The Ultimate Guide to Long Term Food Storage

You know that long term food storage is essential to survival in a CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear) event. But you’re not sure where to start, what’s essential, or the best emergency food to store.

Making sure that you have a decent supply of food that can last a long time is extremely important. However, not all items are suitable for your food pantry. In this piece, we’ll cover the best ways to prepare for a long-term disruption. 

Source: Pixabay

What Is Long Term Food Storage?

Long-term food storage is more than just having extra groceries stocked in your pantry. It sets you up to survive an ongoing disruption to normal supply chains by ensuring that you have food that will last a while. 

Imagine something like a nuclear or chemical attack. It’s unlikely that you will be able to buy food for an extended period of time. You need a nutritious, shelf-stable, and secure supply of food that can help you survive independently of outside sources. 

Some of the key considerations for effective food storage include:

• Storing enough food to sustain all household members
  
  
• Keeping food fresh
  
  
• Nutrition
  
  
• Accessibility
  
  

Source: Jas Min on Unsplash

If a major event disrupts normal life, you need each household member to take in enough daily calories to sustain the work they need to do to survive. This could include more manual labor than normal, like chopping wood or hunting, so its important to store more than the bare minimum needed for for long term survival.

You also need to keep the food fresh. This means avoiding the major threats to shelf stable food:

• Pests
  
  
• Moisture
  
  
• Oxygen
  
  

While most dry food like oats or dry beans have a shelf life of over ten years, the three enemies listed above will quickly reduce that. The last thing you want in an emergency is to open your food storage and realize that it's moldy or has already been enjoyed by mice or beetles. It's why you need to change your approach to longer-term food storage.

Your stored food needs to meet nutritional needs. The UK's National Health Service reports that the average man needs about 2,500 calories per day, and the average woman 2,000. This needs to contain a mixture of carbohydrates, protein, and fruits and vegetables to meet nutritional needs and stave off issues like gum disease. 

Source: Michal Renčo from Pixabay

There are many things you can do to maximize the shelf life of stored food, and we'll get into that next. However, it's important to note that strategies for shorter-term storage are quite different from storing food for years.

Essential Supplies for Home Food Storage

Shelf-stable is something of a broad term, defined by the USDA as "any food that can be safely stored at room temperature and does not need to be refrigerated." Since we're discussing long-term disaster preparedness, we'll focus on foods that can be stored for five years or more. 

Foods last longest when preserved in one of the following ways: 

• Canned
  
  
• Freeze-dried
  
  
• Dehydrated
  
  

You'll find that most survival storage food on prepper lists is preserved according to one of these three methods. 

Image by Jenő Szabó from Pixabay

Foods preserved this way help remove the enemies listed above -oxygen, pests, and moisture - but proper storage containers and methods can do even more.

For a long shelf life, package your survival food items in one of the following ways:

• Mylar bags
  
  
• 5-gallon buckets
  
  
• Food grade containers
  
  

These storage solutions can be combined to lengthen the shelf life of your food long term food supply even further. Many grains like white rice or oats can last 10-20 years if packaged properly. 

Source: Impak Corporation

It's important not to simply dump your non perishable food supply into a food grade bucket and assume that you're good to go. Use oxygen absorbers to prolong shelf life by adding one of the small packets to each container before sealing. These are simply packets of iron and salt that work with the existing moisture and oxygen inside the food to slow down spoilage. It's a simple way to store food for longer periods.

Foods must be below 10% moisture to be suitable for absorbers. Any higher than that and the result can be botulism poisoning. Some foods can't be used with them, like sugar, salt, beans, corn and wheat. 

Good candidates for oxygen absorbers include:

• Seeds
  
  
• Oats
  
  
• Dried vegetables
  
  
• Pasta
  
  
• Flour
  
  

See the chart below for the proper amounts to use with your stored food. 

Source: Total Prepare 

Building Your Emergency Food Supply

Step one is creating a plan. We recommend creating a comprehensive list of the amount of food you will need for each person in the household during a CBRN emergency. This should include both dry items and foods from the freezer. 

