Emergency Supplies
by Nikki Willhite
www.allthingsfrugal.com
Storing Food and other Necessities
Before you begin planning your supplies, you must decide how big
of a catastrophe you want to prepare for. Some people find it adequate to have
enough supplies for a few weeks. Others prefer several months. I know many
people that have a year's supply of food and other necessities on hand.
While a year's supply of provisions may seem a lot, I have to
say that I've also known several families where the husband has lost his job,
and the family was able to survive his period of unemployment because of their
food storage and savings. It is up to you how prepared you want to be.
Sometimes a family is forced to hurriedly evacuate their home,
either for an act of nature or a toxic spill on a road nearby, for instance.
Many families keep a few days of supplies in a container that they can hurriedly
grab should the necessity arise.
Anyone can store food for a few weeks without much thought.
It is when you are storing food for longer periods of time that you have to
give more attention to what you are storing, and the nutritional value. For
that reason, I am concentrating on long term storage.
Here are some long term storage ideas:
Wheat
Bread is the "staff of life". Unfortunately, white flour does
not store well. For that reason, most people who are storing food for long
periods of time store wheat. For more information on how to use wheat in your
diet, see my link on storage tips.
Nonfat Dried/Powdered Milk
Obviously you cannot store whole milk. Yet you need the
nutrients that milk provides. For this reason powdered milk is stored.
Sugar or Honey
Sugar is a necessary dietary ingredient, and a necessity for
baking.
Salt
Salt is also necessary in the diet and in baking and cooking.
Some people think that the above 4 ingredients will combine to
give you emergency food for one year. The wheat can be sprouted for vitamin C.
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While this may be true, a much more palatable diet will be had by storing
moreof the items you eat every day.
Here are some of the basics:
Vegetable Shortening and Oil
Cakes and other dessert mixes
Be sure to read my link on storing foods when it comes to the
amount of water you need to store. If you store dehydrated foods, you will need
a lot more water.
Non-food Necessities
Water Purifier or tablets
Something to cook with if you lose power- such as camping equipment or a
woodburning stove
Candles and lanterns, flashlights and batteries
A
supply of wood, oil, kerosene, or other source of heat.
Over-the-counter medications, such as aspirin
Sanitary Supplies, including toilet paper
Seeds and a spot prepared for gardening where possible, and gardening
supplies
Personal supplies, such as shampoo and toothpaste
Kitchen supplies, such as aluminum foil and a manual can opener
Clothing, with special emphasis on work clothes
Laundry and other household necessities, such as blankets
Firearms (read about Hurricane Andrew)
As you can see, there are many items that we would feel
"lost" without. Just how far you want to go in feeling secure is up to you.
For tips on how to store these items correctly, follow this link:
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Storing Your Food
and Supplies