I'd start off oddly enough with a food sealer like at costco or such that pulls the air and seals the bag. i use it for all sorts of things and helps stretch the cash. for the short run look for deals at stores that offer beef (for example) but have to buy it by the cryo-pac to get the best deal. slice it your self and repackage it your self. i get rice in large 50lb bags and divvy it up in small packs for day to day use, but in the mean time its sealed and water tight. and if you have spare roman noodle season packets (you are a student, you should) toss them in too when you seal em up so if you had to run on rice for a wile it will have options for flavor. another idea is workout protein powders, most just need water and they are packed with good stuff and don't taste that bad. that there will help day to day in cost cutting and storage. get some de-silicate packets and seal up 500 round bricks of .22 ammo at a time with it to. i pack my .308 ammo by 100 round bricks with 3 clean dry white rages 1 roll of medical wrapping 1 bic lighter 1 de-silicate packet 5 razor blades post-it note pad and a click button pen(with the spring in it), and oddly enough the vacum sealer draws it up to ware its not that much bigger than 1 more ammo box. some times its not if you can start big its if you start at all. be it a big jump all at once or a lot of little things over time, doing something, anything, puts you ahead of the guy that dose nothing.
try to pick up just 1 box of ammo from wal-mart a month. it will add up. look at seasonal deals like right now. how many places are offering free turkeys (thanks giving) with XX amount of food bought? or buy a ham and get a free turkey? cook both and repack for space saving and quicker whole food source. what sort of equipment you have on hand? small truck or car? maybe just the bike in your avatar? if you want to keep a low profile, for christmas ask for a hiking pack insted of a gadget. even thinking small can be big.
look at bulk staple things that you us often right now. yes it costs more up front but stretch it out it save cash (not only per unit cost but travel costs) than can be rolled into more or bigger equipment. run simulations in your mind of what you think could happen and what is really likely to happen, and what you would need, then add about 50%.
try to pick up just 1 box of ammo from wal-mart a month. it will add up. look at seasonal deals like right now. how many places are offering free turkeys (thanks giving) with XX amount of food bought? or buy a ham and get a free turkey? cook both and repack for space saving and quicker whole food source. what sort of equipment you have on hand? small truck or car? maybe just the bike in your avatar? if you want to keep a low profile, for christmas ask for a hiking pack insted of a gadget. even thinking small can be big.
look at bulk staple things that you us often right now. yes it costs more up front but stretch it out it save cash (not only per unit cost but travel costs) than can be rolled into more or bigger equipment. run simulations in your mind of what you think could happen and what is really likely to happen, and what you would need, then add about 50%.