The Biggest Food Stockpiling Mistakes
There’s no doubt that food storage is one of biggest things people focus on when they’re prepping and, since it’s food we’re talking about, a lot of mistakes happen. Sometimes you win and sometimes you learn but let’s learn from others’ blunders so we save time and money by NOT making them, what’d ya say?
Mistake #1: Not having a variety of foods
Rice and beans are gonna be tough to swallow every single day for months on end. Go ahead and add some of the dozens of foods you can can, honey, soup, tuna cans, spam, powdered milk, spices and even comfort foods such as crackers, nuts and peanut butter.
Mistake #2: Using the wrong containers
You use the right container, your food goes bad and could poison you – it’s that simple. You gotta use the right containers for your foods and you have to make sure you use them. For example, you need to wash your containers with detergent thoroughly and then make sure you rinse all of it off before you put the food inside.
What you can’t do is reuse the lids; you always have to get new ones. It’s little things like these that can compromise a good portion of your food stockpile.
Mistake #3: Having too much of either food of water and too little of the other one
If you have 3 months’ worth of food but only 3 weeks’ worth of water, that’s a problem. You could die way before you get to consume your entire food stockpile, unless, perhaps, you have a well in your backyard or other means of procuring water. Even so, you should expect all natural water sources to be contaminated.
Mistake #4: Buying too many MREs
I’m not saying they’re bad, but they are expensive. If you put in the time, you can make your own canned food at home, which is also “ready to eat” and tastes better. You have to think long-term and that means you’ll ultimately be looking at a food stockpile of at least one year… if you truly want to be prepared. Buying one year’s worth of MREs is simply too expensive when you do the math.
Mistake #5: Not rotating their stockpile
There are two disadvantages to not rotating your food. The first one is that it costs you money to replace it (if you don’t eat it when it’s about to expire and you buy whatever it is you eat every day).
The second (and bigger) problem is that you risk ending up with a compromised stockpile post-disaster and, needless to say, you won’t get to rotate your stockpile as easily as you can do it now.
Mistake #6: Not labeling containers
Labelling makes it easier to know what’s inside a container without opening it and it also helps you know when it’s time to consume that particular item. You can even use color coding if you want.
Mistake #7: Not storing it correctly
Most foods needs to be stored in cool, dry places, in airtight containers and possibly away from the ground on wood pallets. You need to do your homework before storing anything or risk decreasing the shelf life, food poisoning and so on.
Mistake #8: Storing the wrong food
For one, you need to be aware of any food allergies you or your family members you may have. Next, you need to keep into account your family’s preferences. If you end up stockpiling dozens of pounds of rice but you’re the only one in your family who actually eats it… you know what I mean.
Here’s what you can do: make a list of all the things you and your loved ones have eaten over the past month or so and try find out which of them have the longest shelf life. Then, if possible, try to store the INGREDIENTS instead of the cooked food. For example, cocoa powder lasts way longer than chocolate powder.
Well, this is it for now. If I helped you avoid at least one food stockpiling mistake, then the article was well worth reading. I hope you enjoyed it and if you’re looking for more practical advice from me, feel free to check out all the articles I’ve written on my blog.
Thanks,
Dan F. Sullivan