What Foods Do You Have Stored For Survival?

Assuming you have a plan for your survival, this is one thing we as humans can’t live without, FOOD! If you do not have a plan, go to this link to get Your Survival Plan!

Stockpiling enough food to keep you and your family alive for a long time can be very challenging. Think about it: However much you spend on your weekly shopping trip is how much a week’s worth of emergency food could cost. And that’s just one week.

There’s a reason certain foods have remained so popular among preppers and survivalists. Rice and beans, for example. They have a long shelf-life, they’re filling, and they’re good for you. These foods will always make the cut, while others are best reserved for softer times. (Sorry, salad lovers.) Maybe once you get through the hard times and have started your own garden.

In this article, we’re going to take a look at the fourteen most popular survival foods and talk about why they’re so popular. If you’re preparing for a disaster, consider getting every one of these.

Almost all of these foods are cheaper at stores like Costco or Sam’s Club. I highly recommend you purchase these foods at stores like those. Buying in bulk is always cheaper.

The prices I mention are based on the prices I’ve seen at my local Costco in Indiana. Other stores around the country might be more expensive.

1. Beans

Beans are filling and affordable. They’re also, easy to store, high in nutrients, have an indefinite shelf life, and are easily one of the most popular survival foods. As an added bonus, you can plant some of your beans and grow more.

The price of beans depends on the variety, but you can get a 40-pound pail of pinto beans for less than $80. They go really good with fresh Rabbit or other game you might hunt if things get that bad.

2. Canned Soup

The biggest advantage of canned soup is the convenience. Most people heat it up first, but you don’t even have to do that. Canned soup can be eaten/drank straight from the can for a quick and easy meal. Just make sure you buy soups your family actually likes.

Campbell’s Chunky Soup costs a little over $1 per can. Some of the others are less expensive. I would not buy tomato soup or anything that you may be growing and canning when the season is right.

3. Canned Tuna

Tuna is a great survival food and one of the few meat products that made this list. For meats, spoilage is a real problem, but tuna has a great shelf life and will last up to five years unopened, making it a great source of tasty protein in a disaster situation. It can be added to other flavorless meals to be more appealing.

On average, tuna costs less than $1 per can.

4. Coconut Oil

Oil is essential for cooking a large number of foods. Unfortunately, most oils don’t have a long enough shelf life. Coconut oil, on the other hand, can last up to two years before it begins to spoil.

If you’re planning on frying food post-disaster, coconut oil is your best choice. As an added bonus, it’s one of the healthiest oils you can cook with, and it has many other uses. It would be good to have until you get to a point that you will be making your own from the animal fats you gather.

You can get an 8-pound bucket of coconut oil for about $40.

5. Coffee

Surviving after a disaster takes a lot of energy, which means you should learn how to make coffee when the power is out. Having all the things you need to be able to prepare these food items is a whole different post. You can start by making your own rocket stove from scratch. DIY Small Rocket Stove.

Fortunately, coffee has a long shelf-life and is affordable enough to set aside a huge supply for rough times.

You can get 50 ounces of coffee grounds for only $10.

6. Cornmeal

Instead of storing flour for your post-disaster baking needs, consider storing cornmeal instead. Cornmeal can be used in place of flour in most recipes, plus it has a longer shelf life.

While flour requires yeast and oil to make biscuits or bread, cornbread and tortillas made from flour can be baked without these things and come out nicely when cooked in a solar oven or on a skillet.

You can get 25 pounds of cornmeal for about $14.

7. Honey

Honey isn’t all that cheap, which makes buying it in bulk a tough pill to swallow for frugal preppers. However, honey can be used to add a nice boost of calories and flavor to a meal, it’s one of the few sweets with an indefinite shelf life, and it’s good for you. As long as you use it sparingly, a little honey will go a long way.

You have probably seen some old hiney that has crystalized. That doesn’t mean it is bad. you can warm it up and it will flow back out.

On average, a 14-ounce bottle of raw honey costs about $13.

8. Lard

In Your Survival Plan, I explore a few ways lard can be used for survival in Your Survival Plan. You can use it for deep frying food, making candles, making soap, lubricating equipment, preventing blisters, as a butter substitute in any recipe, and much more. You can learn how to use it making pemmican in the book you can get here.

In most areas, you can get a 4-pound bucket of lard for only $7.

9. Pasta

If you think the post-apocalypse is going to be completely void of your favorite foods, celebrate the fact that pasta is one of the most popular survival foods. Use it to make spaghetti, fettuccine alfredo, mac n cheese, or whatever you want. Pasta can be used to expand on any protein-rich item you have to make it go further.

The cost depends on the type of pasta you buy, but you can get a pound of spaghetti for about a dollar a pound. So Stock up, it will last quite a long time!

10. Peanut Butter

Peanut butter is filling, affordable, high in protein, and has a long shelf life (even after opened), allowing preppers to stock up on bulk amounts of peanut butter without going broke. It can be used as bait when trapping also, critters love it!

In most places, you can get peanut butter for less than $2 a pound.

11. Popcorn

Popcorn is such a great snack. It’s good for you (unless you add a ton of oil and butter), and popcorn kernels can last for decades when stored properly. If any of your family likes popcorn, you owe it to them to stock up on it.

You can usually get popcorn kernels for about $1 a pound. We are not talking about the stuff that goes in the microwave!

12. Ramen Noodles

If college students can survive on Ramen noodles for four years, so can you. They’re not very nutritious, but they are incredibly cheap and tasty enough to add a little variety to your food cache. Plus, they can last for years.

One thing about these types of food is you have to remember it takes water to make them properly. This shouldn’t be an issue because you will be boiling it anyway. Just something to think about.

When bought in bulk, most types of Ramen Noodles are only 17 cents per package.

13. Rice

For a huge portion of the world, rice is a daily staple, supplying the majority of people’s nutritional needs. It’s easy to store, it’s one of the cheapest foods you can buy, and it lasts for decades if you store it properly.

You can get 25 pounds of white rice for only $9. Or you could get 5 pounds of instant rice for about $6.The only difference is the time it takes to make it.

14. Salt and Spices

There was a time when salt was one of the most valuable things a person could own. While it may not have the same value this day and age, salt is still an irreplaceable food item to have in a post-collapse world. Salt can be used for other things than seasoning your food.

Since we are on the topic of survival food though, there are many other spices you should consider along with salt. They are typically prepared in a way that will last a very long time. For some of the meals you will be making with the type of food that is stored, the seasoning will move up on your list of favorite items in your stash.

Best Foods To Store For Survival

I could go on and on about each one of these items. You can see that just getting the essential information across takes an entire post. If you would really like to learn more about preparing to be ready before you have to be, go get Your Survival Plan and I will help you learn the skills, and walk you through step by step so you can be a professional prepper.

I hope you find this information useful! I would love to help you more if you would let me!

Thanks,

Chad