Gluten Free Food Storage

This next post is kind of different. It's not a regular recipe but a recipe for success for those who are interested. 

Let me start by sharing an article that was published yesterday by the Columbus Dispatch titled "Thousands break Ebola quarantine to find food." In Sierra Leone, thousands are breaking their quarantine because they are starving. Quarantine rules have restricted food in and out of towns of which the government, along with help from the U.N.'s World Food Program, is supposed to be monitoring. Restrictions though have made food scarce, and scarcity has driven up the prices so that people can not afford what little food is available. Simply put it's a tough lesson of supply and demand. Although it could affect all of us because these food-seeking-quarantine-breakers carry one of the deadliest diseases known to date. 

The honest truth is that disaster may strike at our door. Whether it be from man-made disasters, ailments, or disease, even the government advises us to be prepared. 

And getting prepared has been on my brain lately. Hence this post. So, let's start at the basics: 

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72-Hour Gluten Free Emergency Kit 

On the ready.gov website they layout some guidelines for 72 hour kits that contain the necessities for an emergency. A 3-day food storage is an excellent place to start on your road to being prepared. From flashlights to first aid kits, you can print out a great list from their website of suggested items that you may not have thought of. Place these all in a backpack- ready at a moments notice.

Of course you will also need 3 days worth food. I've seen some kits with simply enough protein bars to last you the entire time or you can get a little more creative with some of the following food ideas (be sure the foods you choose have at least a 6 month shelf life): 

• Water
• Ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits, vegetables and a can opener
• fruit/nut bars
• Dry cereal or granola
• Peanut butter
• Dried fruit
• Nuts
• Crackers (low salt)

• Canned juices

• Non-perishable pasteurized milk

• High energy foods
• Vitamins
• Food for infants
• Comfort/stress foods

• (ie you could do a can of tuna and a couple of mayo sample size packets with some rice crackers for a satisfying meal)

Got your kit completed? Now it's time for a check-up every 6 months. Be sure to trade out the food in your 3 day supply that will expire before the next 6 months. If you're using water bottles, those also need to be rotated out. 

Trust me, it feels good to be prepared. If you feel you need some extra help we The Survival Mom's basic preparedness tips as well. 

Next, let's tackle something bigger....

3 Month Gluten Free Food Storage

Now take that 3 day emergency kit and multiply it by 30- That's what it's going to take for a 3 month supply. Granted, you don't need to fit it all into a back pack luckily. ;)

Planning for 3 months takes a little bit of thought. We have found that this webiste: Food Storage Made Easy breaks down a great plan of how to get started. They also have some great gluten free food storage ideas. 

Start by estimating how much product you use in a 3 months time and then keep that amount on your shelves. If you use up a package of something, replace it by adding the new one to the back of your supply as to continually rotate your food through. 

Of course some items are difficult to have 3 months worth of such as meats, fresh fruit and vegetables. Frozen or canned options work well. We prefer frozen but in a case of power outage the freezer would become worthless. 

Whether you're preparing for a future emergency, a 3 month supply is always a great idea. Now let's get even bigger...

1 Year Gluten Free Food Storage

It's hard to even wrap your brain around how much food 1 person can eat in a year. I thought a visual might help (see the picture to the left compliments of Augason Farms). Now multiply that by however many people you have in your family... and whew! 

So, where to begin...

Don't get overwhelmed but this might be bigger than you thought. I know at first when I was figuring out just how much food storage to buy I thought "Ok, if I want to eat 3 servings a day for an entire year that equals out to 1,095 servings per person. We have 4 in our family so we will need at least 4,380 servings!" But when I really started to think about it, we are actually supposed to have multiple servings each meal! 

The American Heart Association says that if you're trying to keep a 2,000 calorie/day diet you need the following EACH DAY: 

• 6-8 servings of grains
• 4-5 servings of vegetables
• 4-5 servings of fruit
• 2-3 servings of dairy product
• 6 oz of meat
• 2-3 servings of oils
• less than 1 serving of nuts, seeds, and legumes
• less than 1 serving of sweets

That's roughly 21 servings a day. For a family of 4- I actually need closer to 30,660 servings! Yikes! So, where do we begin!?!

Some food storage companies actually offer 4-person, 1 year food storage packages with up to 32,000 servings but it's tricky to find ones that are gluten free. (PS- My husband claims he can live off of 2 meals a day but I say better to be safe than hungry!) 

