[djbcktt]

Hi everyone. My wife and I are brand new at this whole prepper idea. We live in Utah. I am currently searching for companies that sell long-term food storage (e.g. Wise Company, Shelf-Reliance, etc). They seem very expensive and we would start with about $600 to spend. Would you recommend buying from these companies or just buying bulk rice, beans, oil, tuna fish, etc? If the latter, what would your essential must-haves be? This would be geared for preparedness (e.g. loss of job, natural disaster, etc) and not so much survivalist. We would also want to be able to put it away and not necessarily keep track of rotating it every year. Thank you!!!!

 

[bennettvm]

Not at all. Those are way too expensive and the food is sub par in my opinion. I would go to walmart and buy dry rice/beans and pasta. You can use cleaned out 2 liter soda bottles with O2 absorbers and make your own long term storage. I have been doing this for years and it works great. For $600 you can get 5 times the amount of food from a company like Wise, etc.

 

[djbcktt]

How long does the o2 absorbers last?

 

[inceptor]

Welcome from Texas.

I have a combination of both. I have some freeze dried food but mostly stock up on normal stuff I use daily. I usually buy in bulk and just cycle through what I have. I also have some things like rice, beans and pasta that will store longer than most things.

 

[LunaticFringeInc]

Welcome from Texas. Glad to have you here with us.

Personally I am a tight wad when it comes to money. I wouldnt waste my limited supply of funds on those exopensive long term storage foods from commercial outfitters. 600 bucks will buy a crap load of Rice, Beans, canned meat and fruit not to mention a lot of other needed gear. It might not be quiet the gormet meal but it will put a fire in the boiler maker and make a terd for ya. Aint that what really counts? I'll tell ya for me Rice and Beans make up a huge part of my food stores. I try to grow the rest despite my tiny little lot. Maybe you dont have that option though and will need to buy a more diverse stash of food. Just look at your needs and address it as methodically as you can so you get the most bang for the buck. If you got more money than you know what to do with then maybe some freeze dried moutain house dinner might be the hot ticket for you.

At anyrate, hope to see you around and see you often!

 

[Watercanlady]

Welcome from Michigan... If you are in Utah you should have LDS canneries near you. Google LDS cannery then call to see if you can purchase or use their canning facility without being a member. This will be your cheapest.... You can dry pack can your items there at cost. You also can purchase bulk bags of wheat, rice etc. I believe you can buy the Mylar bags and 02 absorbers from there also. Keep us posted and welcome again. You can also order from Emergency essentials. There you can get pails already sealed, or cans already to put on your shelf. They also carry a variety of other items.

 

[djbcktt]

Thanks everyone!

 

[Bailey]

I apologise if any other poster mentioned it already but I would concentrate all of my efforts on storing water first, you can live quite a while without food but not very long at all without water. Because canned food already has fluid in it I would stock mainly on tinned foods once you feel you have enough water then maybe think about stocking up on the dry foods.

 

[joec]

I have both Wise and Mountain House freeze dried but only for use after my normal stuff runs out. The normal stuff is rice, beans, pastas, canned vegetables, soups and even canned meats such as Spam which lasts for ever if the can isn't damaged, Tuna which also have about a 5 year shelf life though I seen some with best eaten date as far as 7 years. Oh and best eaten doesn't me that it goes bad it begins to loose flavor and sometimes texture but still eatable. Don't buy dented cans, cans that look swollen or rusted and avoid those with self open tab tops. As for storing rice and beans as others have suggested previously by using plastic soda bottles and an O2 absorber or Mylar food grad bags for it. Then seal it in a a bucket and store in a cool dry place. I have even vacuum seal a few to see if they last longer than the other methods. However the results will be a while before coming. Another good investment is a Seed Vault with heirloom vegetables/herbs. Heirloom will replenish themselves also since the seeds can be replanted later. If on a tight budget simply buy a bit over time when shopping by adding a case of canned goods, extra bag of dried beans or rice. I've also have been at this now for about 20 years at least with the food storage not do to the end of the world situation but natural disasters such as storms, drought etc.

Water is also also very important either store it or plan on purifying what is available to you. A number of ways to do that but the best is make or get a simple water distiller and some iodine drops.