Food and water are basic for survival, but the human body requires a variety of food to maintain acceptable health. Rice and beans alone won't cut it. 

Include a variety of foods, especially vegetables and fruits, to make sure you're receiving all the vitamins and minerals you need for extended survival with increased physical demands. Certain processed foods can be stored for decades, with some having a 30-year shelf life or more. Canned goods from your local grocery store are a good way to start! 

Source: Alex S. from Pixabay

Many people steer away from including cans of vegetables because they aren't as filling as carbs and proteins. But humans need the minerals and nutrients in these foods to survive and maintain a healthy immune system. Plus, most of these are easy to can or freeze dry and can and can make other staple foods more palatable. 

Best Practices for Storing Long-Term Food

Storing food incorrectly can actually introduce toxins or food poisoning - the last thing you want to deal with in a survival situation where medical care may be inaccessible! 

For canned food, follow these safety guidelines:

• Keep canned food above freezing but below 85 degrees Fahrenheit
  
  
• Discard damaged cans
  
  
• Don't eat cans from a flooded area
  
  
• Don't eat bulging cans
  
  
• Boil home-canned vegetables for at least 10-minutes before eating
  
  

Source: Utah State University 

Mylar bags area another favorite for extending food life, and are great for food storage for emergencies. To use these effectively:

• Label the bag with the food, amount, and date (dried kidney beans, 5 lbs, November 2023 for example)
  
  
• Add your dried food to an open Mylar bag
  
  
• Add the correct amount of oxygen absorber (see chart above)
  
  
• Seal with your heat sealer
  
  
• Store away from heat and light
  
  

Some people have specific dietary needs. You might also have infants, chronically ill people, or the elderly to consider in your long term storage plan. With babies, it's imperative that you also store foods for infants.

Infant formula needs to be stored in a cool, dry place and usually has an expiration date of a year. In an emergency, mix it with bottled water. 

For babies older than six months, you may also want soft canned vegetables and fruits to supplement their formula, along with soft cereals like oats. Powdered milk is shelf-stable, but should only be given to babies over a year old. 

When you make your long term food storage plan, account for specialized needs. People with food allergies may not be able to eat MREs or pre-prepped food. People with medical needs might need more of a specific vitamin or mineral, like calcium or vitamin C, which can be supplemented by storing more of those foods. 

Emergency Food Kits and Supplies

Once you have your plan drawn out, it's time to start assembling your long-term survival kit. You can make it easy on yourself by purchasing a ready-to-go kit that is already properly stored for long-term survival.

Source: Mountain House

Our picks for the top 10 emergency food storage supplies are:

• Mountain House
  
  
• Valley Food Storage
  
  
• ReadyWise
  
  
• Augason Farms
  
  
• My Patriot Supply
  
  
• The Ready Store
  
  
• Survive2Thrive
  
  
• S.O.S. Rations
  
  
• Cabelas
  
  
• Total Prepare
  
  

Of these, Mountain House is our top pick for the best quality of emergency preparedness meals. They have an impressive assortment of basic foods like ground beef and diced chicken that store well. You can also purchase based on the length of time that you want to prepare for, from three days to a year, and they even have gluten-free meal plans as well. 

If you're not sure how to figure out the nutritional requirements of your home storage plan, you can use an online calorie calculator like this one. 

Long-Term Storage Techniques

Even if you choose to start your stock with a purchased emergency supply, you can supplement it in a number of ways. 

Dehydrated or freeze-dried foods are an excellent way to add variety to your food storage, and can be done at home with a food dehydrator or home freezer. 

Canning your own food is also a popular way to expand your food storage cheaply. You have to make sure you do it safely and boil any home-canned vegetables for 10 minutes after opening the jar before you consume the foods.

Powdered food like nonfat dry milk can be a little tricky to store. Some people like to repackage it in glass jars to lengthen the storage time. 

Dehydrated food needs to be completely dry before storing, otherwise it will mold. You also need to ensure that such food is stored away from sunlight. Generally speaking, the higher the temperature, the shorter amount of time you can store it. Dried fruits like blueberries and apples can be an excellent way to make food more palatable and ensure enough nutrients.

