If 2020 has taught us anything so far, it is that most of us need to work on being better prepared in the event of a supply chain disruption. Power and communication are certainly high up there in terms of priorities but there is nothing more important for our survival than a reliable food supply.
Not sure about you, but when I first started hearing stories of panic buying and emptying shelves in the early days of the pandemic my first thought was that I need to go out and stock up too! Which was quickly followed by the realizaton that this is not fun, what can I do to avoid it next time?
The answer: build my own emergency supply.
Knowing the challenges related to properly prepping and packing fresh food I decided to start with something a little more fool proof.
While there are some foods that can last a long time when stored at the right temperature, I was a bit surprised to learn that there are actually some foods that practically last forever on their own.
I figured this was a great place to start and I wanted to share some of the best items on the Forever Foods list that I came across:
Note: the majority of these are not foods to be eaten alone, but they will be very helpful when combined with other bland stored foods such as rice and oats.
HONEY
A lot of people think that when the look and consistency of honey changes that it should be thrown out. In fact ancient honey was discovered in the Egyptian pyramids and it was still edible. It eventually crystallizes, but just warm it up and stir it to get it back to the right consistency.
HARD LIQOUR
Before you go off and store party supplies for the apocalypse we should mention this is on the list for its uses related to disinfecting wounds and easing physical pain. But also, you know.
SALT
Remember when we said these forever foods are best used to aid a bland food? This is the best example of that. A pinch of salt can make eating even plain rice less of a chore.
MAPLE SYRUP
Awesome eh? You can even ignore the note of this being a list of additives and drink that goodness right from the bottle. Hey if there is a natural disaster happening, no one will judge.
WHITE RICE
Trusty white rice will last forever if stored properly. Keep in mind that brown rice will not since it contains oil that goes bad after several months.
APPLE CIDER VINEGAR
If you are just learning about forever foods this one might be a surprise. It may not be one you want to consume on its own but similar to hard liquor it has various uses such as food preservation and cleaning that make it a worthy inclusion for your supply.
BOUILLON CUBES
I had to research what these even were, but after learning about them I decided to add them to this list because of how helpful they can be to turn ingredients into a meal. Heat up some water with this cube and whatever meat you have on hand.
There is a lot to think about when working on your disaster preparedness but hopefully this list gets you started with some of the simpler basics.
Erie Mutual Insurance proudly serves the commercial insurance, farm insurance, home insurance and auto insurance needs of members throughout Southern Ontario including Haldimand, Niagara and Hamilton.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions you may have about this or any other topic related to your insurance.
