Building Your Food Stores Without Going Broke

Today I want to touch on the topic of food storage. Food and water storage needs to be a staple in any preppers lifestyle.  The general rule of thumb is that you need 25 lbs of grains like rice, wheat, corn, etc for each person per month you are prepping for. On that same scale you will need 5 lbs of dry beans. For example. if you are prepping for 3 months for a family of four you need 300 lbs or grains and 60 lbs of beans. You also need 1 gallon of water per each per for everyday. I will discuss water storage in another post. These are very general rules.. I'm sure you can imagine how expensive prepping can get if your buy all of your food at once. They is hope for those of thus that don't have a whole lot of extra cash laying around.

First of all, you NEED a 72 hour kit. Go ahead and shell out the cash to get that kit in place. If disaster strikes tomorrow, and it WILL for someone, you will be glad you did. Now that the 72 hour kit is in place just set it aside. That kit does not count toward your food stores. To start on your food stores you need to go look in your pantry. Make a list of what types of canned goods you keep at home. This list is going to be the basis of you food preps. Any time you go into the grocery store you are going to but a bag of dried beans and a bag of rice. Those are only a buck or two each. You are also going to buy three canned goods from you list. You are out $5-$7 and you have already increased your survivability by a few points. Be sure to mix up the types of beans and canned goods you buy so you have a little variety. Pretty simple, right?

You want to build up at least 3 months of food and water stores as quickly as you can but I suggest just taking inventory once monthly or bi-monthly. Progress will seem slow is you recalculate every time you add to your stores. Storing food preps is not a daunting task but it sure can seem to be sometimes. One way to save a lot of money is to get more bang for your buck. Use coupons! You will get more product for less money, in turn your food stores will grow exponentially faster. Buy one get one free offers on canned goods are like a guaranteed win lottery ticket to preppers.

Once you have built up your three months of food stores you should consider preserving your own food too. Canning is is great way to preserve some good food. Canned meat will be like gold when the SHTF! You can can almost anything including pre-made meals. I love to can molle chicken with green salsa. It goes great over all of that rice you have stored up.

Once you have a nice stockpile you can start using it as you own grocery store. If you take one can of green beans just be sure to replace it with two when you find that by one get one free offer. Doing this helps to rotate your stock as well. I just hope that any of you that are reading my blog don't think SHTF survival will be like a Man vs. Wild episode. You need to store food. Wildlife populations will quickly be depleted by the unprepared if we are cut off from the support of our society for only a few days. Primitive survival skills are great but we are not looking for rescue helicopters when the SHTF! Get you 72 hour kit and set it aside. Start on your preps and look at your progress in a month. You won't be so nervous come December of 2012. It is in the back of all of our minds........"What if they are right."

An overlooked item for your BOB...Pedialyte

I can scour the internet all day and look at suggestions for items that should be included in a bug out bag and never get bored. No list is exactly correct because a bug out bag is a very individual thing. There are a few items that should be in all bog out bags though. One item that is ofter overlooked is Pedialyte. That stuff is a like a magical potion for hydration. Just try some next time your hung over :).

Many add Gatorade to their kit to use for emergency hydration but Pedialyte should replace that used space. Pedialyte has much more potassium and a significantly less sugar than Gatorade. Sugar can make dehydrating diarrhea worse when your body is sucking up any hydration it can get. Pedialyte has been designed from the ground up simply to rehydrate when you need it the most. I see the container as a bonus too. When the contents run out you have a water bottle. If your feel that the Pedialyte bottle is too bulky if you have a smaller BOB then there is another option. Pedialyte comes in powder form as well. You can get it in singles packages which are much easier to carry. Put a few of those in your first-aid kits.   

Hydration is the single most important factor in your survivability. In a dire situation a simple stomach virus can kill you. It would behoove any prepper to take my advice and add this wonder fluid to your preps. I keep short barrels stocked with kits in my garage and each barrel will have a bottle and a singles pack in it by the time this week it over. The singles need to be in your EDC (Every Day Carry) kit too. Pickle juice is also another super hydrator but is much less practical to stock.

