If you are just beginning your food storage plan, then Food Storage 101 is what you need. Before you begin buying food, you need to make sure the area where you plan to store the food is properly prepped. Here are three simple steps to get your food storage area ready to ensure longer shelf-life.
Select a room that will serve as your food storage area. For the longest shelf-life possible, make sure it is the coldest place in your house. If you choose the garage, make sure the food is far away from heat sources, such as the furnace or water heater. Make sure to close all heating vents so the room stays as cold as possible. Other possibilities are an insulated garage or root cellar.
If none of these options are available, designate a section of your pantry or kitchen cabinets for your food storage. You can also use a crawl space, an unfinished area of the home, a spare bedroom, under the stairway, under beds or closets.
If you choose an area that has cement or dirt floors, the food should not be placed directly on the floor. Moisture may get into your food, causing it to go bad. Cement and dirt floors will also cause your cans to rust. Elevate your storage area with wooden pallets. You can also lay bricks on the floor, and place wooden boards on top of the bricks.
Seal any and all crevices and cracks in the room, because cracks can allow insects and mice can get in and destroy your food storage. Keep in mind that mice can eat through foil and food wrappings, and they love military meals and MRE (Meals Ready-to-Eat). Take the proper precautions to protect your food from rodents and insects.
Your shelves should allow you to easily rotate your food. Rotating food involves using the oldest foods first, and placing the newest foods in the back. Your shelves must also allow air circulation around all your food so everything stays dry. Foods that need to be kept cool, such as oils, dairy products and powdered milk, should be stored closest to the floor. Keep breakables, like glass bottles and jars, on the same shelves. Then, place pieces of wood in front of them to keep them from falling off of the shelves and breaking.
The area on the floor under the shelves can be used to store buckets of pasta, rice, wheat and beans. You can also store non-food emergency supplies there, including a propane stove, coolers, flashlights, batteries, medical supplies, candles, garden seeds, and any other supply you may need.
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Have had a vegetarian diet for over twenty years. Can we alter the meal plan to include only vegetables and fruits?
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Sal,
That is a great question. We offer a vegetarian supply, which you can view here:
http://www.foodinsurance.com/store/short-term-meal-plans/vegetarian-package
We also offer fruits, vegetables, and drink mixes which you can view here:
http://www.foodinsurance.com/a-la-carte-food
If you have any additional questions, please contact us at contact@foodinsurance.com, or 1-866-946-8366.
Thanks,
-Food Insurance
If a single package contains several meals, how are the remaining meals preserved after the package is opened?
collecting rain water- allow firsty15 mins. of rain to run off, then collectin container. water can be put in a sun tea jar ,place in the sun . Sun will kill microscpic organisms.
When you store cans, stack them upside down. This keeps the tops clean until you open them.
I live in a hot area. Is it ok to store the food in a freezer?
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Jim,
You can absolutely store the food in your freezer. Since the freeze-dry process removes the moisture from the food, it will maintain its self-life even if kept below freezing temperatures.
Thanks,
-Food Insurance
Will Food Boxes contain only our selections, or several pre-determined selections?
Some items do not interest me, but other Food Items do.
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Martha,
Our meal plans contain the items outlined in the product description. If you are not interested in some of the options, you should contact one of our Emergency Preparedness Specialists at contact@foodinsurance.com, or 1-866-946-8366.
Thanks,
-Food Insurance
Box dimensions R?
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Jay,
We use two different types of boxes for our food. Our four can boxes measure 13″L x 13″W x 7.25″H. We then store three of these boxes inside of one master case which measures 25″L x 14″W x 14″H.
Our backpacks ship in boxes that measure 25″L x 12″W x 12″H.
If you have any additional questions, please contact us at contact@foodinsurance.com, or 1-866-946-8366.
Thanks,
-Food Insurance
I do not have much room for storage. I keep an inventory of what is under which bed. Those boxes that are under beds are raised on 2×4’s with a waterproof drawer liner on top of the wood. In one bedroom, I stack 4 boxes and use as a night table. I cover it with a table clothe. You would never know it was food. Of course, I place the bottom box on 2×4’s with a waterproof drawer liner on top of the board. If a water heater were to leak and get the floor/carpet wet (wood absorbs water), my boxes are dry.
what is the shelf life once the cans are opened? for example, if i were to get the meat combo it has so many sevings per can but of course that much can’t be consumed at once. how soon must the food be consumed after opening?
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Dawn,
That is a great question. The shelf-life of our products once opened ranges from 1-6 weeks. Things like moisture and heat will reduce the shelf-life, where cool temperatures (refrigeration) will extend the shelf-life.
By planning out your meals in advance, you can avoid any waste.
For a more detailed explanation you can contact our Support Department at contact@foodinsurance.com, or call us at 1-866-946-8366.
Thanks,
-Food Insurance
I have a small bedroom as well as a large unfinished room that I could store food in, but they are not exactly cool. the crawl space under my house is covered with an asphalt-like mixture to block moisture.. I know that area is cool.
Is that an acceptable area if the food is on pallets instead of sitting on the asphalt.
Can water be stored in glass containers for a long time?
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Carol,
Great questions! From your description it sounds like your crawl space would be a good option as long as the food is protected from moisture (the pallets you mentioned are a great idea), and pests.
Regarding water, you can certainly store water in glass containers, although many people prefer plastic because it doesn’t break as easily. The link below will take you to a blog post about water storage. http://www.foodinsurance.com/join-the-discussion/item/54-water-storage
If you have any additional questions, please contact us at contact@foodinsurance.com, or 1-866-946-8366.
Thanks,
-Food Insurance
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