How much stored food?

[Surveyor1]

I agree JG1, growing up in farm country and working with them, I never saw a fat farmer!  Oh they ate plenty as “Mama” served a big lunch and big dinner but they worked those calories off!  With the new technologies and innovations they have today I have noticed some getting a little bigger around the belt line 😳…. You haven’t really lived until you’ve loaded a barn with bales of hay!  Now that’s one area where they’ve really taken the hard labor part out!!!

[Abigayle]

John G. I will feed my granddaughter and her fiancé'. They are aware of what is coming.  My regret is that they don't help more, when they are here.  Last week, my granddaughter quit in the garden a good half hour before I was ready and I was shoveling new soil into grow bags.
I am looking at the lists of food storage, and see a lot of empty calories presented.  I will be able to make bread for a year plus and we will need it.  Right now, I make a loaf a week, along with croutons, and a few roles and pastries.
Both kids listed above are good with side and long guns.  They are also night owls, so will earn their keep there.
An acre garden can support more than one person if the soil is kept up and lots of things are grown vertically.  I buy bush squash, etc. when I can.  If you keep it trimmed the energy goes into the fruit.  Don't forget cucumbers, even if you don't eat salad or can't grow it in summer, they are high in vitamins.  Pickles add even more.
You can grow more than one crop almost anywhere, if you have hoops that are low to the ground, covered by a winter garden quilt. Pull the cover off one side on sunny days, but leave the rest protected.  This last cold hit early in Dec. and was a record.  Winter crops have to be hardened extra well.  I totally understand the need to keep weight on, but you need the veggies and protein from whatever source you use.  City people sometimes store protein powder and vitamins, since in some cases, they just have canned goods and a small freezer.  I know of a guy who has aa fifty-five gal fish tank, with edible fish.  He is in the city, and will use it if he is trapped there.

[Searchboss]

I live in a suburban neighborhood. We plant what I call a “hobby garden” in our backyard every year just to learn how to grow our own foods. While it won’t really feed us long-term, it does provide us with a lot of fresh vegetables in season each year along with enough blueberries to eat and freeze for the year. Just a small ‘hobby garden” is a lot of work, but we have learned a lot. My main takeaway is that there is a lot more to learn.

I have always struggled with how to determine how much is enough when it comes to storage foods. Some people use a total weight, others a square footage, and some count calories. To me, counting calories makes the most sense, but it also appears to be the hardest to accurately calculate and the most time-consuming method to manage properly. I have been using an excel spreadsheet [available here: https://foodstoragemadeeasy.net/babysteps/step-4-long-term-food-storage-planning/] that counts inventory by quantity and by weight, but have not yet found a way to easily keep up with calories stored this way.

I keep a detailed inventory of everything in my “long & medium term storage”, but for me, it is difficult to convert the bulk storage quantity of all the different items into a “daily caloric count”. I like JG1’s “2000 calorie a day measurement” as a starting point, but I still worry that I don’t have enough stored. I would welcome more discussion about specific methods people use to determine how they calculate that have enough calories stored.

Like others on the forum, I have had difficulty convincing select family members and neighbors/friends that they need to prepare. I don’t push it since I view this as a personal choice, but I also emphasize that everyone is individually responsible for taking care of themselves and their families. I have tried to convince the few people I have had these conversations with to be proactive, but I also told them in no uncertain terms that I will not be able to support them in a crisis. Regardless, I am afraid that some of them, and perhaps others that I don’t expect or prep for, may show up asking for refuge or succor. I have developed a plan to counter that eventuality. Unfortunately, I do not consider my suburban house to be a truly “defensible” structure, but it is where we live, and most of my supplies are kept. Like the man said, “Do what you can, with what you’ve got, where you are.”

[Abigayle]

