Stocking Your Pantry

Stocking Your Pantry

Build an emergency pantry that can provide you and your family with food for a year.

I know that sounds like a lot. But it is much better to be over prepared than under prepared. You will want to only buy food for your emergency pantry that will keep very well. Ideally you will want to stock it with food that can keep for several years. This emergency food pantry will give you peace of mind that if disaster or emergency does hit, you and your family will have plenty to eat. Consider it to be an insurance policy. We take out insurance against all kinds of disasters that might happen. It is very good to have some “food insurance” as well.
Once you have your main emergency pantry, start work on a “working pantry”.
In your “working pantry”, you will regularly rotate your food so that you eat the oldest first and that way your working pantry stays fresh.
Building an emergency food pantry, one of the best things to do is to stock up when you see food items on sale. If you pay full price for everything, building an emergency food pantry is likely to stretch your budget a little too thin. If you wait to buy your emergency food when it is on sale, it will be much easier on your budget.

Checklist 1

Consideration 1 - You will need to gather some metal containers, or durable plastic containers that mice or insects cannot chew through or infest. Check out buckets and lids at Costco’s or online
Consideration 2 – Oxygen absorbers are great for keeping your food from going stale, so get as many as you think you may need.
Consideration 3 – Think about where and how you will store your food. It is best to have a dedicated area for your emergency food pantry, and it is suggested that this dedicated area be in a clean, dry place.
When you are building your emergency pantry, it is a good idea to try to focus on foods that are dried or freeze dried if possible.
The following are some suggested foods for your emergency pantry:
Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, Salt
Sugar, Syrup, Honey
Nuts, Granola Bars, Crackers, Candy
Instant Oatmeal, Dry cereal
Instant Rice and Potatoes
Dried, Canned Soups
Spaghetti, other Pasta
Dried Beans and Rice, Wheat
Dried and Canned Meats
Crackers, Snacks, CandyPeanut Butter, Jellies, Jams
Dry and canned milk
Powered and canned Juices
Oil, Cooking Lard, Spices, Sea Salt
Dried and canned Veggies and Fruit
Canned Tomato Sauces and Pastes
Juice, Coffee, Tea, Alcohol
Once you have established your long term emergency pantry, you will want to focus on building your “working pantry”:
The goal is to store up a one year supply of food in your working pantry, and to rotate and use the food in that pantry.
As you go to the grocery store, grab a few extra items each time and slowly build it up. You don’t have to do it all at once.
In addition, you can store food grown in your own garden and add it to your working pantry.
The goal will be to add food back to your working pantry as you eat it. Always try to keep about a one year supply of food on hand.
If you follow these steps, you will not only have plenty of food for your and your family no matter what emergency may come, but you will also have plenty to share with others. Being able to help others in a time of great need can be a tremendous blessing in itself. Imagine how much someone could have helped out during Hurricane Katrina if they had an emergency pantry and a working pantry such as we have discussed in this article.
It is always better to be prepared. Don’t let disaster and emergency sneak up on you.