You were referred to as a “prepper” because you had something like a survival food kit, which is somehow a bad thing. Preppers were once mocked and referred to as “conspiracy theorists” for their belief in the importance of preparing oneself and one’s family for any eventuality. However, as a result of the pandemic, the hacking of gas pipelines and meat factories, rising food prices, natural disasters, and war threats, common people are beginning to consider whether or not they should also have a survival food kit on hand.
Many people initially find building a survival food kit to be overwhelming. Which foods should be included in the kit for optimal nutrition? What is the food’s shelf life? After I have set it up, how should I store the kit? These are just a few of the questions you might be asking yourself. The reason for this is that every time you go grocery shopping, you are accustomed to buying only what you like to eat and only enough to last you about a week. If you take it one step at a time, building a survival food kit doesn’t have to be overly complicated.
Step 1: Choose what you want your survival food kit for.
To figure out the primary purpose of your food kit, you will need to ask yourself some questions. Are you making the food kit for situations in which you will need to grab the kit, jump in your car, and go, or for emergencies or conditions that force you to stay at home? Will the kit be made to stay in the car in case of an emergency while you are away from home? Is it expected that the kit will feed you and your family for a few days, weeks, or even months?
Step 2: Choose where your survival food kit will be stored.
After you have decided what you want to use your food kit for, you will need to decide where you want to keep your food in your home or car. Because this will limit your options for storage space, you’ll need to keep in mind the size of the food supply you want, which is directly related to how long the food should be able to feed you and your family. A six-month supply of food won’t obviously fit in your car, and such a large amount of food probably isn’t even necessary. Your car also has limited space.
The food in your survival food kit’s storage location can have a significant impact on its shelf life or longevity. To ensure that your food remains edible for the longest amount of time, you should store it in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight. Find a location in your home that meets these requirements and make sure there is enough room for the amount of food and kit size.
Step 3: Get food for your survival food kit or buy it.
Keep in mind that you should only store food that you already consume. If you and your family don’t even enjoy eating tuna fish, it’s pointless to store a lot of cans of it. Even if you have the extra money to buy freeze-dried foods that can be stored for a long time, you should choose foods that your family already eats “fresh.” Make an effort to incorporate a healthy balance of nutrients into your diet while sticking to the foods you enjoy.
Having said that, some foods simply cannot be stored properly for any length of time. Foods with a lot of fat or moisture generally don’t keep well. Oatmeal, flour, sugar, dried pasta, and (white) rice all store well when kept in the right sealed containers and under the right conditions. Dried beans, on the other hand, may be a better option for you because they are lighter and have a longer shelf life than canned beans.
Powdered alternatives to milk, eggs, butter, and even peanut butter are available. Even when reconstituted, powdered and dried foods are never exactly the same as fresh ones, but they can still be quite good in many recipes.
Step 4: If necessary, repackage food items for extended storage.
Repackaging many foods can extend their shelf life. All of your dry food can be stored safely in a simple sealed container, but oxygen absorbers and desiccant packs or mylar bags can also be used to control moisture. The mylar bags can then be sealed by vacuum for the best protection for your kit’s food. For optimal shelf life, many long-term freeze-dried storable foods are already packaged in a similar manner, necessitating no repackaging.
Step 5: Consume food from your survival food kit and rotate it.
Remembering to rotate out food that has reached or passed its expiration date and replace it with fresh resupply is one of the most important steps in your survival food kit. The easiest way to accomplish this is to periodically consume foods from your kit and promptly replace them. Again, this is why you should only include foods that you and your family would eat in your kit.
To ensure proper rotation, consume the oldest food items in the kit first. You should avoid selecting a particular item from the kit based on what you’re “in the mood” for; instead, select the item(s) closest to their end-of-life first.
You might want to include things like can openers, spice or seasoning packs, tools for starting fires and cooking, etc. as a bonus tip. in your survival food kit, especially if it will be a grab-and-go type, for convenience. Having these items in your food kit can save you time and reduce stress during any disaster or situation that necessitated accessing your food kit in the first place.