5 Ways to Instantly Upgrade Your Long-Term Food Supply
The last time anyone wants to evaluate their long-term food supply is in the middle of an emergency. As such, the time to do so is now more than ever - especially because of all the food supply problems caused by the pandemic. If you haven’t started storing food in your home for the long-term check out some of our older blog posts like this one on how to do so.
Even some emergency preparedness food from major manufacturers can potentially have problems like misleading serving counts, spoiling too early, and lacking nutritional content. Many people who store food for the long-term and even some preppers don’t look at their food supply often enough - meaning opening up containers and so on. Here are some simple yet effective ways to instantly upgrade your long-term food supply.
1. Focus on Calories and Macros
One of the biggest mistakes that people make when building their long-term food supply is by counting servings. Serving sizes on packages are an estimate, and a particular portion is often not enough to keep a grown adult properly nourished until their next meal.
Instead of adding up servings, focus on macronutrients - carbs, fat, and protein. The average adult will require 2,000 calories a day, and at least 40 grams of fat and protein, with at least 200 grams of carbs. Use the general macro rule of thumb when taking inventory of your food storage.
2. Upgrade Your Food’s Shelf Life
Too many “long-term” food buckets and cans aren’t sealed properly or lack the proper oxygen absorption to make them last as long as the “use by” dates say. If you see that one can is going bad before it should, most manufacturers will replace it for free. Also, adding oxygen absorption packets to your home-sealed containers will extend their shelf life as well.
3. Utilize Your Storage Space Better
Even if you have limited space, you can store food for the long-term. First, we recommend space-saving storage like square pails with flat tops because they store easily and last a long time. Additionally, #10 cans are more stackable than their counterparts.
4. Increase Your Protein
Too many packaged, commercial long-term food options are low on protein. This is because clean, complex proteins are expensive, so manufacturers don’t add enough. An easy upgrade is to purchase some freeze-dried meat and add it to a meal. Additionally, you can buy some long-term protein options like powder if you are a vegetarian.
5. Add Some Micronutrients
Even in our normal daily lives, many of us fail to get the necessary vitamins and minerals that our body needs. There are around 30 or more of these vitamins and minerals that we need to get from food, so this is where supplements and micronutrients can help. Check out some of More Prepared’s nutrient-dense foods and supplements here.
Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail
As previously mentioned, the time is now to use these tips to upgrade your long-term food storage. As the saying goes, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. If you want a high-quality long-term solution for your food storage, check out all of the options available from More Prepared.
