Survival Planning: Storage of Food Items

Storage of your food items for a crisis is very important. You want to keep them all together if possible and in a convenient spot. You also want to be sure your food doesn't spoil so you need a dry spot and it has to be rodent and insect free.

I keep most of my food stores in a basement room which has the heat and the overhead lights turned off. I protect the food items from insects and rodents and dampness by placing most of them in sealed tubs.

I label the tubs so that I know what I have on hand.

I also have curtains up for the powdered items, spices and other light-sensitive items. The curtain means  that they are kept in the dark.





I keep most of my extra spices in a pantry in my kitchen. This pantry has quite a bit of room for jars of day to day spices and extra jars.  Some extra spices are kept in my basement room in the dark.

I store many different spices as I want to be able to jazz up my main meal of beans, rice and tortillas with different flavors. So one day I might make curried beans and rice; another day I could do chili flavored beans in a tortilla.

The more spices I have, the more variety in taste I can provide to what would otherwise be some pretty boring meals for my family in a long-term emergency situation.

I also keep lots of boullion cubes on hand. They make a great taste addition to any soup or stew and are high in salt (a basic survival need). You can also cook rice in water with a boullion cube for a change of taste. And best of all you can toss one in some hot water and make a nice broth, flavorful and gentle on your stomach.