So, when it comes time to make the important purchase of long-term food storage items, how do you know where to shop? Let me answer your question with a question. Want to see a cool site? This site actually compares the top emergency food stores available. Their #1 choice is The Ready Store. I haven't shopped there but they are very allergy friendly! I personally have been very impressed with Thrive. 

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• Thrive (a lot of options certified gluten free including veggies, fruits, meats and gf grains) To see a list of ALL of the Gluten Free items they provide along with their certification information click the buttons to the right. If you are concerned about other allergies including dairy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, coconut, fish, shell fish, and soy this page offers all of their Nutrition Facts. PS- Thrive sources non-GMO! 

Thrive GF Products

Thrive GF Sauces

• Walmart (some single options but cheapest by far + free shipping)
  

• The Ready Store- (a lot of options including Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan, Nut Free, Soy Free)
• Augason Farms (a lot of options, including kits)
  
• Wise Food Storage (a couple of options, including kits)
  
• Prepare Wise (some options, including kits)
• Costco.com (some options, have to be a member to purchase)
• lds.org (cheapest but processed in the same facility as wheat)

Now that you're ready to start purchasing and you know some good sites/store to purchase from it's important to know the following...

Freeze Dried vs. Dehydrated Food: 
Which is better?

Excellent question. They both have key pros and cons. Let's explore both of them and you can decide.

Freeze Dried Food: 

Pros: 

• Lightweight (90% lighter than original weight)

• Long shelf life when sealed (typically up to 30 years)
• Usually contain a multitude of ingredients and seasonings
  
• Faster and easier to cook (minimal cooking around 10-15 min)
• Minimal heat (just over 100 degrees F) is used during the process of freeze drying
• Cell structure of the food remains intact, allowing it to retain the color, shape, flavor, and nutritional value of the original product better than other drying methods
  

Cons: 

• Requires a lot of water to reconstitute it
• Eating freeze dried food without reconstitution could hypothetically cause you to dehydrate
  
• Pound for pound, and dollar for dollar, freeze dried food cost more than dehydrated (#10 can of freeze dried entree will make 10 servings on average. A #10 can of dehydrated green beans however, contains 48 servings)
• Humidity can spoil these foods quickly after opening
• More expensive than dehydrated versions

Dehydrated Foods:

Pros: 

• Pound for pound, and dollar for dollar, dehydrated food costs less than freeze dried food (#10 can of freeze dried entree will make 10 servings on average. A #10 can of dehydrated green beans however, contains 48 servings)
• 1 #10 can = 27 smaller cans (ie a #10 can of dehdyrated green beans represents 27 cans of canned green beans
  
• More nutritious than regular canned food with their juices
• Can be done yourself in your own home
• Cheaper than freeze-dried versions

Cons: 

• Most require hot boiling water for cooking (Whole grains and legumes, such as rice, beans and wheat take the longest)
  
• Typically unseasoned
• Usually are packaged without any seasoning or additional ingredients 
  
• If doing it yourself, it requires a lot of time and work
• Heavier than freeze dried

So, how do you know what to store for a year's amount of time?
The Food Guys have a great food storage calculator that you can plug in the amount of adults and kids in your family and then it will give you a basic recommendation of a year's supply minimums. We used this as a guide and then substituted our needs in place of what we are allergic to (ie wheat and dairy products). 

For example, our recommendation says to have on hand 450 lbs of wheat. We are replacing that number with other grains such as oats and rice as well as with more beans and lentils. We do have some wheat in our food storage from before our gluten free days. We don't plan to throw it out though. We intend to sprout it (which can easily be done on some moist paper towels if needed) and then consume the wheat grass. Just be aware that the sprouts would not be edible because they contain the gluten. 

In using the food storage calculator as a guideline, it's also important to remember to keep in mind your family's eating habits as well. For instance, our recommendation came out to say that we needed 8 lbs of Corn Syrup. Since we NEVER use Corn Syrup, it's not something we'll store. Instead, we are storing extra sugar and honey. I also have Brown Rice Syrup that can be used 1:1 for Corn Syrup in recipes. 

Our recommendation also states we need 74 lbs of flour. I try to keep 74 lbs of gluten free flour that I use on hand including some of the following: 

• brown rice flour
• white rice flour
• coconut flour
• almond flour
• teff flour
• sorghum flour
• flax seed meal (and whole flax seeds)

• tapioca starch
• potato starch
• potato flour
• cornstarch
• corn flour
• buckwheat flour
• oat flour

I find that Bob's Redmill has a great method to store Gluten Free Flours. They sell their products typically in packs of 4 that fit into a nice box. When you open the box, the top of the box can be removed so the base remains- holding the 4 bags. It's AWESOME. They're clearly marked with expiration dates and their items usually last at least a year. As you use product- always keep the newest in the back, using the oldest first. 


