Prepper - Preparing for emergencies, what basic food supplies do I need

What might a food emergency supply look like?

Shelf life is just one criterion for the food items one should stockpile. Every supply is also something very personal and should be tailored to individual taste and any food intolerances or allergies. Because it’s pointless if I have an emergency supply ‘by the book’, but I don’t like half of the items and can’t eat the other half due to intolerances. In addition, all macronutrients such as carbohydrates, fats, and proteins should be present in the food, and this is where the first advantage of the Smantry App comes into play: For every scanned product, all the nutritional information is provided. Of course, calorie needs also play a role. An adult needs about 2000 calories on average. Active people naturally consume more accordingly.

The shopping list

As we have already mentioned above, each emergency supply is a very individual matter. Therefore, this list is not ‘set in stone’. It is intended merely as a guideline that you can follow. Our list does not include frozen food supplies - and there is a good reason for that. In the event of a flood causing a prolonged power outage, frozen food supplies will quickly be lost, because eventually even the best emergency generator will give out if a freezer is running on it all the time.

Try to integrate your supplies into your everyday routine and track the items with their storage location in the Smantry App. This way, your inventory is always up to date, and the risk of something spoiling is almost eliminated ;) Otherwise, the ‘First in - First out’ principle applies to your stock. This means that the product you bought first should also be the first one you use up.

Shopping Tips

You don’t have to stock up on groceries all at once; you can gradually build up your supply. For instance, if you buy pasta, just take an extra package and immediately record it with its storage location in the Smantry App.

This is what your prepper food supplies could look like

· Instant soups

· Bouillon

· Pepper, Salt

· Other dry spices (for example: basil, oregano, garlic)

· Ready-made meals in cans such as chili con or sin carne, ravioli, spaghetti, etc.
(best to capture the expiration date right away in the Smantry App

· Ready-made sauces in jars

· Dog and/or cat food as well as other pet food

· Jerky

· Cured sausage

· Hard cheese

· Instant coffee and/or tea and/or cocoa

· Rusk and/or crispbread

· Packaged whole grain bread

· Oatmeal/Cereal flakes

· Pasta and/or rice

· Dried legumes such as beans, peas, or lentils

· Possible egg substitute

· Nuts and oils

· Hardtack

· Honey/Maple syrup/Corn syrup/Sugar syrup

· Sugar

· Dried fruits

· Raisins

· Dry milk/Milk powder

· Since milk powder isn’t for everyone, you are also welcome to buy regular shelf-stable milk.

· Baby food

· Potatoes

· Oatmeal

· Flour

· Sauerkraut in a jar or can

· Red cabbage in a jar or can

· Fruit in cans or jars

· Fresh fruits and vegetables

· Canned or jarred vegetables

· Eggs (First In, First Out principle! Eggs are among the perishable
foods)

· Possible powdered meal replacement drinks

Beverages

Water or beverages are of course also extremely important. You should account for about three liters of fluid per person per day - and that’s just for drinking. So you will also need water for cooking and of course for your domestic and/or farm animals. A good rule of thumb is about four to five liters (although more is always better, of course). You might be able to install a rainwater collection tank at your home. Food-grade jerry cans are suitable for storage, and they come in various sizes. Water filters are also worth acquiring, in case you no longer have access to clean water. A camping stove is also essential, if only to boil the water.

Read next

• What food to stock up on? The path to the optimal supply made easy
• Emergency Preparedness: How Preppers Stock Up on Food for a Crisis
• Food waste in summer: Why we throw away the most right now of all times – and what helps against it