Stockpiling for emergencies is always a good idea – especially in these trying times. You never know when you may need a stockpile of goods to get you through the next pandemic or natural disaster.
But how much should you stockpile? What types of preppers’ food should you purchase? What are the best ways to budget your emergency supplies? These are all important considerations you must think about when planning for the worst-case scenario.
Emergencies could be caused by lots of different things. From freak storms making it dangerous to drive, snow pilling up and trapping you in your house, and even a virus causing countrywide lockdowns; we all know how that feels!
If you live in areas where these types of emergencies happen frequently, then stockpiling preppers’ food is a must. But even when the weather is clear and safe, stockpiling is a great way to save money if you are running on a tight budget. Perhaps you’ve been struck at home with the flu or a cold, and can barely get out of bed; there are easy-to-make prepper food items that will help ease the difficulty of illness.
It's not just food that needs to be stockpiled. Non-food items including, batteries, toiletries, and medicines [SV1] [SV2] are also key to have on hand in emergencies and having an extra supply is never a bad thing.
Buying on a budget
We all know that food has become costly in the past few years. That is why it is important to spend wisely when buying preppers’ food. A wise option to take, is to add one or two items to your regular weekly shopping. If you buy certain items in bulk, then you’ll be spending an absolute fortune.
It is important to carry out some research into what are the cheapest items to buy. Take notes on your next shopping trip, writing down what you like and the average cost. Another good tip is to research some recipes in advance, so you know what will be quick and easy to make, as well as taste good.
Depending on how many people are in your household, you can work out the extra costs and multiply what you purchase.
Best food to stockpile
The best foods to stockpile are the ones that are going to last for a good long while. We all have cupboards full of odd bits and bobs that we never seem to use, but these items are the ones that are going to help you out in emergencies.
Here is a list of the essential food items to stockpile:
Pasta – these are high in carbohydrates and can be used for many meals.
Porridge oats – these will last for a very long time and are easy to make with water or milk.
Rice – high in carbohydrates.
Tea – a cuppa is good for any occasion.
Coffee – to help keep you alert during emergencies.
Powdered milk – an alternative to regular milk which will go out of date too fast.
Tinned or packet soup
Tinned beans – there are many types of tinned beans such as baked, red kidney, and chickpeas, which are an amazing source of protein.
Tinned fish - including sardines, tuna, and salmon.
Tinned tomatoes – a great item to add to recipes.
Tinned fruit, like peaches – are a good source of healthy vitamins.
Dried fruit – extremely long lasting and full of vitamins.
Pesto
Stock cubes – add these to recipes for flavour and to increase the portion size.
Tomato puree
Cooking oil - like olive or sunflower oil.
Salt and pepper – for tasty seasoning.
Herbs and spices – to add flavour to recipes.
Flour
Sugar
Baking powder
All these food items listed will be long lasting, simple to prepare, and healthy for you. Most of these foods can be combined for many different recipes. For example, pasta will work great with tinned tomatoes, pesto, and stock cubes. For your protein intake, combine tinned beans and a tin of fish such as tuna.
If you aren’t the best chef in the world, or cooking isn’t an option due to power cuts, then adding boiled water to many of these food items is a simple way of enabling you to get the nutrients that you need to survive. Soups, tinned proteins, and fruit are the best options in this scenario. Freeze-dried and dehydrated food pouches are also available for purchase, where the only thing needed to make is a cup of water to rehydrate a nutritious meal.
Don’t forget to stockpile non-food items
It’s all well and good to have a cupboard full of prepper food items, but what about the other non-food items you will need to keep clean, safe, and healthy? We all remember the coronavirus toilet paper scandal. Masses of people purchasing toilet rolls in bulk, like waves of piranhas doing everything and anything to snatch up as many packets as they could.
An emergency could result in power loss or water being shut off. These are non-food items you will need to stockpile:
Toothpaste – keep your breath fresh and your teeth healthy.
Soap – keep your hands and body clean.
Toilet roll – the real emergency is reaching over and finding none available.
Candles – if the power goes out these will come in handy, and they are a good source of heat.
Flashlight – great in a power loss situation.
Painkillers – paracetamol, ibuprofen, nurofen; all good for aches and pains.
Batteries – for appliances such as your torches
Power banks – for charging phones to stay in touch with the outside world.
Hope for the best, prepare for the worst
Emergency situations are few and far between. In most cases, there won’t be a natural disaster, snowstorms, or pandemics every other week or month. They do unfortunately happen, however, leaving you and others in situations that are challenging to deal with. We can’t emphasise enough that stockpiling is an amazing way to prepare for the worst of situations.
Now you know how to stockpile preppers’ food while keeping a budget, and what sources of food are long lasting. There is no need to panic. Keeping calm and honing in on great organisational skills is the best way to stockpile for emergencies.
Whatever the situation, you will be stocked up and ready to take on whatever the world throws at you.