Source: Ruslan Sikunov on Unsplash

Commercially canned food is generally high in nutritional value and has a long shelf life, but needs to be checked periodically and discarded if it is bulging or leaking. 

Rotating and Using Stored Foods

So you have food for long-term emergencies carefully collected, preserved, and stored in a cool, dry area in your home. Great! But what if the emergency takes a while to arrive? 

While that's reason to be happy (no one wants a CBRN event, after all), it means that you want to use up that food to ensure that your investment doesn't go to waste. 

The simplest strategy is to simply make a list of everything you have in your storage along with the expiration dates. Check it monthly and rotate out anything that is getting close to it's best-by date. Create a food storage program where you replace foods that aren't being regularly used.

Items with a nearly unlimited shelf life, like brown rice or pinto beans, are probably fine, especially if you used specialized food storage containers. Many people still prefer to rotate these items out every so often by bring it out of long-term storage and into regular household pantry supply. 

If you're using freeze-dried or ready to eat foods, include them on your next backpacking or camping trip. It's not a bad idea to have family members eat them once in a while to get used to the taste. 

Long-Term Food Storage Mistakes to Avoid

The last thing you want is to open your food supply after a disaster and realize that it has been compromised. 

Trying to DIY your storage may lead to preservation problems, like improper use of oxygen absorbers.

Source: Gary Sandoz on Unsplash

Here are some tips to help out as you start with food preservation:

• Use food grade plastic containers - not just any old plastic tub
  
  
• Be sure food is 100% dry before storing
  
  
• Include a radiation detector to test your food supply
  
  
• Rotate food frequently
  
  
• Ensure nutritional variety
  
  
• Include foods rich in protein for extra energy
  
  
• Make a plan - don't just randomly buy bulk foods
  
  
• Include some quality of life foods, like coffee, tea, or candy
  
  
• Include a way to cook the food, especially boiling water
  
  
• Breaking your supply down into 1- or 5-gallon Mylar bags makes it more likely that you will rotate it out and use it up
  
  

Conclusion

Maintaining a long-term food storage supply for a survival scenario is achievable. Planning is key. By staying organized and making a list of what you have, what you need, and when to rotate it out, you will save money and achieve peace of mind as you no longer have to worry about food security. 

If you've already started stocking up on extra basics of the foods that you eat like peanut butter and rice - great! Make sure you're storing those items properly to extend the shelf life. Check that you've accounted for special dietary needs in your household and that you've stored food properly.

Finally, consider including some complete meals into your storage. The initial days of a CBRN event will likely be chaotic, and you won't be thinking about the correct amount of time to soak dried beans before cooking. You'll want a quick, filling, nutritional meal to get you through. 

Additional Resources

To get you started, here are some food preservation basics:

• Oxygen absorbers
  
  
• Mylar bags
  
  
• 5 Gallon Buckets
  
  
• Meal kits
  
  

Additional reading on long-term food storage and survival: 

• "Getting Started with Long Term Food Storage," University of Arkansas
  
  
• "Shelf Life Guide," Los Angeles Regional Food Bank
  
  
• "Comprehensive Oxygen Absorber Size Chart for Long-Term Food Storage," Wallaby Goods
  
  
• "Canning Foods at Home," Clemson University

Sources

"Understanding Calories," National Health Service

"What Does 'Shelf Stable' Mean," United States Department of Agriculture

"Oxygen Absorbers," Utah State University Cooperative Extension

"Mylar Bags and Oxygen Absorbers (Chart)," Total Prepare 

"Preparing an Emergency Food Supply, Short Term Food Storage," College of Family and Consumer Sciences, University of Georgia 

"Storing Canned Food," University of Minnesota

"Getting Started with Long Term Food Storage," University of Arkansas 

"Infant Formula Preparation and Storage," CDC

"DRI Calculator for Healthcare Professionals," U.S. Department of Agriculture

"Food Storage Mistakes Even Veteran Preppers Make," Survival Dispatch