Get your Pedialyte because when you have to bug out of your home because the zombies are taking over you will need to emergency hydrate at some point. Besides, how are you going to put some lead in a zed head when your are suffering from the effects of dehydration. Dehydration is a quick way to become a zombie and zombies will be met with by carbine. Don't be on the wrong end of someone's gun just because you forgot your Pedialyte.

SHTF Fashion and Style....(yeah, I went there)

Fashion and style are greatly overlooked in most peoples preps. While that statement sounds idiotic it has some mettle. You need to decide what your bug out look will be. There are two basic looks that won't get you mugged and stripped of your preps. You can go with the "blend in" approach and wear simple street clothes with a standard backpack as your bug out bag. The other option is to look like a smooth operator straight out of a movie or video game. It is hard to argue which option is better as both have pros and cons.

First, lets examine the street clothes option. Blending in is usually a great plan. The less attention you receive the more likely you are to go unnoticed. Those that blend in will not look like they have too much to take if they are noticed by some in-prepared vultures of men. The backpack will be a dead giveaway for those carrying one if it is too flashy. A giant hikers pack says "I have a lot of stuff that you need to survive. Come take it." The tactical option says "I have a lot of stuff that you need to survive. Come any try to take it; you probably can't. Pick the next guy."

If you go for the tactical operator look you will definitely be more equipped to carry more bug out equipment.  You will also be telling everyone around you that you have the supplies that they need. On the other hand, if your have on a pair of combat boots and an assault rifle across your chest strapped to a tactical vest people are far less likely to cross you.

Of course these aren't the only two options but they are the best two in my opinion. For my situation I like the tactical look. Two of my preferred bug out routes will surely lead me through a highly populated area and I like to look more like a wolf than a sheep. Hopefully my bug out will happen before panic sets in though,if it happens at all. Nothing says don't mess with me more than a black AR hanging across your chest, a machete sticking up from behind your backpack and a sidearm.

Diabetes Prep: What Every Diabetic Needs To Know

Below is an article from the Radical Survivalism Webzine. I found it too important not to share. Be sure to connect with Radical Survivalism through the links on their site, http://radicalsurvivalism.com/web/. 

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Diabetes Prep: What Every Diabetic Needs To Know

February 02, 2012   MamasGotAGun

One segment of the population that is extremely vulnerable in a disaster is those who have insulin dependent diabetes. One thing that was gravely concerning in William Forschen’s book “One Second After” was the prominence diabetes was given in the plot with an apparent lack of research into this disease. Hopefully, this information will give some comfort and inspiration to those who live with this disease as well as those who reside with individuals or meet those who face these specific set of medical challenges.

Diabetics fall into two main categories. Type I diabetics produce no insulin at all in the body and are completely dependent upon manufactured insulin. Such people often develop diabetic symptoms in infancy or childhood. Type II diabetes produce insulin but it is either not enough or the body’s ability to use it is impaired. These people are usually diagnosed in middle age. Sadly, due to obesity and bad nutritional habits, adolescents are now being found to have this type of diabetes, too. Type II diabetics can sometimes control blood sugar levels with diet. They often need medications that improve insulin production. Many do use manufactured insulin to achieve the best control.

There have been many advances in treatment for diabetics in recent years, especially for those who depend upon insulin. Insulin may be injected with a syringe or delivered by a continuous pump. Currently, researchers are working to develop an insulin spray that can be inhaled through the nose and also a pill. Surgical options are also being researched.

For now, we have the problems of storing and handling manufactured insulin. Most insulin now in use is synthetic human insulin as opposed to the older insulins that were processed from pork or beef pancreas. There are various brand names and formulations. There are short and rapid acting insulins that are used at mealtime and if the blood sugar is very high that rapidly peaks in the body and is metabolized away. Very long acting (basal) insulins are released slowly over 12 to 24 hours providing a constant baseline insulin level and blood sugar control. Often, these two types are paired together for best control. There are also intermediate acting insulins which are usually taken in the morning and have their peak action 6 to 8 hours later that some patients benefit from. These are also usually combined with the short or rapid acting insulin.

