# Best "Off the shelf" foods for long term storage



## csi-tech

The wife and I decided to go grab some groceries ahead of the "Blizzard" of 2015 that we are supposed to get. I was looking at shelf lives of particular foods and was wondering in addition to freeze dried foods, dried beans, rice and lentils what else makes for good food to keep for a while. I figure canned meat like tuna, chicken, deviled ham, chicken spread, canned ham, ravioli, spaghetti, salmon and Kipper snacks last a year or two. Canned soups about 2 years, Ramen noodles about a century and other things like that. What are some long term off the shelf items that you have had good luck with after a couple of years?


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## HuntingHawk

There is no FDA guidelines fro best sold by, best used by, etc.

With that being said, any canned veggies are a good choice as any meat can be added to make a stew, even canned ham.


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## Maine-Marine

I never pay attention to any canned DATES...

Hormel says it best... FAQs

"What is the shelf life of a Hormel Foods product in an unopened can?

The product is always safe to consume as long as the seal has remained intact, unbroken and securely attached. However, the flavor and freshness of the product gradually begin to decline after three years from the manufacturing date.

BUT - BEST FOOD in a can... soup.. you can do so much with it.. have it as soup, add things for a stew, add it to other things


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## Moonshinedave

Not sure if true, but I've heard it said that Twinkies will out live the sun.


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## HuntingHawk

I will not purchase any canned soups. Even the "low sodium" soups have way too much salt in them.

Some of the Chunky soups are good but they are more a stew then soup.


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## James m

Spam, corned beef, corned beef hash, vienna sausages, dak ham, tuna in water, chicken in water, anchovies, and a live turkey all in the same pot. Cover 45 minutes at 450.


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## Slippy

One word...Diversification...

Store Bought canned goods "best used by" date of at least 2-3 years. 
Self Canned goods-we're figuring at least 4-5 years on some products
Dry Goods stored in Mylar and Oxygen absorbers-10 years or more
Mountain House, Wise Foods etc- 20-25 years maybe?


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## tinkerhell

i read in the mormon food storage manual that you really should focus on developing a rotating food storage before evening looking at a long term food storage.

personally, i mostly agree with them. Until I have a good rotating food storage system with foods that last several months to several years, I'm going to limit any long term food storage to the basics like beans, wheat, rice, salt, honey, oil,t

ofcourse this is a very important topic which i have been revisiting and will continue to revisit


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## Slippy

tinkerhell said:


> i read in the mormon food storage manual that you really should focus on developing a rotating food storage before evening looking at a long term food storage.
> 
> personally, i mostly agree with them. Until I have a good rotating food storage system with foods that last several months to several years, I'm going to limit any long term food storage to the basics like beans, wheat, rice, salt, honey, oil,t
> 
> ofcourse this is a very important topic which i have been revisiting and will continue to revisit


Good point. When we rotated for the final time in December, we only had about 20 cans of store bought food with Dec 2014 "best used by dates" and a few self canned jars that we had self dated to be used in 2014.

We have no problem using store bought canned goods with a date within a year...unless the can is dented or it smells bad upon opening it. I rotated out some Whey Protein that I put up in 2010 with mylar and O2...and it tasted good and had no negative side affects. Same with some granola bars.

I've come to the conclusion that if I can handle the rotation of foods once a month, usually on an early Sat or Sun morning, I can successfully handle things and not waste any food. Don't let it get out of control and you can do it.


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## Diver

The term "best" requires a definition. Do you want foods that will last the longest? Taste the best? Cost the least? Make well balanced meals? Require the least space? Easy to prepare?

For stocking up ahead of a hurricane (I 've been through a bunch of hurricanes, including Sandy.) I would suggest you make that grocery run as early as possible, stock a month's worth of whatever you normally use, but skip the frozen stuff. Fresh veggies, etc. need to go be consumed the first week after which you'll be into canned and dry foods. Don't forget a bottle of vitamins.

For a blizzard, such as you have predicted, you can include the frozen stuff if you have a cooler. In the event you are in freezing temps with the power out, drop a block of ice and the frozen stuff in the cooler. Depending on your locale the cooler can even go outside.


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## Chipper

Ditty Moore stew. Worlds best all in one can meal, IMO. Maybe a can of fruit now and then.


