So I have been accumulating supplies for over 7 years. Last week I did an inventory of my bulk pails and inspected several of them. I opened many of them and checked the contents for odor, moisture, bugs, signs of rats or mice or any other foragers, color and package breech. I am happy to report all the pails were in very good condition. All pails were dated and listed the contents. I randomly selected one and removed it from the inventory.

The contents of this 3 gallon pail was dated Feb 2013. The pail included individual packages of:
6 servings of pasta shells.
12 servings of mashed potatoes.
12 servings of Bisquick.
12 servings of porridge oats (quick cook).
8 servings of Mac & Cheese.
3 cups of instant skim milk.

Each type of food was vacuum sealed and contained a 500 cc O2 absorber. The pail had a contents list and cooking instructions. This particular pail contained: 9585 calories, 1730 carbs, 300 grams proteins, and 165 grams fat. I waited 2 days to get the courage to cook it all up and eat it.

To the pleasure of my wife and I, everything tasted, smelled, looked and behaved as if I purchased all of it yesterday. The mashed potatoes were fluffy and were great. They had an expiration date on them as of Feb 2013. The milk was great, as were the muffins we made and the pasta.

In retrospect I need to do this on a regular basis. Overall I am pleased with the way I processed these pails. I'm glad I took the time to include a contents list, cooking instructions and a nutrition list. Now I just need to build up enough courage to try some of the canned meats from that vintage. I will have the phone right by my plate with 911 dialed in...just in case!

Anyone else try to sample their food preps?