30 Things Needed for Food Storage

This is a recent post that I made on Frugal Squirrel Forums. I believe it is a very good article with a fairly complete list of items we should have in our permanent short, intermediate and long term storage. I hope that the following list will be added to and critiqued for our food storage needs after the stuff hits the fan. It is not a question of what will be sold out first because we hope to have these essentials when we need it and not have to buy after a catastrophe....

1. Water, water source, water treatment supplies such as plain bleach and filters.

2. Grains, wheat berries with grain mill, corn, oatmeal, flour, grits, rice, and other grains.

3. Pasta's such as macaroni, spaghetti, egg noodles, penne and any other type you like.

4. Dehydrated potatoes, instant mashed potatoes, boxed potatoes such as au gratin and scalloped.

5. Dairy such as dry milk, canned milk, condensed milk, instant nonfat dry milk, and non dairy creamer.Cheese which can be canned cheese, parmesan, cheese whiz, and waxed cheeses. We should have recipes for making fresh cheeses such as cottage cheese, ricotta, and mozzarella from dry milk. Also yogurt can be made as well as yogurt cheese from dry milk. Powdered eggs, whole, whites or scrambled.

6. Dehydrated vegetables such as carrots, peas, beans, legumes of all kinds that you like, broccoli, celery, bell peppers, onion and mixed vegetables.

7. Canned vegetables, for quicker use and for situations where you don't have enough water.

8. Dried Fruits such as raisins, cranberries, prunes, apricots, dates, coconut, and apples.

9. Nuts and Seeds such as peanuts, walnuts, pecans, cashews, almonds, mixed nuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, etc.

10. Canned meats which there are many canned meats in the grocery store such as chicken, tuna, salmon, mackerel, sardines, corned beef, roast beef in gravy, barbeque pork, dried beef in jars, ham, and lots of sandwich spreads. Also is good to can your own meats of all types. Don't forget Spam, or Treet and also pepperoni's and summer sausage which have quite long shelf life which can be extended by freezing the meats until such time as you need them or until there is no electricity.

11. Canned meals and soups such as chili, stew, chow mein, spaghetti, ravioli, soups of all kinds, and home canned meals as well.

12. Baking supplies such as yeast, baking powder, baking soda, salt, gluten, sugar, honey, cream of tartar, flavorings, spices, cocoa, chocolate chips, coconut, seeds.

13. Canned fruits such as fruit cocktail, peaches, pineapple, pears, applesauce, apples, etc.

14. Coffee, teas, cocoa, instant breakfast, sport drinks and drink mixes like koolaid or tang. Make sure your drink mixes have added vitamins especially vit. C.

15. Cereals such as oatmeal, grits, cream of wheat, cold cereals of whole grains and rotate to keep fresh.

16. Canned sauces such as salsa, spaghetti sauce, sloppy joe sauce, chili sauce, tomato sauces and pastes, and canned tomatoes.

17. Treats such as packaged cake mixes, brownie mixes, candy, popcorn, pudding mixes and jello mixes.

18. Herbs and spices for cooking. Very important to get a lot of what you usually use and keep it unopened and in a cool dark space. Without these your food will be bland and tasteless. Make sure you have vinegar and lemon juice for flavoring and salad dressings and cheese making.

19. Sweeteners such as Honey, sugar, brown sugar, confectioners sugar, agave, corn syrup, maple syrup, sugar substitutes, or pancake syrups.

20. Oils and fats such as shortening, lard, vegetable oil, olive oil, canola oil, butter, and other exotic oils.

21. Peanut Butter, other nut butters if desired. Also don't forget jellies and jams of your choice.

22. TVP if desired to add protein to dishes such as chili, spaghetti etc.

23. Sprouting seeds and beans. Very healthy when you have no fresh greens in winter. Try to grow cabbages and collards through most of the winter to use to help with winter foods.

24. Alcohol if desired but not necessarily to drink. Can be used to make flavoring and used for marinades. Makes venison taste pretty good with Jack Daniels. Red wine can make canned beef taste good like beef burgundy. Useful for cooking and drinking especially for celebrations.

25. Garden seeds that are heirloom, non-gmo, and fresh so they will sprout. Keep fresh heads of garlic so they can be broken up to be planted as well as some fresh potatoes so they can be cut up and planted as well after the stuff hits the fan.

26. Vitamins and mineral supplements. Which will help prevent malnutrition from lack of some foods that you may not be getting especially fresh foods.

27. Ensure, and pedialite may be good to have for people who become ill and need special diets while recuperating. You can find rehydration drink recipes on the net.

28. Bouillion cubes or granules for flavor in foods and for broths when nursing ill patients.

29. Medicinal herbs for home remedies. There may not be any medical treatment available other that what you can supply yourself.

30. Medicinal herb seeds to grow in your garden to make sure you have a supply of home remedies when needed. Have a good book or two on home remedies and herbal medicines.

This is my list of essentials for bugging in place or for keeping in a retreat. I have these things for the most part. Still filling in a little here and there. Please add those things you think are necessary that I may have forgotten or accidentally omitted. There should be a separate list of non food items that we should have such as water filters, wells and pumps, cookbooks, grain mill, pasta maker, food mills, can openers, canners and jars, food dehydrator, solar oven, rocket stove, grill, propane, gardening equipment, security items and defense items. But that will be for another list.