Build Your Food Storage

. . . One Step At A Time

These are the food storage questions we cover on this page:

Why should I store food?
Where do I start?
What do I store?
How do I afford it?
Where do I put it?
How do I use it?

See These Other Food Storage Pages
Click on the Picture Link

Why should I store food?

That’s a great question. There are three main reasons why you should store food.

1. You save a lot of money (We’ll talk about this in a minute)
2. You build a safety net for your family
3. God said to store food.

Let’s start with reason #2

The occurrence of natural and man made disasters are increasing exponentially. What if you could not rely on any outside source for your food and supplies? What would you do? You would want an emergency food supply.

What if a major earthquake or storm hit your area? What if trucks stopped trucking? What if you were quarantined to your home because of the swine flu or some other crisis? See Swine Flu. What if your country was at war and food was rationed? What if there was a food shortage due to crop failures? You can add your own "What If".

If you knew that at some point in your life, you wouldn’t be able to go to the store for supplies, would it change what you are doing today? The answer to that is obvious.

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Where do I start?

Another good question. I’m going to give you some guidelines so that you can make a plan to get started. Remember every family is different. There are different needs and things to consider. Read these guidelines then make adjustments to fit your family. Start building your food storage with a desire and determine to do something every week. You will be amazed at your progress.

Here are three great ways to start. There isn’t just one right way to begin. The important thing is to get going. Some things you could start storing are…

#1 Bulk food storage is survival food. This long-term storage food is cheap food. You can do a lot with these basic items if you just add a few more things.

#2 Storable food that your family normally eats. This is where I started. When you find a good deal on something that you normally eat, buy a case of it. Store it and use it. It won’t take long before you're only eating on sale items. Now you only need to buy the fresh stuff. Keep building your food storage by looking for food that is on sale. You’re now saving 30%-60% on your groceries. Use that money to reinvest in your food storage.

#3 Three months supply of meals ready-to-eat During an emergency, the last thing you want to think about is “What’s for Dinner?” Why three months? It takes 2-3 months to get used to a lifestyle change. If things didn’t return to normal, this would give you three months to adjust to using your long term food storage.

So create a three months supply of food by using bag meals. Each bag will include the recipe, and all the ingredients for one family meal. Even a child can grab a bag and make a meal ready to eat. Click on the link to get recipes, a grocery list, and instructions on how to put your bag meals together.

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What do I store?

We just talked about the three ways to start your food storage. Eventually you will want to do all three. You will also want to . . .

#4 Plant a garden and eat what you grow. This is a huge money saver. It just takes time. Well, you are probably thinking time is money. Yes it is, but wouldn’t you rather learn the fundamentals of growing a garden while the grocery store is still down the street?

Your knowledge is even more important than your stuff. Nature doesn’t forgive quickly. You do it wrong, and it’s a whole year before you get another shot at it. Learn to plant and harvest now.

There is a whole section on this website devoted to step-by-step vegetable gardening instructions.

We take you from soil preparation all the way to preserving your food.

#5 Remember the Non-food Supplies. Food isn’t the only thing to store, it’s also important to store other things you use all the time. Like. . .

• Health and Hygiene Products (soap, baby diapers, feminine hygiene products, toilet paper, dental, etc.)
• Health Care (First-Aid, medications, essential oils, ionic silver , etc.)
• Fuel (candles, matches, solar oven, rocket stove, wood, coal, kerosene, propane, diesel, etc.)
• Clothing (warm weather, children’s clothing, sturdy shoes, fabric for sewing)
• Tools (food mills, canning supplies and equipment, generators, camping gear, etc.)
• Essential Records

How do I afford it?

Start applying the 10 money saving ideas. Take this one step at a time and stay on a steady course. By saving on the cost of food, you'll have more money to invest into your food storage. Your food storage just keeps getting bigger, and your food budget keeps getting smaller. That’s a great deal.

By implementing the all of the "10 Tips for Saving Money” we now feed our family on A Dollar a Day per person. You can do it too.

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Where do I put it?

The best place to store most food is in a cool, dark, dry area. While knowing that this is the ideal, don’t worry if you don’t have the ideal situation. Get creative about where to store your food. Here are a few suggestions:

Clean out a closet and use it

Utilize the dead space in your home – under beds and furniture.

Make some new furniture using your home storage. A round barrel can be turned into a round table. Cut a piece of wood or thick cardboard the size of your table top, put it on top of the barrel, and add a floor length table cloth. Make it part of your decor. You can make couches, chairs, and beds using your food storage. Yeah, I know this sounds like the R.M. movie but it works. Just get creative.

Storing grain in silos has been going on for hundreds of years. This wouldn’t be any different than storing your grain outside, in the garage, or in a barn. Just make sure the container is waterproof and airtight. A good hard freeze is good for killing any bugs that might be in your grain.

My favorite way to organize and store food is to set aside a whole room for food storage. I personally don’t like the roller shelves because they take up too much precious space. You can buy cheap pre-built shelves or build your own shelves to put your food on. Just keep it simple.

Make sure you rotate your food by pulling the old food forward when you reload your shelves with new food. Take a magic marker and mark each case of food with the expiration date.

IMPORTANT MESSAGE: Make a list of the food storage supplies that you have and where you tucked them away so that you can easily find them later.

Make sure to earthquake proof your food storage.

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How do I use it?

This is fun part - actually using all the food. With the expert help of family and friends, we are going to give you a cheap, healthy eating plan. You will get a healthy breakfast menu, lunch ideas, dinner recipes, and nutritious snack ideas. Healthy whole foods are easy to store. Junk food just doesn’t store well. One of the many benefits of using your food storage is better health. Use our Food Storage Recipes or order one of our healthy food storage and garden Recipe Books.


Storing & Eating Food Storage Today Will Always Reward You!!!

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Return to

Provident Living Today Home Page
Bulk Food Storage Guidelines
A Dollar a Day - Dollar Stretcher Foods
Ten Money Saving Ideas