Search Boss, Modern Survival Blog (Ken) recently did an article on just the subject you are dealing with.  I was pleased to note that I had stored mostly the short term storage that he did, in terms of items and variety.  Some of his higher calorie foods stored were Corned Beef Hash, Roast Beef Hash, small called hams, Beef Stew (gag me with a spoon on that one, I can better than that!).  He goes down the line from there.  Pasta and sauces were just in the medium range of calories.  Tuna, the same, but a good prep if you like it.  Key Stone meats keep for years.  Ingels has the best prices on all of them.
I consider health.  Many people put survival above a  healthy diet.  That is an individual choice.  My take, if we are pushing it that hard, we better keep our blood pressure and cholesterol under control.  This is one reason that I chose to give up some space to herbs that can aid in both prevention and cure....still learning
It takes a lot of time and work to departmentalize your preps.  One simple way is to start with for a week, including toilet paper, vitamins, etc.  Breakfast is an easy meal to figure first if you have oatmeal, cornmeal, wheat berries, dried fruits, powdered milk, pancake mix, syrup, canned fruit., canned ham, hash, bacon... You can figure how many meals you have on hand.  Usually the serving on the boxes they come in allow for a pretty good sized serving.  As man have mentioned, The L.D.S. handbook breaks down some basics.  The number of bottles of vegetable oil for one man for a year really shocked me.  I will take a look at your chart, always looking for good measurements.
Like you, we use about an acre of our land to grow food.  This rules out growing much for the chickens, except in trays.  Our five acres is garden, small remaining yard, small stocked lake and woods. We share the lake.  Right now, we are on our fourth picking of contender green beans.  Some are canned and frozen.  We have plenty of tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, lettuce (back again!), squash and cabbage.  Living in the south gives us a nice long season, full of variety.  Melons coming later.  These are low calorie foods but they are healthy.  We won't need the calories that we used ten years ago.  If we take in too many calories, we will be hauling around extra baggage, which is hard on the body. When you find a way that works well, please let us know.  This chart may be your answer. (stiff prolific, can't help myself)..

[Surveyor1]

I’m not working on a system I just keep prepping stuff.  When I see holes I fill them.  If I think I need more of  particular item, I buy it.  I look at three different areas, calorie density, protein and carbohydrates.  Not the perfect plan but it works for me.  Three years into the apocalypse when everyone else is eating pine tree bark I will be eating Mac and cheese, hash browns, beef stroganoff, any bean you could imagine, plenty of rice, drinking coffee and even on occasion eating pizza…. Yes I could get very technical and worry but I simply prep stuff I know I will eat, plenty of it and a lot of variety and throw in some fun foods.  Word to the wise, bread is like manna from Heaven and having stuff to make bread and cornbread cannot be discounted!  Carbs are calories and filling.  I have no idea how long my preps will last but I also know I’m better off than 98% of the sheeple…

[Searchboss]

Abigayle & Surveyor1 thanks for the feedback. I started using the inventory spreadsheet when I first started prepping bulk items because I felt that it was important to know how much of what I had stored and how long it might last. Essentially it is only tracking quantity stored, either by weight or by the number of containers. I have not found an easy and simple way of tracking calories stored, which is what I now would like to be able to do. I quit using the manufacturers’ stated serving size long ago. I have learned that there is no standardization to them in either quantity or calories. Usually, the stated serving size is smaller than what an average American normally consumes.

I have since found that the spreadsheet I use is a bit demanding and time-consuming to use if you are regularly using and restocking items as we should be doing to manage shelf life. I actually thought of trying to use a system geared toward a commercial warehouse inventory, but that proved to be too expensive and would be just as time-consuming to use. You know how preppers love lists. I think I got too involved in trying to keep an absolutely accurate inventory instead of looking at the entire process. I still like to keep an accurate inventory for core long-term storage items, but the longer I do this the more my outlook is changing to reflect daily life. I too believe that I’m better off than 98% of the sheeple, but I still strive to improve as I can. Like Surveyor1 stated, I just keep prepping stuff and fill holes as I find them.

As mentioned, I have started to prep my items by types which helps ensure a well-rounded and stocked larder and a balanced menu/diet. I don’t subscribe to the cheap and easy idea of rice and beans as the sole main staple. I like a variety in my diet and am willing to do what is needed to ensure that I have a good variety stored. At this point on this journey I don’t have the luxury of having a true homestead or farm where I can grow adequate produce and raise animals, yet. I am still taking baby steps. Thanks for your comments.

Abigayle, we planted a smaller garden this year. Even so, we have more squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, and blueberries than we can eat right now. The freezer is getting full, so my wife has been giving her sister and our grown kids quite a bit. Gardening is a lot of work but it is also a great asset.

[John Galt 1]

I have always struggled with how to determine how much is enough when it comes to storage foods. Some people use a total weight, others a square footage, and some count calories. To me, counting calories makes the most sense, but it also appears to be the hardest to accurately calculate and the most time-consuming method to manage properly.
I keep a detailed inventory of everything in my “long & medium term storage”, but for me, it is difficult to convert the bulk storage quantity of all the different items into a “daily caloric count”. I like JG1’s “2000 calorie a day measurement” as a starting point, but I still worry that I don’t have enough stored. I would welcome more discussion about specific methods people use to determine how they calculate that have enough calories stored.

