Food storage "out of the closet"?

[BarredBuff]

I do beleive all cycles and generations come and go. Sometimes quickly sometimes slowly. I never see deer around here. I know they are here but I mainly see turkeys. We had a horrible winter too. LOTS of snow and cold.

 

[dacjohns]

I must confess that I did not read this thread. I only did a real FAST skim. With that skim it appears to be a rehash of much that has been said on other threads. I also did not study the nuances between "prepper", self sufficiency, and self reliance.

What I wanted to say was basically this:

Glen Beck is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Mormons. And I want to make it perfectly clear, he does not represent the LDS Church.

The LDS promote self reliance. It appears that is what Glen was talking about.

It isn't about being able to protect your stash from the hoards, it is about being for almost anything; like unemployment and natural disasters.

Women primarily on his show? When was the show filmed? Who is available during the time to attend? Women primarily on this forum. I think it is like that on many internet forums.

For more information on self reliance go here:

http://www.providentliving.org/

See the links on the left side of the page.

I have a hunch that much of Glen is saying, outside of food shortages, etc., comes from there.

 

[TanksHill]

A great source of information. Thanks, Dac

 

[lwheelr]

We have always tried to have a food storage. In fact, moving was always a bit of a hassle, the front half of the truck was boxes of canning jars (full or empty, depending on the season), buckets of grains and beans, boxes and buckets of dried foods - some home dried, some not. That food storage waxed and waned with our circumstances, and kept us going in hardship many times over those years.

Then we moved to Wyoming. Can't farm effectively here - many challenges, all of them expensive to overcome (soil, water, altitude, temperature, etc). We've struggled financially since we got here, for a number of reasons. So our food storage gradually evaporated. Costs rose about the same time.

Then I got sick. Could not eat the stuff that was left in our storage, so we gave away a LOT of beans, grains, dried foods, etc, that nobody but myself would normally eat, and which I could not now eat. Got sick enough that I could not eat canned or dried foods - could not get enough nutrients out of them, my gut was so sore, I had severe malabsorption. Had to go to 100% fresh foods, of certain types, just to stay alive. Two of my kids then started developing the same patterns. At its worst, there were just 10 foods that I could eat, and only if prepared a certain way.

So we have had no food storage for about 5 years. It feels like walking a tightrope without a net. Scary.

Of course, the food that I and the kids have to eat is very expensive - organic, soy free, corn free, mostly fresh. Especially expensive in Wyoming. Grocery costs skyrocketed to $1200 per month, for a family of 5. And we eat fairly frugally, no prepared foods.

We got rabbits this summer. Then ducks, then chickens, then goats. We stopped buying meat this fall, during the hunting season, because between our flocks and wild game, we had plenty of meat in the freezer (won't last much longer, but the rabbits are breeding so that will help). Once our ducks and chickens start breeding, we won't have to buy meat again. We've stopped buying milk and eggs too, our animals produce those - sparingly, but just enough.

I grew a garden in the greenhouse after we got home from camp this year. Was able to go four weeks without buying veggies before it froze out - a big deal when you have to eat as much of them as I do.

I can finally eat dried foods again, but only home dried. Cannot have canned yet, still don't get enough out of them for it to be worth the trouble of chewing them.

It became clear to me that our food storage would have to be in our garden and greenhouse, and in our flocks and herds, and fields. Still mostly a dream - we have only our tiny back yard to house it all, and it is not nearly enough room. Wyoming makes it almost impossible to do this completely without very costly investments.

I've also learned that food storage won't do you one bit of good if it is not healthy wholesome stuff. Most commercially canned and dried foods has so much stuff in it that would make me sick, that no amount of stored traditional food would do me any good.

If I can grow it, I've got it, and it is something I can use and it will help me get well. I can keep harvesting, keep planting, and keep things multiplying and perpetuating.

If I have to buy it fresh, the supply lines are terribly unreliable. If an emergency hits, I am really in trouble unless I CAN grow it myself. By next summer, I'll be able to can and dry some foods, IF we can find a place big enough to grow it, and that doesn't have the combination of problems this place does.

I also have learned that if you are truly prepared, you have enough to share. You HAVE to over-produce to be sure that you have enough. This is, to me, one of the best perks of the whole equation. It is SO COOL to have enough to share, even if it is just zucchini or lettuce.

My circumstances are very unusual, but I just see the whole preparedness thing differently now than I used to - and I was raised on that kind of philosophy. It has to be a multi-faceted thing, not just a single effort. Ideally, it is not just storage, but sustainability.

Laura
Mom to Eight, Web Designer, Milker of Goats, Feeder of Chickens

 

[Wifezilla]

Most commercially canned and dried foods has so much stuff in it that would make me sick, that no amount of stored traditional food would do me any good.

Improperly prepared beans and grains can cause you many problems. Particularly malabsorption. Phytates, lictens, and protease inhibitors are all in grains and legumes and all mess with the human body. Unless you soak, sprout or ferment these items, they can rob your body of nutrients.

Unfortunately, commercially prepared foods contain mostly improperly prepared grains and legumes along with a buttload of sugar.

A copy of "Nourishing Traditions" is something I consider essential to any stash to prevent issues like you encountered.

