Saturday, March 29, 2014

Learning About Emergency Food Rations

By Linda Cantrell


Have you ever imagined what would happen if you were not allowed to buy food for a whole year? How would you survive? It is in the search of answers to these questions that you need some basic tips about emergency food rations. Natural disasters such as floods, tornadoes, storms and disease outbreaks are common in the UK just like elsewhere in the world. You therefore need to be prepared for such emergencies so that your ration supply is not cut short.

An emergency food-stock is needed for circumstances of that nature. They enable you to keep foods fresh for long and be in a position to get all the dietary requirements in your meals. For a start, you should strive to always have a continuous ration supply for three days. The store should contain sufficient water and foods for all your family members. You can choose to have a stock that can go for a week, a month or more.

Good storage equipment is also required. Ensure you meet all the necessary hygiene requirements. Foods that do not require refrigeration are preferable. They should also have low salt content. Your store should be easily reachable to avoid hassles when you need to use the stock. Remember it will be used in an emergency situation where a long search is not convenient. The items should also be free from humidity and pests as these are destructive.

You do not need to shop for everything in one instant. Take your time! First, start with the foods that are available in the market at a reasonable price. It beats logic to buy an item at a hiked price when there is another one of the same or better quality more cheaply. Go for what you can comfortably afford. Also, consider the manufacturers as some are not trusted and avoid counterfeits.

The stock is only meant for emergencies. You should not yield to any urge whatsoever to turn to it. Continue purchasing your daily food as usual. If you are forced to borrow from your stock pile, replenish it as soon as possible. However, the ideal is not to touch it at all unless in an emergency situation.

From time to time, replenish and reshuffle your stock pile. Discard the items that will have expired before their use. Reshuffling implies interchanging the items so that those recently purchased ones are kept at the bottom. It enables you to utilize the ones that have neared their expiry date to avoid the great loss that comes with disposing them off.

In order to taste whether your foodstuff items are still edible, you have a range of options. You can begin by checking their expiry dates. If an item has not expired then it can still be consumed. Rotate the stock of your bottled water every six months the expiry date notwithstanding.

Fruits and other high acid canned foods can be stored for a maximum storage period of from a year to eighteen months. Usually, two to at least five years of storage is ideal for low acid canned foods such as fish, most vegetables and meat. The main idea is not to store the rations for longer than expected.




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