Consequently, most insulin dependent diabetics will have two different insulins. In an emergency, other brands from the same group (short, long, intermediate) can be interchanged with only minor difficulties. If only one of the three categories is available, dosage adjustments may be needed. In a local or regional disaster such as hurricane, there are generally health providers available to assist with this. In a situation where such help is not available, dosage adjustments will need to be approached very carefully and in slow increments. A glucometer should be stored in a shielded container (Faraday cage) as well as extra batteries and test strips. Most Type I diabetics are fairly aware of how their body feels when blood sugar is up or down. Trust these feelings especially when testing is not available.

A useful strategy for Type I diabetics is “carb counting.” Many use this method to determine what their mealtime insulin dose should be. With the popularity of Low Carb Diets for weight loss, books are easily now available that provide the carbohydrate values for foods. This type of insulin dosing may require adjustment, but many diabetics feel it is worthwhile because it frees them to eat a wider variety of foods without anxiety. The “diabetic” category of foods is no longer necessary in diabetic treatment. This can make it much easier to plan your food storage. Diabetics can eat the same wholesome foods as others. It should be noted that diabetics have more reason than others to avoid large amounts of concentrated sweets and overly processed foods.

Storage of insulin is the next issue of concern. Most people believe that insulin must be refrigerated at all times. This is outdated information. Once a bottle of insulin or (insulin pen) is opened it should be stored at reasonable room temperature (59 to 86 degrees F). The manufacturer provides information regarding how long the insulin maintains potency after opening. For most insulins that is about thirty days. After that, the potency gradually deteriorates. If you had no choice but to continue using it, you would likely need more to maintain control as time went by. Refrigerating it makes no difference to this deterioration of open insulin. Insulin that freezes is generally not useable, it clumps. If your only insulin supply is exposed to temperatures above 85 degrees (F) it’s potency will degrade but it can be used safely.

Unopened insulin is best stored in a refrigerator. If you are able to prepare an alternate power source such as generator or solar array, this would be the preferred way to store insulin. If you don’t have this ability, a cool place underground area such as a root cellar is best. Even a place in your basement, protected from light will do. The temperature at depths of about four to twenty feet are constant at 50 to 55 degrees (F). “Refrigerature temperature” as defined by insulin manufacturers is up to 49 degrees (F). This difference of a few degrees between cellar and refrigerator temperatures will not cause the insulin to degrade at an extremely accelerated rate as portrayed in fiction.

Unfortunately, these measures will only carry you for a period of time. Type II diabetics are not likely to experience severe symptoms of high blood sugar. Some may even be cured of it with the weight loss likely to occur in a longer term disaster situation. Most of the consequences of Type II diabetes develop slowly due to the constant high blood sugar. Some of these are: decreased resistance to disease, eyesight deterioration to blindness, kidney failure, as well as sores on the feet and legs that may become infected resulting in sepsis.

Deprived of insulin completely, Type I diabetics may quickly become comatose and die. The only hope for these particular individuals is that some kind of order can be restored before supplies run out. The more supplies you have and the better your storage arrangements, the longer those with diabetes will live and be healthy. Insulin is one of the first supplies brought into disaster areas. Although we avoid depending on others, stockpiles of a relatively fragile necessity such as insulin are finite. We must do the best we can and hope that we can hold on for long enough.

Another type of diabetes we should plan for is Gestational Diabetes. This is high blood sugar levels during pregnancy in a woman who did not have diabetes prior to pregnancy. This type of diabetes usually ends when the baby is born. The main problem with this is that the baby is essentially ‘overfed’ while in utero by the high circulating blood glucose. This produces a larger than normal baby which is immature in its physical development. There is an increased probability of premature birth. Even if full-term, the baby may have under developed lungs which can cause significant challenges for the newborn or death if hospital care is unavailable. The large size of the baby presents an obvious problem for home birth.

