By this point, it is expected that you are aware of the necessity for emergency food storage in order to be ready for a range of disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, EMP, or even individual emergencies like job loss.
When considering emergency preparedness, it is vital to have a minimum of thirty days’ worth of food and an equal amount of water.
When considering the process logically, do not opt for purchasing an excessive amount of items such as numerous cans of soup, boxes of crackers, and bulk grains while attempting to acquire emergency food for a period of 30 days.
Having a plan is essential when it comes to disaster prepping!
If you fail to create a plan regarding what items to acquire and how to utilize them, there is a risk of having numerous food items that you cannot use after a disaster.
The Two Types of Emergency Foods to Store
There are numerous varieties of survival foods one can accumulate for storage. When planning your 30-day emergency food supply, these can be categorized into two types:
- Foods that don’t require cooking
- Foods that require cooking
In order to be completely ready, it is advisable to merge both categories of emergency foods.
Emergency Foods That Don’t Require Cooking
In your local supermarket, there is a wide variety of readily available emergency foods. Storing these foods comes with the advantage of convenience. Imagine a scenario where your family is gathered in your basement, consuming granola bars and canned soup directly from the can, while a hurricane is occurring outside.
No cooking, preparing, or cleaning of plates is necessary. Simply open the packaging and begin eating.
It is necessary to possess readily available emergency foods for another reason – cooking may not be a safe option following a disaster. Cooking with an open flame, for instance, should never be attempted after an earthquake due to the potential risk of explosion caused by broken gas lines. As a result, in such circumstances, non-cooked food options would be preferred.
Canned Food
To ensure that canned goods provide us with sufficient nourishment in the long run, it is important for them to possess a diverse range of nutrients. Therefore, your list of nonperishable food items should comprise all of the following nutrients.
- Enough calories for you and your family members to prevent unintentional weight loss
- Adequate protein
- Fat
- Carbohydrates (even low carb foods have some)
- All of the essential vitamins in adequate amounts
- All of the essential minerals in adequate amounts
- Fiber
- A supply of water
It is crucial to consider that emergency canned food should be easy to prepare. In case of an emergency situation where electricity for cooking is unavailable, it is beneficial to have ready-to-eat food options. Additionally, it is essential to have non-dehydrated food items in your food supply in case of a water shortage.
Canned foods are an excellent choice for regions prone to flooding since they are not promptly ruined by water as boxed foods. The extended durability of canned foods enables you to endure for a longer period in the event of a pandemic (or zombie apocalypse, or any other unexpected situation). Additionally, stocking canned food might be advisable for your earthquake preparedness kit or in anticipation of winter storms.
