Best Ways to Purchase Traditional Food Storage

When referring to traditional food storage, the food items typically include grains, legumes, sugars, oils, etc. These foods provide a life-sustaining diet and at the very least these should be the ones you store. These items also have a long shelf life thus they are ideal for long term food storage. We recommend including additional foods such as fruits, veggies, meats and powdered dairy products in your traditional food storage to add a variety to your diet, and to allow you more flexibility to make your regular recipes using foods you have stored.

A lot of people like to shoot for a goal of storing a one year supply of long term food storage, so buying a big chunk of that at one time when you come across some “extra” money is a great way to make a dent in it.

Long term food storage can feel daunting so we dedicated a whole babystep just to PLANNING what you are going to buy. Look at our Babystep 4 page for an excel calculator (or pdf worksheets) that can help you how much of the basics you need for your family. Then add to your worksheet whatever “extra” items you want to store. One way to figure it out is to decide how many servings of fruits, veggies, meats, etc. you would want for your family per day and then multiply that by the length of time you are planning to store for.

Where to Buy Your Traditional Food Storage

All-In-One Packages:

Some people like to just buy a “1 year supply” package and call it good. If you choose to go this route, you need to think about what you ACTUALLY want to store and then do your homework on all the packages out there.

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Here are a few samples of packages available:
Year Supply of Basics from Emergency Essentials
Supreme One Year Supply from Thrive Life (including fruits, veggies, meats, meals, etc.)

Grains/Legumes:

If you live in North America near an LDS Home Storage Center (or cannery), this is generally the least expensive place to purchase your bulk grains and legumes. Click here to look for a Home Storage Center in your area. Some centers allow you to buy in bulk and can the items there, others have pre-canned items, and others just bulk items you would take home and can yourself. Please make sure to call your local cannery to find out their policies before you just show up. Each one seems to have different rules regarding needing an appointment, member policies, etc.

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A few limited items are available online through the LDS church. Wheat, rice, pinto beans, oats, etc. can be purchased in #10 cans at good prices with free shipping. Click here for more information. You can also purchase grains and legumes online at one of our recommended stores below:

THRIVE LIFE: Grains and Legumes in buckets, #10 cans, and smaller pantry cans
EMERGENCY ESSENTIALS: Grains and Legumes in buckets, #10 cans, and pantry cans
HONEYVILLE GRAINS: Grains and Legumes in bulk bags and #10 cans.
AUGASON FARMS: Grains and legumes in buckets, bulk bags, and #10 cans

Freeze Dried Fruits and Vegetables:

These are a great addition to meals and desserts, to use as a side dish, or just to snack on. You can store dehydrated or freeze-dried, or a combination of both. It’s a good idea to try smaller packages of different kinds to see what varieties and brands your family likes best.

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You can get these items in a wide variety of package options at varying price levels. Here are a few of our favorites to choose from, depending on your needs:

LINDON FARMS: Mylar pouches inside a plastic bucket. (all freeze-dried)
THRIVE LIFE: #10 cans, smaller pantry cans, sample mylar pouches (freeze-dried or dehydrated).
EMERGENCY ESSENTIALS: #10 cans or smaller MyChoice cans (freeze-dried or dehydrated).
HONEYVILLE GRAINS: Small and large cans (freeze-dried or dehydrated)
AUGASON FARMS: Buckets, #!0 cans, and smaller cans

Freeze Dried Meats:

Freeze-dried meats are great for adding bulk, calories, and flavor to your meals. They allow you to easily turn any recipe into a “shelf stable” meal. We love to store a lot of these and break into them for the convenience factor from time to time. They are so wonderful to have in your home.

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You can get these items in a wide variety of package options at varying price levels. Here are a few of our favorites to choose from, depending on your needs:

THRIVE LIFE: #10 cans, smaller pantry cans, sample mylar pouches.
LINDON FARMS: 6 serving mylar pouches inside a plastic bucket. 1 meat type per bucket.
EMERGENCY ESSENTIALS: #10 cans, cases, and packages.
HONEYVILLE GRAINS: #10 cans and cases.
AUGASON FARMS: Buckets, #!0 cans, and smaller cans

“Other”:

A lot of these stores offer a variety of other products you may choose to purchase to add to your traditional food storage. Make sure to check out some of the powdered dairy, cheeses, desserts, drinks etc. Next we will be focusing on “Just Add Water” meals, which is a different topic all together.

A lot of these extras we are talking about (fruits, vegetables, meats) can be items you dehydrate or can yourself. Although they wont have as long of a shelf life as freeze dried products, they can be much cheaper if you have the time to do it and a good source for cheap produce/meat. We have some informative articles about these topics in the Self Reliance section on our blog.