Gestational diabetes most commonly occurs in women who have a family member with diabetes, are overweight, or over thirty. Women with this condition can be given insulin but not the currently available diabetes pills as the pills will harm the fetus. Gestational diabetes can often be controlled with diet. Since screening would be difficult in primitive conditions, all pregnant women should be cautious of diet during pregnancy. Do not use artificial sweeteners during pregnancy. Pregnant women will usually tolerate the higher blood sugar levels fairly well. Diabetic coma is highly unusual for pregnant women The greatest risk is primarily to the baby. For more information regarding Gestational diabetes testing, see below.

The biggest difficulty with insulin, as with any other prescription, is ability to stockpile. My first suggestion is to enroll in a 90 day supply option, now offered by most insurance plans often included with a mail in option. Refill as often as allowed, don’t wait until you run out. This can help with stocking up on medications such as asthma inhalers, too. If you are able to talk frankly with your doctor, explain that you would like to have a prescription for an extra supply to have on hand “just in case”. If you have prescription drug insurance, you will have to pay out of pocket for any extra supply. This is a small price to pay for peace of mind.

Information regarding Gestational diabetes testing with a glucometer:

Although glucometers are considered to be highly accurate, the test values may not conform exactly to the standards in use now because it would be difficult to measure an exact amount of grams of glucose being given. On the initial glucometer reading, fasting (eight to twelve hours without food or drink prior to test) blood sugar should be less than 100. One hour after drinking a sugary drink, such as a can of coke or big glass of orange juice, the reading should not be more than 200. By four hours after the test, the blood sugar reading should be back down to around 100. If the reading is abnormal, then the woman should be on a low carbohydrate, no concentrated sweets diet. Testing can be repeated to check if the adjustments in diet are helping to lower the blood sugar. Calories should be restricted enough to prevent the mother from gaining more than 35-40 pounds to try to keep the baby healthy and properly sized. Hopefully insulin will not be required since locating the drug during a disaster scenario could create even more serious challenges.

DISCLAIMER: Although this article has been written on a medical topic, no warranty whatsoever is made regarding the accuracy of the content. There is absolutely no assurance that any statement contained or cited in this article touching on medical matters is true, correct, precise, or up-to-date. Even when an accurate statement has been made about medicine, it may not apply to you or your symptoms.

The medical information provided here is, at best, of a general nature and cannot substitute for the advice of a medical professional. Neither the author of this article or the editors of Radical Survivalism Webzine are doctors. No one connected to Radical Survivalism Webzine can take any responsibility, or assume any liability, for the results or consequences of any attempt to use or adopt any of the information presented in this article. Further, nothing on RadicalSurvivalism.com should be construed as an attempt to offer or render a medical opinion, or otherwise engage in the practice of medicine.

About The Author: Mama (Catherine) believes in preparedness as a way of life. Special emphasis on health as well as preparedness for women, families and communities. You can follow her on Twitter @MamasGotAGun.

Video: Vehicle EMP protection

Here is a good video I stumbled across about protecting your can from an EMP attack. If ou have been reading Zombie Splatter for very long you know that I feel that EMP's and viral epidemic pose the greatest threats to Americans. If you havent you should also read my post from October of 2011 Life After An EMP Attack: No Power, No Food, No Transportation, No Banking And No Internet.

The Feds are terroroizing preppers again! This is a must read. Big brother is confused again...

It looks like if you try to look more than a week into the future and try to increase your survivability than you are a potential terrorist. Canned must be a serious problem in our big brothers eyes! I remember when big brother was an ok dude but some where something went wrong. Now big brother is simply a moron. I proudly fly my red, whit,e and blue every day but I question the leadership at the helm more and more each day. Read this article that I found on the Oath Keepers website.

Oath Keepers has learned that federal agents recently visited a Later Day Saints (Mormon) Church food storage cannery in Tennessee, demanding customer lists, wanting to know the identity of Americans who are purchasing food storage from the Mormons.

