpose of your survival food kit.
You will need to ask yourself some questions in order to
determine the primary use for your food kit first and foremost. Are you making
the food kit for emergencies or conditions that confine you to home or for
situations where you'll need to grab the food kit, jump in your car, and go?
Will the kit be designed to stay in the car for emergencies while you're in the
vehicle away from home? Will the kit be expected to feed you and your family
for just a few days or for weeks or even months?
Step 2 - Determine the storage location for your survival food kit.
Once you've decided on the purpose for your food kit, you'll
need to determine the place in your home or car where you intend on storing
your food. You'll need to keep in mind your intended size of the food supply
which is directly based on how long the food should be able to feed you and
your family since this will limit your storage space options. Obviously, your
car has limited space, so a 6-month supply of food probably won't fit well nor
is such a large amount of food in your car likely necessary anyway.
The storage location for your survival food kit can greatly
affect the shelf-life or longevity of the food in your kit. You'll want to
store the food in a cool, dry location out of direct sunlight to ensure that
your food remains good to eat for the longest length of time. Find a place in
your house that fits this criteria, and be sure there is enough room for the
amount of food or overall size of your kit.
Step 3 - Gather or purchase food for your survival food kit.
As a general guideline, remember, you'll want to store food
that you already eat. There is no point in storing a bunch of cans of tuna fish
if you and your family don't even like to eat it. Even if you have the extra
funds to buy long-term freeze-dried storable foods, you'll want to choose the
types of food that you and your family already eat in its "fresh"
form. Stick to foods that you fancy, but try to add a balance of nutrition to
your kit in the process.
With that said, there are certain foods that just can't be
stored well, period. Foods that have high fat or moisture content generally do
not store well. Dried pastas, (white) rice, flour, sugar, and oatmeal all store
quite well if they're kept in the proper sealed containers and the proper
environment conditions. Canned goods typically store fairly well, however, you
may consider choosing things like dried beans over canned beans for longer
shelf-life and less weight.
You can purchase powdered alternatives for things like milk,
eggs, butter, and even peanut butter. Powdered, dried foods are never exactly
the same as their fresh counterparts, even when reconstituted, however they can
still be quite good in many recipes.
Step 4 - Re-pack food items for longer storage, if necessary.
Many foods can be repackaged to provide a better shelf-life.
All of your dry food items will store well in a simple sealed container,
however they can also be placed into mylar bags along with oxygen absorbers
and/or desiccant packs for moisture control. You can then vacuum-seal the mylar
bags for the ultimate in protection for the foods in your kit. Many long-term
freeze-dried storable foods that can be purchased are already packaged in a
similar fashion for the best longevity, so no repackaging is usually necessary.
Step 5 - Eat and rotate food from your survival food kit.
One of the key steps to your survival food kit is to
remember to rotate out food that has reached or passed its expiration and
replace it with fresh resupply. The easiest way to do this is to simply eat
foods from your kit from time to time and promptly replace it. Again, this is
why you'll want to only stock foods in your kit that you and your family want
to eat.
Always eat the food items that are the oldest in the kit
first to ensure proper rotation. You may be tempted to choose a particular item
from the kit based on what you're "in the mood" for, however you
should avoid this and choose the item(s) that are nearest their end-of-life
first.
As a bonus tip, you may wish to include items like can
openers, spice or seasoning packs, fire starting and cooking tools, etc. in
your survival food kit as well, for convenience, especially if your kit will be
of the grab-and-go type. Having these items right inside your kit can save
time, and it can make the experience of whatever disaster or situation that
required accessing your food kit in the first place less stressful to manage.
