I very much like when someone actually real-world tests a piece of gear or a system and goes all Mythbusters on it. Whats it like to live 30 days on one of those 30 day emergency food kits? Well, this guy did it and documented the results. And, yes, the digestive results were as bad as you might have guessed.
This video is really quite informative and I highly suggest watching. Skip it to 1.5x speed if youre in a hurry. The short version is that appetite fatigue is real, even at 2000 calories a day he lost eight pounds, and you’re going to use a lot more water than you might think. In the spirit of good science, he also documented the time, fuel, and water consumption involved in the cooking and cleaning process as well. Excellent material.
Most of us, in a crisis, wouldn’t, I think, be living exclusively on pouch survival food. We’d supplement it with offthe-shelf everyday foods that have fairly good shelf life…canned meats,canned fruit, jarred sauces, etc. BUT….those don’t have thirty year shelf life.
Youre mileage may vary, of course, but this video, in my opinion, is very much worth watching. Watch it, and then think how you’d adjust your long-term food storage inventory appropriately to make your experience better than his.
Yep, nice video. The DC guys put out some interesting & informative stuff. And what I enjoy is how much they make fun of themselves.
I agree, I always look forward to their videos. I did watch this one, I was actually surprised when he said the water used in 30 days, was exactly what FEMA had recommended storing for 30 days. (one gallon per person per day). Although he admitted it was not hot outside yet.
Theoretical data is always trumped by empirical data.
I think you’re looking at this from the wrong end of the timeline.
You don’t need that much food that lasts for 30 years. If the SHTF next week, later this year, or two years from now, your storage food is going to be used up way sooner than thirty years. Most of your stored food doesn’t need to last for thirty years, if just needs to be in room-temperature storage so it doesn’t spoil when the power goes out. That is why home canning is such a win-win here. You can the meats, soups, vegetables and fruits that you LIKE and store them. As the canned food ages out in two or three years, you eat it, as it is being replaced with what you have canned since then. This has a number of advantages: 1. When the SHTF, there will be very little “food transition” — you are already used to eating your favorite foods, which will be easier on your palate and your digestive tract. 2. It is food that you LIKE, not just food that you tolerate. 3. It is WAY cheaper. 4. There are no mystery chemicals or preservatives in it — like the saying goes, you don’t have to read the ingredient label if you were the one that filled the jars. 5. In the meantime, when you are pressed for time and need a quick meal, you pull out a jar and microwave it, and in just a few minutes you have a hot healthy meal without having to cook from scratch.
Sure, you want some storage food that will last indefinitely without attention — I get that. But is does not have to be a large percentage of your stored food if you can and rotate your canned food. When my wife and I pressure can food, it goes up to our BOL, and the older food comes back home for us to eat.
Anyway, just my $.02. Always enjoy your column and your topics.
Tractorguy
I agree on all counts–home canning and routine use of food storage are optimal.
Although the cost he paid (under $3 per meal, bought 6 years ago) wasn’t huge, bulk dry goods (wheat, beans, rice, etc.) are a lot cheaper, and they can be packed in mylar and buckets or other containers easily (don’t forget the O2 absorbers). Routinely grinding your own wheat and starting with dry beans for cooking will help ease any transition stress.
I was surprised at how little water he used for cleaning and cooking. And the one thing I absolutely did not expect to hear was, “This needs some added salt.”
Ordinary an goods do last for much longer then their “use by” dates however. Best to stay away from the high acid ones(tomatoes) however(unless they’re in glass jars), heh.
You will want multi vitamins, some kind of colon cleanse fiber, vitamin C, vitamin D and whatever medications you take. Hopefully you have a garden and hopefully you have canned foods from it that keep your fiber up so you don’t end up with impacted intestines. Hopefully any problem will be over in a month or two, because if not, you better have chickens, goats or cows, etc.
Totally agree with TractorGuy, Survival food doesn’t have to have 25-30 year shelf life. We regularly eat food stuffs from our long term storage pantry that we prepared. A variety of home canned meats (beef, pork, chicken, turkey, grouse, pheasant, venison, there’s even a few jars of bear, moose and elk that I’m saving for our special wild game feeds), home canned vegetables, home pickled cabbage, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, etc, pre-measured rice and pasta packets, dehydrated onions, peppers, mushrooms and bulk spices.
Last night we had 3 year old canned chicken, two year old canned tomatoes, year old dehydrated peppers, fresh garlic and onions from the garden, four year old pasta and assorted spices from our bulk stocks. Tasted wonderful. Venison stir fry’s and wild turkey casseroles are family favorites. Yes we do have a fair share of commercial 25 year freeze dried foods but those are mostly stored in “Go Bags”, or used with hunting/hiking/camping packs.
The variety you can put back yourself far out shines the commercial stuff and is significantly healthier, tastier, less expensive and self rewarding.
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One must also consider the logistics. In a really bad SHTF situation, water, fuel, cook pot and a calm quiet place to prepare and eat the food will be scarce. Heck, just a piece of level ground might be a treasure!
Wonder how many people in Ukraine can fix a freeze-dried meal in their kitchen right now? Had a family member who served in the South Pacific during WWII. Pretty much lived in a fox hole for four years with enemy soldiers trying to kill him most every day. A hot cooked meal would be a rare luxury in a true war zone.
I liked that he noted his energy levels were just crap. There is a reason that those who walk the perimeter are given better rations…and I like the clarity on the cleaning aspect. There will be little leisure for it. Better to cook in the bag provided or get some silicone dining ware that you can crinkle dried crust off of when threats/time allow…
https://seatosummit.com/products/frontier-collapsible-5-piece-cookset
Excellent video, Those of us with Military time know that Hard Rats are very fatiguing after a few weeks. I was on hard rats for 3 months on a UN tour in Eritrea and Ethiopia. Food fatigue set in quickly and most people lost a lot of weight. We were doing a camp tear down and energy out was high plus local temps were in the 30 – 40 deg C zone. We consumed a lot of water and were issued water supplements (electrolytes, minerals and vitamins) So I would suggest if on LTSF for any length of time add vitamin and mineral supplements to your diet. TTFN Phil
The only thing worse is starving.
As another option is to look into getting a freeze dryer. It is a high initial cost, but with a freeze dryer you can make your own 25 year storage meals- and although it’s expensive to start out getting the equipment, with the cost of mountain house, and all the other commercial options you can quickly get that $$ back..
shrimp, steak, hamburger, etc all can be freeze dried and stored with 02 absorbers in mylar bags.. plus you can take advantage of bulk purchases when things are in season.its another option besides dehydrating and canning..
I don’t know how many of you follow the Zman, but I read he passed away recently. He will be missed.
When I did a month just on stored canned and pre-packaged foods, two of the takeaways were
1) supplements and CONDIMENTS are king
2) Double your caloric storage, to cover higher energy output, spoilage, etc.,
IOW, plan of 4000 cal/day, minimum. 2000cal/day is near starvation unless you’re in a 6’x8′ cell, and not doing anything.