This incident was confirmed, in person, by Oath Keepers Tennessee Chapter President, Rand Cardwell. Here is Rand’s report:

“A fellow veteran contacted me concerning a new and disturbing development. He had been utilizing a Mormon cannery near his home to purchase bulk food supplies. The man that manages the facility related to him that federal agents had visited the facility and demanded a list of individuals that had been purchasing bulk food. The manager informed the agents that the facility kept no such records and that all transactions were conducted on a cash-and-carry basis. The agents pressed for any record of personal checks, credit card transactions, etc., but the manager could provide no such record. The agents appeared to become very agitated and after several minutes of questioning finally left with no information. I contacted the manager and personally confirmed this information.
This event points to a new level of federal government encroachment on the basic freedoms of the American people. Likewise, it points to a confused policy within federal agencies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in their “Are You Ready?” guide to “In Depth Citizen Preparedness” recommends that citizens store emergency supplies, including bulk food, in the event of a natural disaster or man-made event (the new politically correct term applied to a terrorist attack). The FEMA guidance is spot-on as it allows individuals and families to be self-sufficient during an emergency situation.
And here in Tennessee, we just learned that Nashville Metro Public Health and the Tennessee Department of Health are conducting “door-to-door assessment of disaster preparedness … using a tool designed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to go door to door and check to see how disaster ready you are. .. in 30 neighborhoods in Davidson County [TN] that have been randomly selected to be the target of a door to door assessment.” I have confirmed that that is a state run effort.
So on the one hand, government agencies both state and federal are urging you to be prepared and even checking up on you to see how prepared you are, and on the other hand, we now have federal agencies that are attempting to gather information on individuals that are following FEMA suggestions. What is the reasoning behind gathering this information? Are American citizens now being “listed” by DHS if they are simply following FEMA guidance and purchasing bulk food and emergency supplies for their families? It appears as so.
This should be a red flag to all Americans. Not unlike the “trip wires” identified in the Oath Keepers list of orders that will not be obeyed, this incident should be considered as further evidence that our federal government is out of control. What business is it of the government if any of us purchase and store bulk food? Answer: It is none of their damn business! Maybe during the next Katrina-type event federal agents will storm your home to take your food stores along with your firearms. We can only theorize as to the motives of the government for this type of “list” being developed, but it goes against the very fabric of what a free people should allow by our government.” – Rand Cardwell.

Additional comments by Stewart Rhodes, Founder of Oath Keepers:

As Rand noted, it was fortunate that this particular cannery does not keep records of its customers. And Rand is correct that this is a very serious red flag. There’s a very good reason why one of the top ten orders that active duty Oath Keepers will refuse to obey is “We will NOT obey any orders to confiscate the property of the American people, including food and other essential supplies.” As our Declaration of Orders We Will Not Obey goes on to state:

“Deprivation of food has long been a weapon of war and oppression, with millions intentionally starved to death by fascist and communist governments in the 20th Century alone.
Accordingly, we will not obey or facilitate orders to confiscate food and other essential supplies from the people, and we will consider all those who issue or carry out such orders to be the enemies of the people.”

If those who carry out such orders to confiscate food are enemies of the people, then that same label also fits anyone in the government compiling lists of Americans who store food. There is no legitimate reason for the Department of Homeland Security to compile such lists. Al Qaida suicide bombers are not known to store powdered milk and buckets of wheat. Nor are they known to store away dehydrated carrots and instant potatoes, or fruit punch mix for the kids. But the Mormons are known to do so, and so are many other Americans who have the common sense and maturity to take personal responsibility for ensuring that their families will have food, come what may.

It is part of Mormon Church religious doctrine to store food for hard times and emergencies, with a recommendation that each family store a year’s worth of basic dry goods along with three months worth of store-bought canned and boxed foods. To facilitate that practice, the Mormon Church runs its own food storage canneries selling powdered milk, wheat, flour, rice and beans, sugar, salt, and various other dry goods either in bulk 50 lb bags or in #10 cans for long term food storage (up to 30 years for some items). These Church canneries also often sell food storage items to non-church members, seeing it as both morally right and prudent to help their neighbors store food, whatever their faith. The cannery in Tennessee that was “visited” by federal agents follows that practice of helping the general public become better prepared.