If you're looking for Long-Term Food Storage- Bob's Redmill offers that too! They have over 200+ products available for long-term plus the tools you need to keep them safe long term. Visit their helpful page HERE. 

If you're interested in purchasing large quantities of Bob's Redmill products I can help give you a discount. Contact me at donteatwheat(at)gmail(dot)com. 

The Food Calculator is a great start but don't forget the other items you may need that are not on that list such as: 

• herbs, seasonings, black pepper, etc. (very important for a variety of flavors)
• ketchup, mustard, etc
• nuts (keep longest in the freezer)
• canned tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, tomato puree, etc
• seeds such as chia, flax, sesame, hemp, etc.

And then of course think of the non-food items you use on a daily basis. Some examples are: 

• soap
• contacts & contact solution (if applicable)
• plastic baggies
• shampoo & conditioner
• diapers, wipes
• plain bleach

Another great website for all the nitty-gritty in long-term food storage, including Q & A's, can be found on LDS.org.

How can I afford it & where do I store it all?

We currently live in a an apartment and I hear the same issue from most of the people that live around us. They say, "Where do you have room?!" or "When we get a home, then we'll buy more food storage..." or "How do you pay for it all?! It's so expensive."

So I wanted to share what we've learned so you don't have to go through the same learning curve as we did. 

Let's tackle the issue of not enough room. Here are some ideas on storing stuff in a limited amount of space. 

Did you know "An entire year supply {for one person} can be fit into a 2 ft x 3 ft area, stacked 5 ft high" if using #10 cans?

Where to put it: 

1. Inventory your space- I went around my house and wrote down every little place that could handle some extra food storage. (For example: under my bed, under my kid's beds, above the fridge in the cupboard, etc. Once I started to hunt, I found the space! It also helps you achieve this next tip:
2. Clean out the clutter- I bet there are some things in your house that you are not using and could be taken to the D.I. or Goodwill. I know my wedding dress isn't going to do me much good...why keep that in the closet? Replace that precious space with food storage! 
3. Turn your food storage into furniture- I saw this as a joke one time but seriously you could build a cute window seat in your child's bedroom and store a lot of food storage inside of it! Get creative. 
4. Utilize dead space- Sometimes places under the stairs, etc has "dead space" that could be turned into storage. See Pinterest for ideas on smart space storage. 
5. Absolutely no room? Rent a storage space- I've known people that invest $15 dollars a month to store their food storage. If you're that desperate on space, that's always an option. 

Affording food storage: 

1. Budget- Look at your finances and see how much you could afford to set aside each month on investing in food. Some companies such as Thrive.com offer great programs take your monthly budget and then ship items to your house each month. 
2. Sacrifice- Perhaps you could go out to eat 1 less meal a week. That's at least 5-10 bucks a week and 20-40 bucks a month. You could invest that money into food storage. 
3. Sell your "clutter"- After decluttering your house to make space for your food storage, you can sell your unwanted items on craigslist, ebay, amazon, ksl.com, etc. Then use that money to purchase food storage. Remember, one man's junk is another man's treasure!

Let's sum up...

Bottom line is a 1 year food storage is so beneficial to have. It's cost efficient when you think of inflation on food prices and it's peace of mind. 

Survival acres.com says: "Most people are utterly unaware how fragile the US food supply really is. The mega-mergers of family owned farms and corporate giants, the declining energy supply, the fragile state of our infrastructure, and the vulnerability to things like hurricanes, pandemic, and oil prices are often misunderstood. America is the land of plenty, right?

Wrong. Not always. And certainly, not forever. During times of crisis, the supermarkets are stripped bare in a matter of hours. American's used to stock food as part of their everyday preparations but have since forgotten this time honored practice. Now, everyone rushes to the store to "stock up" when the news or events frighten them into doing so, but it's actually too late then (prices are already higher and availability is uncertain). Or worse, they will wait until after a disaster and find out there is nothing left. This has happened countless times in America's history of regional disasters. Everything is sold out and some merchants even take unscrupulous advantage of the crisis by jacking up prices sky high."

In conclusion, the task of getting your gluten free food storage may seem daunting. It may seem expensive. And it definitely will take up some room to store but when disaster strikes, you'll be thankful you did! Thanks for reading ;) Be sure to let us know tips YOU'VE learned on building your own storage.