Survival Food List: 43 Essential Food Items to Stockpile
The year 2020 brought us food and product shortages like we’ve never seen before. But preppers world-wide are more prepared than those who don’t prepare for survival after disasters. Many people didn’t consider a global pandemic as a disaster until it happened. COVID-19 has opened many people’s eyes to see that prepping isn’t just for a nuclear holocaust.
Now, millions of people have adopted a preppers’ lifestyle, so they will always have the items they need in case of a natural or man-made disaster, and you can, too.
It’s critical to store essential food items, and you can do this in a couple of ways. You can purchase survival food kits or create your own food stockpile.
How Much Food Should I Store?
How much food you stockpile depends on how many people are in your family. Ready.gov suggests that you store at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food for every member of the family. But it’s a good idea to stock up on enough food for longer periods of time. You never know when a natural disaster will shut down community resources like water and electricity.
There are certain survival situations like a nuclear disaster or EMP attack (Electromagnetic Pulse) that are considered long-term survival situations where you must shelter in place at home for weeks. Here are things to consider when storing food long-term:
- You want food to be compact and easy to store.
- Stockpile foods with optimal nutrition.
- Choose foods that can be cooked with little water and fuel.
- The food shouldn’t be easy to damage, like food in glass jars.
- You also want a variety of food so it doesn’t all taste the same.
- Pick food with minimal packing for less litter.
Freeze-dried food is perfect for long-term storage because much of it can last for 25 years or more.
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How to Find Survival Food Kits
Emergency food kits can be found online or at most major chain grocery stores. LA Police Gear sells high-quality survival food supplies like the popular Ready Wise Emergency Food and Backpacker’s Pantry.
These meals aren’t like the MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) the military gives their soldiers on field missions. They are delicious and offer a variety of dishes, such as:
- Shepherd’s Potato Stew
- Creamy Pasta and Vegetable Rotini
- Tomato Basil Soup with Pasta
- Orange Delight Drink Mix
- Apple Cinnamon Cereal
- Beef Stroganoff
- Chiang Mai Coconut Curry
- Breakfast Scramble
- Jamaican Jerk Rice and Beans
There are many more options to choose from. Buying ready-made survival food kits are the easiest and quickest way to stockpile food.
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How to Create Your Own Food Stockpile
The least expensive way to create an emergency food stockpile is to create your own. Now, stockpiling food this way may take longer, but it allows you to buy food when it’s on sale. Another bonus is that you can stockpile the food your family likes to eat. It also allows you to address special dietary needs.
Here’s a list of some of the foods you need to stockpile.
- Water – one to two gallons a day for each family member
- Peanut butter
- Crackers
- Canned food – beans, canned meat, vegetables, fruit
- Canned liquid – juice, evaporated and condensed milk, chicken, beef and vegetable stock
- Jellies and jams
- Oatmeal and oats
- Cereal
- Granola and protein bars
- Protein drinks
- Hard cheese wrapped in plastic or wax
- Powdered milk
- Drink mixes – Tang, Kool-Aid, Gatorade
- Dried lentils and beans
- Fruit leather/dried fruit
- Couscous
- Powdered whey and eggs
- Dehydrated meats, seafood, poultry
- Oils – lard, butter, organic shortening, olive oil, coconut oil
- Flour, pancake and bread mixes, potato flour
- Cornmeal
- Cornstarch
- Grits
- Popcorn
- Stuffing and breadcrumbs
- Cookies
- Au gratin potatoes and potato flakes
- Pasta
- Rice
- Seeds, nut butters and nuts
- Salt
- Honey
- Herbs and spices
- Molasses and sugar
- Condiments – mustard, mayo, Tabasco sauce, relish, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce
- Vitamins
- Chocolate
- Vinegar
- Vanilla extracts and others
- Vodka
- Baking soda and powder
- Dry yeast
Some of these foods are great for long-term survival situations and take a long time to cook, like beans and pasta. If you’re using fuel to cook your food, you’ll go through it fast on things that take longer to cook, so just keep that in mind.
You may want to just focus on stockpiling foods that don’t require cooking, like the survival food kits and MREs. Canned food is great because it can survive floods without getting damaged.
Now you know all the best food to stockpile, so start collecting it or buying pre-made food kits today. Finances may prevent you from buying a lot at once, and that’s okay. Just make sure you start buying extra food when it’s on sale, whenever you can.
Stockpiling food is an important part of planning for emergencies. You hope you never have to use it, but at least you’ll have it if you need it.
Aaron J. Hill/Shutterstock.com