So why do federal agents want to know who is storing away long-term food storage? We suspect it is for the following reasons:

1.  DHS/FEMA wants to know which Americans have food storage so the federal government can at some future point confiscate that food. Just as with lists of gun owners, compiling such lists is the first step toward future confiscation.
2.  DHS wants to identify those Americans who are “switched on” and squared away enough to actually store food for coming hard times (such as during an economic collapse). That population of awake, aware, and prepared Americans poses a “threat” to whatever DHS and its masters have in store for the American people, and as Joseph Stalin so ably demonstrated, one of the easiest ways to subjugate defiant people is to confiscate their food and starve them into submission.

The federal government already tipped their hand by sending the FBI to military surplus stores (as we reported), gun stores, and pawn shops to encourage those businesses to spy on their customers who buy MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat), bipods, “night flashlights”, high capacity magazines, rifle bipods, and bulk ammo. Maybe some of you fooled yourselves into thinking there might be some legitimate reason for them to track purchases of such items. But powdered milk and wheat berries? Those are hardly items that could be used in a terrorist attack. It must be the storage of food itself that the feds now find so offensive and so “dangerous.”

And while the door-to-door preparedness assessments in Tennessee appears to be well intended (and we spoke with a friendly state preparedness officer who said it was motivated by the recent natural disasters in Tennessee), Americans are well justified in being concerned about such efforts and how that information may be used in the future, in light of these other well documented and confirmed incidents of federal law enforcement collecting information on those who purchase preparedness items and indicating that the purchases of those items may be “indicators of terrorist activity.”

If you are one of the many Americans who still have on rose-colored glasses, or who still have your head buried in the sand (or stuck somewhere else warm and dark), it is time to pull your head out and face the reality of what the federal government is telling you by the actions of its agents. Those actions show both what they fear and their intent. What they fear are prepared, equipped, and “switched on” Americans, and their intent is to identify who they are, where they are, and then plan on dealing with them when the time comes. And rest assured that time will come. The recent U.S. Senate passage of S. 1867, which authorizes military detention and trial of U.S, citizens under the international laws of war (as if we were conquered Iraq or Afghanistan) is also an expression of their intent, and their contempt for the Bill of Rights.

Clearly, in light of the above, if you purchase food storage, along with any other preparedness items, you should be concerned about those purchases being tracked and your name winding up on some government list. But don’t let that stop you from storing food and other essential supplies, and don’t let this disturbing incident keep you from using your local Mormon cannery to do so. You need to get prepared. But do it while following the advice of James Wesley, Rawles over at www.survivalblog.com, who repeatedly urges his readers to “think OPSEC!” – if at all possible, buy with cash and pick it up in person, just like the customers of this particular cannery did, which left the “agitated” agents empty handed and frustrated. Good. That is as it should be. Don’t make it easy on them. And if you have not yet begun to store food, now is certainly a good time to start. You’re going to need it. Time is short, and you need to be prepared for what is coming.  “Are You Ready?” indeed.  – Stewart Rhodes

Recommended Preparedness and Self-reliance Resources:

http://www.providentliving.org/ (LDS website with links to church guidelines on preparedness and food storage)
www.survivalblog.com (one of the very best prepper websites, with tons of information.  Use the search feature and enjoy)
http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com (EXCELLENT radio show by Oath Keeper Airborne vet Jack Spirko.  Also has great articles, forum, and how-to videos too)
www.operationsleepinggiant.com (an Oath Keepers sister project, just getting off the ground, to wake up veterans and get them focused on individual, family, community, and state: preparedness, security, sound money, and state sovereignty and independence).

www.alt-market.com (how to build strong communities, barter exchanges, food independence, sound money independence, the Montana Safe Haven State project, and excellent economic analysis by Brandon Smith).

www.americanpreppersnetwork.com (another great site with tons of information, a podcast show, articles, videos, and chat)

www.onpointtactical.com (innovative scouting, tracking, wilderness and urban survival school.  Stewart Rhodes has attended several of these classes and personally recommends this school to those who understand that “training trumps gear” as Kevin Reeve says)

You can find the original article by clicking HERE.