Food storage. Just the word used to freak me out. Like, "Hey, go build a mountain!" I knew it was something I wanted for my family, but I had NO idea how to obtain it or even where to start! Especially after I got married. We lived in a tiny little apartment above a hair salon with no extra storage space that I could think of. We were struggling newlyweds in college and didn't have a gazillion dollars to spend on food storage like this. HECK...I didn't even know how to cook very well yet!
I'd see a picture like this:
...and immediately my brain would hit panic mode and just switch the channel.
So, where did I start? With a food storage calculator.
All you do is fill in the blanks and it will calculate what you and your family need for food storage for 1 year.
In our little family we have 3 family members ages 7+, and 2 kids ages 0-6. So, fill in the blanks, click "Calculate"...
and it will calculate what you need.
HOLY FREAKING COW!!! 600 pounds of wheat!?! You have GOT to be kidding me, right? Now we're back to GO BUILD A MOUNTAIN.
Don't switch the channel!!! Don't switch the channel!!!
Remember, this is only step one. Now, you don't even have to start a full year supply. I didn't. I started out with just building a 3 month supply. It was much more obtainable for me, and it was just nice to know that I had something to fall back on. As our family grew, we were done with college and were on our feet, we started expanding our food storage.
So, if you wanted to start a 6 month food storage supply you would divide the numbers from the calculator by 2. Instead of 600 pounds of wheat you'd need 300. For 3 month food storage supply, you would just take the numbers from the calculator and divide them by 4. So, instead of 600 pounds of flour, you would store 150 pounds. Much easier to chew on, yes? (And honestly, it doesn't take as long to store it up as you think. Wheat is HEAVY so the pounds add up fast.)
So...this is your first assignment. Click on the link and get your food storage calculator results. 1 year, 6 months, or 3 months, whatever you feel is an attainable goal.Write it down or print it out and keep it where it's accessible. Easy as that!
Ready...set...GO!
Stay tuned for Food Storage: Step 2 and other great emergency preparedness topics and tips!
Thanks for stopping by!
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Funny you should mention the food storage calculator! I just did it a few days ago and my family needs 2548 lbs of grain!!! That would build a mountain!!!
ReplyDeleteI find the three month storage plan of everything you need much easier to handle than the long term storage.
um yeah, it would have been so nice to have met you and learned about your blog like 8 months ago! That is when we started our storage and it was impossible to merge all the different types of calculations we found out there. This one was so easy. It would have been a great starting point. But, we arent finished yet so it is good to have and make sure we are doing okay. Great reminder for all the things we still need to get!
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI really think being able to grow your own food is a big part of food storage and preparedness. This link is fun to look at. It really shows you what it would take to be completely on your own food wise!
http://1bog.org/blog/live-off-the-land-2/