Like others on the forum, I have had difficulty convincing select family members and neighbors/friends that they need to prepare. I don’t push it since I view this as a personal choice, but I also emphasize that everyone is individually responsible for taking care of themselves and their families. I have tried to convince the few people I have had these conversations with to be proactive, but I also told them in no uncertain terms that I will not be able to support them in a crisis. Regardless, I am afraid that some of them, and perhaps others that I don’t expect or prep for, may show up asking for refuge or succor. I have developed a plan to counter that eventuality. Unfortunately, I do not consider my suburban house to be a truly “defensible” structure, but it is where we live, and most of my supplies are kept. Like the man said, “Do what you can, with what you’ve got, where you are.”

Search Boss,      None of us have a  "truly defensible house".       I read an article about defending a home from attack during a SHTF crisis and they brought up the fact that your home is being ambushed and you have family in the home.     But we are not all trained Marines with battle armor.      The author put up the situation that the idea is survival of your family.     The idea is not to "push forward and conquer".      Better to instead try to turn your attacker's ambush into an ambush of your own on the attacker.     Better to run out of the house but with the ability to come up behind your attacker a few minutes or a few days later and "reverse the ambush".      This would require supplies in either a quick grab bag or stored off the property.

enough on that topic.

As for counting calories my method doesn't work well with foods that you intend to store less and a year.       Just foods that will store at least 3 years.     No foods from the pantry of freezer which should be eaten within the next year.
I bought a good quality notebook.      I then spent several hours on the internet and sorting through all of my long term stored foods.           A few pages for dry canned foods. a few pages for bucket items.     Maybe even a page for stored spices or dried bullions.  Plenty of blank pages for items added for future use

In the left margin there is a tic make for each item added as an item is added over the years.    Next the item name, next the number of calories per case or bucket, and on the right is a number of aysty at 2000 calories per day that item will support someone.
example:
111      16 Bean Mix can      5000 calories     2 1/2 days

On the last few pages is where I keep a running total of the number of days food stored.     It's only updated occasionally (maybe once a year) when I add or use food from the supplies.
@Searchboss     

[RWS]

Today I just ordered my second pressure canner.  I plan to keep one at the Region 2 camp site just in case I need it.  Then I plan to gradually carry up canning jars, lids & rings.  I should be able to expand my garden space up there for next years garden.  I am able to check rain by looking at www.georgiaweather.net  and selecting Blairsville.  Last week Blairsville got over a half inch of rain twice.  That does not mean I got any cause I am some distance away.

We grow, can and freeze most of out food preps.  We can things we eat during the year so that we have empty jars to can with the following year.   My future problem is I am getting OLD and some day may not be able to garden like I do now.  I guess we will cross that bridge when we get there. 

PS:  A second canner may become a good barter item.

[John Galt 1]

I suspect a dry summer this year,     especially in  region 1 and 2.

[Surveyor1]

One item I’ve been focusing on over the years has been spices.  Bland food sucks!  Salt and pepper has never been a problem for storage.  I tried to focus on items that can enhance the flavor or even completely change the flavor.  IMHO, with what we have prepped, these are some of the most important to me.  Chili powder, Italian seasoning, Curry powder, cinnamon, vanilla extract and an all around seasoning such as Complete from Badia. 

Seasonings will last along time in the cabinet but not long enough.  Moisture is the biggest nemesis.  I’m not a big fan of storing spices in a freezer for various reasons.  I also wanted a way that I could see what I have in each bag.  So far my best solution has been the Space Bags from Harbor Freight that you can vacuum down.  These are pretty cheap and overall do an adequate job of sealing tight.  I’ve had a some that did not hold as tight a vacuum as I wanted so if one did that I simply vacuumed it down again and put the whole bag in the larger bag and vacuumed it down.  I rationalized that even if the seal did not hold as well that there was a minuscule chance of moisture finding it’s way through the double seal (may not be a sound thought but oh well…).  Clumped up seasoning can still be used in most cases but sometimes the flavor can be affected due to the moisture.  I guess I will know in time if my Space Bags did the job?

