Basic rules for home storage:


Rule 1: Store what you eat, and eat what you store. It would be too 
bad to have a supply of food you would only eat with the greatest 
reluctance. Also, you can spend a lot of money on a supply of food 
and other provisions now, but after 15 or 20 years it won't be much 
good anymore. Which brings us to the second rule. 

Rule #2: Rotate your food supply. Eat the old and replace with new 
food. It's great on the pocket book. Large amounts can be purchased 
when they are on sale, then used when they are not. This may also 
require you to change your eating habits just a bit - like eating 
more whole grain and legume foods that are inexpensive but 
nutritious. But whatever you choose to store, be sure it's something 
you can eat or it will never get rotated.

Rule #3: Whatever you store, insure it is as nutritious as possible 
with the 50 essential elements required for good health. You should 
also consider storing a good mineral/vitamin supplement. 

Rule #4: Special care should be taken in preserving your emergency 
supply, especially if you plan on storing it for several years. 
Generally, if you plan on using it up within a year it should be 
safe to store your dry grains and beans in the paper or plastic bags 
it came in. But if you do this, be sure you have a cool, dry place 
to keep it. Bugs are always a serious concern. If you haven't bug 
proofed your food you need to check it every few weeks to insure it 
stays insect free. Aside from packing up your own dry goods, you can 
also...

Can your garden produce in bottles. This works best for fresh 
vegetables and fruits, and even meat if it is done correctly. 
However, know that after two years, wet packed foods in cans or 
bottles lose much of their nutritional value. Rotation is the key! 

Dehydrate your own foods. Some foods that lend themselves well to 
this kind of food preservation are potatoes, carrots, onions, 
peppers, and all kinds of fruits. After dehydration, be sure to 
store them in air tight bags or containers. It would also be a good 
idea to throw in a couple of oxygen absorber packets. 

Whatever method you use to preserve your food, Store it in a cool, 
dry, dark place.

Rule 5: Learn to grow a garden now before any hard times come. This 
way you will get the trial and error out of the way before you 
really need to eat off your garden. For someone who has never grown 
a garden before, it is not as easy as it may seem. There is a real 
art to growing a great garden and this knowledge doesn't come all at 
once. Become proficient at it now, and learn now how to preserve 
what you grow. I store 18 months worth of home canned most years

tenzicut - who is starting from scratch