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## paraquack

While I like Dinty Moore stew, I think there is way too much gravy/sauce. We usually add a can of cooked potatoes and sometimes even add a big (tuna fish sized) can of roast beef chunks. Gives us dinner and a fast lunch the next day.


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## csi-tech

When it is winter and I am camping afield or on an all day hunt, there is nothing better than hot corned beef hash and coffee for breakfast and Dinty Moore beef stew for lunch. My wife says it is disgusting but she hasn't felt that deep down pain from the cold and the soreness from climbing ridges and hollars. She likes the venison though.


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## Maine-Marine

Dinty moore is too expensive for me.. I like it over buttered bread or rice.. but do not stock it.

here is a $1 off 2 cans

Hormel | Coupons


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## sideKahr

Dry spaghetti with bay leaves sealed away from the air, and spaghetti sauce without meat jarred in glass. We ate this stuff 6 years after Y2K and it was fine.


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## Arklatex

I'd say you would be fine with a mix of regular canned foods for a power outage. Veggies, fruits and "meats". Easy and quick to heat and eat. Since you're a sportsman I'm assuming you have a way to cook without electricity. Eat up all the stuff in your fridge and freezer then fall back on the canned stuff. Just my opinion.


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## Will2

Honey
Sugar
Flour/made to hardtack if needed
Multivitamins must be kept dry/dried out foods
Salt


Dried beans and lentils.

Rice can last
Spices

Protein powder


If you can get dried fruits good



The better it is the shorter it lasts



In general any non perishable food will last six months easy. Any shtf longer than six month is a game changer


What you get is likely based on budget.


I would recommend the staples first off.. good food doesn't last as long, so budget more of it than what you think you'll eat.



It gets harder to eat staples if you don't mix it up with spices or recipes.


I've been going about two weeks into rationing (i was two weeks in before I started)when money wasn't paid the end of January and other funds got delayed . I have about two weeks left but I am down to rice and flour salt protein powder amino acids and a small amount of sugar


If I wernt use to eating nothing but rice I would probably totally loose my apetite even more.

The key is to hide food on yourself or commit to rationing or have so much good stuff it won't matter.



Bear in mind junk food can crp people out. So having health food is good too.


The trick to rationing is being use to it. You don't want to go in unprepared.

If you have cash it is far more sensible to invest in a couple thasand dollars of groceries


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## Sasquatch

I've seen people say to never buy the "pop top" canned foods because the seal is more likely to leak over the type you have to open with a can opener. 

Maybe someone has heard the same or can debunk my statement.


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## Prepadoodle

Those foil pouches of rice and/or noodle side dishes are rarely mentioned, but may be worth looking at. They are dried and sealed, and contain the sauce and seasonings in the same pouch. Dump one in a little boiling water and you have a delicious taste treat in like 7 minutes.

I sometimes add meat to one of these for a fast meal, and have eaten them at least a few years after I bought them and they were good. Cheaper than freeze dried, easy to find, light and tastes alright, how can you go wrong?


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## TacticalCanuck

Canned goods are decently preserved for 2 years so they should see you through the short term. Look into sealing foods up in mylar bags with oxygen absorbers for true long term storage of whole grains like rice, oats, etc. Water should be tops on the list!! Mountain House type products will love you long time too. So stock up, chop up some extra wood and batten down the hatches!


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## ARDon

we find that learning about long term food storage preparations is important to the prepper, not only to prep our store bought foods and home grown foods & turning them into long term storage but to take these practices into research on what manufactures pre-canned food are the best to store long term. Prepping "for me " is a life style of readiness & of education. The fun part of living a life style of like minded people is all the time that goes into our research & actual preparation's of foods for the long term storage. Again their nothing wrong about buying ready made survival food at all. We stock certain 20 plus yr products in our pantry. But if you price it per meal you'll find that in cases you can buy 5 times the amount for 1 meal of pre-package survival stuff. For example, average survival meal is 4.99 on up, to 6.99, now Knorr has been on sale at Kroger's on several of their rice, pasta dishes for .99 cents each, it stored in mylar bags itself. Don't drop the option of taking store bought food and turning it into long term food storage.

what I do is I make a small cut in the bag and slip it in a vacuum bag and I vacuum seal them. I've had some & use up to 4 yrs and really couldn't tell the difference. I date all my stuff I vacuum seal in bags or jars, I also check on a monthly bases that my vacuum seal items to make sure their still sealed. But I rotate all my stuff too.


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