 

[freemotion]

I agree! And please read the fermenting thread....fermenting increased nutrients and makes digestion and absorption easier. (runs off to find link...)

Here it is: http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=2652 Be forewarned....it is an encyclopedia of fermenting!

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Aggie, as I have stated before (on other threads) if you prep and nothing happens, there is no problem. You have extra supplies for camping. You have items in case of a blizzard, flood, hurricane or whatever natural disaster tends to be "the thing" in your area. You also have things on hand you can easily donate to the local church or food pantry. You also can give the extra items to family members or friends that have fallen on hard times. You lose nothing by having extra supplies on hand.

Now if you don't prep and things DO hit the fan? Then what? Well, you are completely screwed.

One thing that brought things in to perspective for me is quite a few years ago we had flash flooding. While the houses in the area were fine, a stream did wash out a bank which took out a major electricity tower that supplies the area. We had no power for over a week.

Since there was no power, the stores had no functioning cash registers. Everyone rushed to the store to get food, batteries, ice, etc... People had to shop using grease pencils and writing prices on all the stuff. The checkers had to use hand held calculators and try to ring things up. Once all the refrigerated and frozen stuff was gone it wasn't restocked. No point without power. The ice was gone in minutes. Check out took hours for some of my friends.

We didn't have to bother with that mess since I had a well stocked camping box and our propane grill has an extra tank. I did manage to grab a chunk of dry ice so our freezer was fine. To buy regular ice, though, I did have to go in to town.

Because of that event I was able to relax. Plenty of candles, battery, and some lamps. We used up what food we had and didn't lose anything to spoilage. Because of the ice issue, I did learn to have extra frozen large water bottles in the freezer and we also got a much better 7 day cooler.

Whether you think things will go all FUBAR or not, prep. Seriously. If you don't you may very well become a burden on someone else.

Well, I don't mean we don't have any food in the house. Quite frankly, if we were stuck home today we could get by for a while on the stuff we've got canned, frozen, etc. Well, if we had a power outage we'd have to eat lots of meat right away.

But we always do prep for big storm events. We fill bathtubs, etc. We've gone through several times where we were stuck at home due to snow storms. We had a terrible ice storm when I was a teen, and we lost power for 4 days, couldnt' get out of our long driveway. We did just fine, we had a woodstove for heat, melted snow for water, hauled water from the stream for the animals.

I have thought about buying a gallon of water every time we go to the store, just to have it on hand so we don't have to fill all of our jugs before a storm.

 

[k0xxx]

I have thought about buying a gallon of water every time we go to the store, just to have it on hand so we don't have to fill all of our jugs before a storm.

One suggestion. When storing water in store bought gallon containers, store them in a dark place. UV light can break down the plastic and cause it to become brittle. Grabbing the handle of a brittle gallon container and lifting will result in a lot of mopping. If you rotate containers on a six month basis you should be fine.

 

[Mackay]

Well, I've definately become a prepper.. starting just before the crash in 2008... as I saw it coming, I went shopping.

this little diddly just came to mind " here a prep, there a prep, everywhere a prep prep...."

After the crash, I went to emergency essentials that first week and it was packed with people! So was the other bulk storage store around the block... I couldn't believe it... since I wasn't into standing on line I just went home and got out of everyone's way.

But I was living in Mormon land. Those people are trained to think ahead and to read the signs and be prepared... guess these were all the folks who had been sitting on the fence.

I have carefully considered what is requried for long term food storage... now I see that I will get return on my investment... as food prices go up the things I got on sales, etc become true investments, saving me dollars in the future... at best.... and access to real food come the worst.... I felt that this was essential as I did not know and still really dont know how to produce my own food to endure from one growing season to another.

The most important things I have purchased (aside from seed) in my opinon are buckets or bags of beans and rice. They will keep forever if you keep them dry and pest free... and if all else fails you can survive a long time on them alone...

I know that everyone cannot go out and purchase a ton of food all at once as I did. I had a good job then and cash available. I can't do that today... but each time I go shopping I add a few things that are on very good sales. Yesterday, Swanson msg free broths, 50 cents a can, got 6....... people who started picking up just a few things each week starting in Sept of 2008 ought to be in fairly good shape by now.

I keeping adding little things that I didn't think of as time goes by, like a suture kit,, but then I forgot the hemostats I'd probably need if I really did have to suture anyone so I got them a couple of weeks ago.

My husband wants to know when will I be done....

hmmm.... couldnt answer that question... Next year I will have a whole empty root cellar to learn how to fill from the gardens I'm learning to grow.

 

[Mackay]

lwheelerR

I wonder about beans and wheat berries for you. So much of that can be sprouted and then cooked and eaten. Many people who have issues with such food can eat it if it is sprouted first... its really changes it. Look into Ann Wigmore and the diet she provided at the Hippocrates Institue. A few bags of wheat berries could keep you going if you know how to prepare them to make living food

and I do agree with you. It is best to store and to produce enough to share... its very hard to turn people away because you dont have enough.

We have challenges with climate also being in a zone 3 to 4 at a high altitude. You never know what the weather will do... but if you use cold frames and raised beds you should be able to extend your gardens life quite a bit. as well as make excellent soil and then there are plants that will practically grow through the snow.