[Abigayle]

Along with spices come sauces.  I keep about 14 different kinds, to dress up mostly rice, but will do well with beans and canned meat.  I also store dried gravies and sauces.  About once a month, I dry a different culinary herb on each level of my dehydrator, to replace the mini canning jars I keep on the microwave where there are handy, but not toward the back where it gets hot.  As I mentioned before, I don't crumble them until they go into the pot and I don't shake them over the pot, allowing steam from the stove to clump some of them sooner.
For over six months now, I have make all our bread, buns, cookies, cakes, etc. etc.  I did buy a few pizzas for the freezer.  I used over thirty pounds of flour, and a pound bag of yeast, which gave me a good idea as to how much I needed to order and store.  I have all-purpose, artisan bread, pastry and a little wheat and rye.  This was the easiest item of which to keep track.  I also have wheat berries, both summer and winter.  If whatever happens lasts much over a year, we will be praying for good weather and eating from the yard.  It will need to be what we can produce.  In the meantime, I can and rotate.  Cucumbers become pickles, or are consumed fresh, same for tomatoes and a few other things.  If you are giving much away, I would suggest that you check your Prepper books on different ways to preserve items.
Surveyor made a good point regarding having sweet things.  My granddaughter loves dehydrated watermelon, not everyone does.  Jams can be made with low sugar, or not,  I want to make some rhubarb, but sill can not find it.  We discovered that the deer missed some grapes, so we will defend them. Bags of pretzels and chips, even healthy ones, will keep a year or so, if you can keep out of them.  Different seasoning for popcorn are nice, but they sure got expensive...cheese, ranch, Mexican, caramel, olive oil and Italian spices...Kettle Corn, yum... Good ways to dress up popcorn for the family.  Grab some board games or a deck of cards, but watch those doors and windows.  J.G. made a good point, you might have to back out, and as the Dems say, "circle back around".

[Searchboss]

On the subject of canned meats… I try to buy and store foods my family will enjoy, or at least eat. I have tried many different brands and like most people, I like some more than others. I have found that the Keystone brand to be quite good compared to others, and they have a wide variety. They come in both 14.5 and 28 oz. cans in beef, ground beef, chicken, pork, and turkey. As previously mentioned, I too have found that Ingles has the best price for Keystone products. I have not been able to find that brand elsewhere in stores locally. The online prices seem to be quite excessive to me.

I have tried store-branded meat products and found that most of them are not nearly as good as name-brand products. My wife loves corned beef hash so we always have a few cans in the pantry. We also have different brands (DAK & Bristol) of canned hams, but to me, they have the consistency and flavor of Spam, not ham. There is a lot of meat in a 16 oz. canned ham. Since my wife likes Spam we use these from time to time. We also have some canned roast beef in different brands (Clover Valley; Butterfield Farms; Great Value). Again, I find that the name brands are better than the store brands, but none of them are as good as fresh. We also have a couple of brands of canned chicken.

We also have some canned beef stew in different brands, mainly for use as a quick and easy no-prep meal. Well, mostly they are used for camping or “emergency” use, which is funny since we can cook just as easily during a power outage as we can when the power is on.

I personally don’t care that much for fish, but we also have some canned tuna and other canned seafood stored for others that do. There are a lot of other canned meat products out there, but the ones mentioned seem to be the main ones people like, although I know one guy who loves Vienna sausage and keeps dozens of cans in his pantry. Ugh! The point of this post is to encourage people to store a variety of meat items to vary their menu options if they need to eat exclusively out of their pantry for a long while. While these options are more expensive than rice and beans, they can complement them and add variety, protein, and calories to your diet.

[John Galt 1]

Today I just ordered my second pressure canner.  I plan to keep one at the Region 2 camp site just in case I need it.

PS:  A second canner may become a good barter item.

RWS,     We do a little canning every fall but if the stores are all closed (no propane) the wood cutting to heat a canner is a lot of work in my opinion.     We can now and we keep some spare jars and lids.    We also keep a bit of spare firewood.     But cutting and splitting 3+ cords by hand for heat and cooking just makes me tired thinking about the effort.   
Guess I'm just lazy but I despise splitting wood with a maul. 
 

[Ravenwood1950]

John Gault, several years ago i pressure canned meat on my rocket stove which just used sticks from the yard. I had a heck of a time getting the soot off of the canner but got the job done with a tiny amount of fuel.
Ravenwood

[Abigayle]

Ravenwood, good to know!  By the way, did you soap the bottom of the canner, and what size canner did you use?  I think I would try it on ours, with the one that holds four quarts.  What kind of sticks did you have?  Was it your pine?  Thanks!