cSo I've been seriously thinking about our progress on having a three month supply of food storage. I have no doubt that we need to have at least a three month's supply... the question is more how to go about it. When we got married, we were given as gifts a few starter kit boxes number 10 cans of beans and rice, oats and wheat. We have a growing number of such cans. As well as a shelf of canned foods courtesy Jeremy's mom (thank you! We love your canned food!). All this is mostly considered to be part of our longer term storage (although we do eat regularly from home canned goodness... we just can't help it).
Anyhow, long story short, we started (oh, 8 months ago or so) to designate a certain (small) amount of our monthly food budget towards a three months supply. I tend to buy things at random, and so we have a growing shelf of random "everyday" foods. You know, bisquick, peanut butter, cans of corn, etc. Nothing organized or systematic. Just food.
On Monday for Family Home Evening we decided to inventory said shelf of foods. I was disheartened to discover that although we have started relatively recently, food was already going bad. It about broke my heart to throw some things away. (Confession, a few things I just have not been willing to get rid of despite the expired date... do think that's dangerous? I put them on the "eat now" shelf.) I also was reminded that the food we have there is random. And so far away from being a three month supply. So. Far. Away.
I've been following a blog with all kinds of food storage motivation and direction giving. I've been following it long enough that I've decided it's time to really act. I've particularly been pondering on how to get started on the three month supply. And yet it's all so overwhelming. You know?
But we've got to start somewhere, right? I'm trying their method of outlining rotatable menus of all nonperishable and then creating a master shopping list of what I would need. You know, just how many boxes of spaghetti do I need to buy? I've been working on my menus since Monday. They still are a bit sparse (fact: we eat a decent amount of perishable foods around here). And every time I think about working on it... somehow something else seems more important (aka I'm putting it off).
So, I know this is a HUGE topic (whole blogs, books, and websites are devoted to it)... I'm just wondering if you have any ideas for where to start. You know, to make this a little more systematic. Should I keep on with what I'm attempting? Or have you found an easier way? I'm ok if there isn't an easier way. Not all commandments are easy. But I'd like to simplify things if I can. Any words of advice?
9 comments:
My ward did an enrichment last week (which, unfortunately, I missed. I was in Idaho) where they passed out recipes consisting solely of ingredients you can get in food storage. Each person picked one meal and made it and brought it to Enrichment, where everyone got to taste something of everything, and bring home the recipes they liked, to help build their food storage. From what I heard, what was made was really quite tasty. I was thinking about getting a list of all the recipes for myself. Would you like a copy if I do?
This exact same topic has been weighing heavily on my mind too. I have been buying extras of our everyday food too, but it really only lasts a year and that's about how long it takes us to eat it all. I still feel better having at least that there, but I have no idea how to get started on a real food storgae. and how to make it usable. I wish I could afford to just spend thousands of dollars and buy the 1 year supply/person that has a 25 year shelf life. Done. Since that is not an option please keep posting about what you end up doing!
they have discovered that most dry foods can be stored up to thirty years now if stored properly. The best talk I heard on food storage was at a Regional Welfare Meeting. They said to store the foods you use. I have my storage room set up like a miniture store stocked with products I use constantly. Before I go to the grocery store for my monthly shopping I shop my storage room and then buy what needs to be replaced. It has worked really well and I have cut back on throwing alot of food away.
This has been a big thing in our ward and stake this past year. The big push with the 3 month supply has been to make a 2 week menu and then multiply it by the 3 months. So basically you would eat the same thing every two weeks. I haven't totally put this into affect myself, but he stake RS Prsedient that shared it at stake leadership meeting had and it seemed like a good idea to me. So, you have to come up with a 2 week menu plan for all 3 meals. Then go to that way. So, it sounds similar to what you are trying to do. So far I just keep trying to buy things I know I could create things with (tomato soup, tomato sauce, canned veggies and fruit, cream of chicken and Mushroom, canned chicken, etc.) but I really want to do this menu thing and then post the menu in my cupboards to so I know what they are.
I love my food storage, although I am constantly working on it. This is what I am trying to do with mine for rotation,(since I just can't buy one of those 200-400 dollar can rotators) you buy the little colored circle stickers and then use one color for each month of the upcoming year. Label each can according to its expiration date and then line those up. Then place the key in your pantry. That way you know oh, hey I need to eat the pink cans etc. Also, what I have done for tracking is to put everything in a spreadsheet for my long term. Then I can look at it and see I have xx amount of lbs of this for 30 years. With the 3 month we have done the same thing on trying to have meals that we will eat. I count on my rice, beans, and some pasta from my long term storage to add to my meals. Then we have tons of pasta sauce, canned soup etc. I keep telling Nick we are going to do a week of food storage eating just to see how it goes:) Hope that helps-- and if you didn't see this week at Smiths they are having the case lot sale and from Sept like 23-Oct ?? they are doing it at Lins. This is where I bought most of our stuff. Sorry this is super long!
I understand your difficulty. We eat a lot of fresh food. I don't think we need to totally change our eating habits to be from food storage only. However, small changes can be a really good thing. :) Good luck with this new fun project!
I really like the info everyone has posted. I really like the idea of a of a long menu then multipling to plan for a 3 month supply. I have no plan for my food storage so I really like the blog you linked to. Good luck!
Being from the "old school" I grew up with the year's supply. However I really love the 3 month idea, it is so attainable. The year thing always seemed so far out there. I consider these things my long term: sugar, flour, rice, oats, beans, wheat, salt, powdered milk, oil. However I use these in my 3 months supplies. One of the Seminary teachers from Monticello and his wife showed us their 3 month supply. They did the menu idea. One thing they did I really liked was for "non food items." They had 3 milk crates labled month 1, 2, 3. They had paper products and hygenie products etc. When month 1 was used up, they replaced those items and that crate then became #3 and the others were moved up. They also had a "treat" box in which items such as popcorn, cold cereal, snack crackers etc, hard candy were placed. He then had a spread sheet with a "count" of the food itmes they used and then replaced so they always had the 3 months. They also added new meals as they found meals they like better than some of the old ones. Spaghette, chili, pot pie, stew, taco soup, shepherds pie, homemade pizza, stromboli, are always a few good staple meals. Good luck!
Debbie Mom
I have a friend who is the food storage queen in her ward in Utah. She has a blog called wwww.amatterofpreparedness.blogspot.com.
When you go to her website on the right hand side scroll down to where it says "Labels" and click on 3 months supply. There she has blank menu sheets that you can download and Excel inventory spreadsheets. Basically, you plan a two week menu of foods you will normally eat and write out all the ingredients. Then times the ingredients by six and that will be your three month supply. (Like Tasha's idea.) The inventory spreadsheet will really help keep track of where you are and where you are going. It also gives you an actual plan and goals. Then you can extend from there to 6 months and longer. Anyway, it helped me and maybe it can help you. Also, if it's foods you normally eat, then you will be rotating it more often once you have your three months in place. However, we don't eat the same menu every two weeks. I eat the same breakfast, but the dinners just work in whenever they do and we rotate in the canned foods throughout the year. I'm also buying #10 cans of dried fruit too that have longer shelf life. It's a process!!
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