How Much Food do You Need for a Year

A question that comes up regularly is how much food is a year’s supply.  One answer is a list put out by the LDS Church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints).

• Grains (wheat, rice, corn or other cereal grains) 300 lbs per person.

• Nonfat dry milk 75 lbs per person

• Sugar or honey 75 lbs person

• Salt 5 lbs per person

• Fats or oil 20 lbs per person

• Dried legumes (beans, peas or lentils) 60 lbs per person

• Garden seed

The above list will supply approximately 2300 calories per day.  This list is a bare bone survival list.  Appetite fatigue would be a problem if you had to depend only on these foods. Most people don’t know how to cook with such a limited variety. Other problems you would have to watch for are allergies to wheat. Some authorities believe that as much as 40% of the popular have wheat allergies.

Corn

If you depend heavily on corn, you need to treat it correctly or you can develop pellagra from a lack of vitamin B.  The American Indians treated corn with wood ash or lime to release the B vitamin niacin to prevent this.

Framework

I look at this list and consider it a framework to build upon.  The initial list is reasonably inexpensive and is good for long term storage, if correctly packed (except for the fats – oils, 20 – 30 years).  Get the items mentioned on the list or a good portion of them and then supplement it with spices, freeze dried, dehydrated foods, canned foods and your home production (foods you can produce at home, garden, chickens, eggs).

In the future we will show you recipes and methods that you can use to cook with the basic foods and produce good tasting meals that your family will enjoy.

Howard

The post How Much Food do You Need for a Year appeared first on PREPAREDNESS ADVICE.