You wake up to the sound of rushing water. Your heart starts racing as you realize your home is being engulfed by a torrent of muddy floodwater. In a matter of minutes, flash floods triggered by torrential rains swept away everything in their path. You and your family are OK… but you are part of many people who are now stranded, cut off from essential supplies, and facing the grim task of clearing thick mud from their homes and streets.
The power is out and the water supply has been interrupted. Shortages of basic necessities may follow.
This was the scenario faced by people in Valencia, Spain, on that fateful Tuesday in October 2024.
Are we certain nothing like that can happen to us at some point?
What types of foods are best for long-term storage to prepare for unexpected emergencies?
Climate change is altering rainfall patterns, and disrupting traditional farming practices. While some regions experience increased precipitation, flooding, and storms that can devastate crops and livestock, others face prolonged droughts. These extreme weather events significantly impact crop yields and livestock production, reducing overall food production and threatening global food security.
Climate change further alters ecosystems, affecting pollinators and beneficial insects crucial for agriculture. Simultaneously, warmer temperatures facilitate the spread of pests and diseases, compounding the threats to agricultural output.
How can we prepare for potential periods of food scarcity?
Let’s start with the well-known recommendations. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC for short, suggests maintaining a 3-day home stockpile of food and water in case of disasters or emergencies.
They recommend storing mainly foods that not only last a long time without spoiling but also require little or no cooking, water, or refrigeration.
Prefer foods that are not too salty or spicy, as these increase the need for water. It’s also important to take into account the special needs of family members, such as infants, pets, or those with dietary restrictions.
For starters, be aware of the expiration dates of what you store. Preferably, consume and renew products before they expire. It’s important to distinguish between ‘best-before’ and ‘use-by’ dates. Only the latter means food could be spoiled.
Identify a cool, dry, and dark place at home where you can store these foods. They should not be placed in the same space where you store paints, oils, or solvents, as food may absorb odors.
The containers you use for storage should prevent rodents or insects from accessing your food.
Now, if you were thinking of storing one thing and nothing but one thing, store drinking water. Consider having 4 liters of water per day for each person and pet in your household. If you live in a warm area, you will probably require more.
Consider storing at least 3 days’ worth of water and, if you have enough space, store up to 2 weeks’ worth.
Water, strictly speaking, does not expire, but the containers in which it is stored may have defects. Therefore, it’s important to respect the expiration times described, for example, on water PET bottles. It’s good practice to schedule the renewal of your water storage every 6 months.
If you’re thinking of storing filtered or otherwise treated water instead, you can look for food-grade containers in stores that sell camping products. Remember to wash and disinfect them before adding clean water.
For disinfection and cleaning in general, it’s a good idea to store chlórine bleach and keep it at a temperature of about 21°C. Renew your chlorine storage once a year.
In addition to food and water, your emergency storeroom should also contain essential uténsils and equipment for both eating and cooking, such as portable plates and glasses, spoons, forks, a manual can opener, a gas grill, a camping stove, and fuel cans.
The CDC also recommends storing canned food, including meat, fruits, and vegetables, ready to eat. Other recommended items include protein bars, dry cereal or granola, peanut butter, dried fruit, canned juices, and pasteurized powdered milk.
What other particularly DURABLE foods could we store?
The reigning champion in this category is probably honey, as it “never” seems to expire (although you should definitely watch for mold growth and discard it if it tastes, looks, or smells funny).
It’s still worth mentioning that it’s important to store honey in airtight containers to prevent it from absorbing unpleasant odors.
Salt
Not only does salt not seem to expire, but it has also been used historically to preserve foods.
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You can find the references I use in these videos on my website, where I also post the transcription.
The following list highlights foods that, in colloquial terms, are often said to ‘practically never expire.’ These staples are known for their remarkable shelf stability, making them valuable additions to long-term food storage plans.
When available, I will share the most conservative data I found in the literature for each case, even if it refers more to taste, for example, than to potential harm.
White rice
There is a notable difference between the shelf life of brown rice and white rice.
Brown rice has diverse health advantages, but since it has a high percentage of lipids in the bran layer, these oxidize and are also prone to microbial attack.
Brown rice has a recommended storage time of 3 to 6 months.
White rice, on the other hand, could be stored for a remarkably long time.
I found a study in which white rice, stored in cans treated to reduce oxygen content and kept at room temperature for up to 30 years, was tested.
A panel of 52 consumers evaluated the taste and odor of the cooked rice and found it to be generally acceptable for emergency conditions.
The bad news is that they don’t seem to sell those cans of hyper-durable rice anymore.
But the good news is that we have an alternative today: oxygen absorbers.
Oxygen absorbers are permeable sachets containing iron filings and salt that you can put in an airtight container along with the food. They absorb a little moisture, but their main function is that the iron filings react with the oxygen in the container so that it’s no longer available to rancidify the food.
This means you could store rice in a decent airtight container where you include these types of sachets to further increase its storage time.
Quick note: This method can be used with other grains or foods that you buy in bulk or that you’ve dried and plan to store in glass containers.
Be aware that the oxygen absorber sachets must be kept intact and closed. The producer should clearly indicate how many sachets to use for a given container volume. You should also consider that, depending on how you buy the grains, it may be important to clean them before storage to reduce the likelihood of insects developing inside the container.
Flour
White wheat flour or corn flour can last up to 1 year if kept free of moisture. As with rice, whole wheat flour spoils much faster than white wheat flour.
Wheat
Wheat can be stored in food-grade, moisture-resistant containers such as Mylar-type bags, polyethylene bags, or airtight plastic containers. It is not necessary to store wheat in the absence of oxygen unless you think there might be insects. However, if you think it could be affected by insects, you can also use oxygen absorbers.
In this case, it’s important to control humidity. One option is to store under vacuum.
For wheat, I found one source that refers to a study which identified that the maximum storage time before cooking flavor issues arise is 5 years.
And I know you might be tempted to add silica gel sachets to your containers… Most of us know these little sachets because we find them occasionally in the new electronics we buy.
The problem is that since this material absorbs moisture, it ends up impeding the function of the oxygen absorber. So, do NOT use both together.
Sugar
Sugar is practically unaffected by oxygen and can last for a long time in storage, although the preferred consumption period is about 2 years.
Sugar is one of the foods to which it is NOT advisable to add oxygen absorbers because it can end up compact and hard as stone.
Foods that can be stored for about 1 year:
Nuts, beans, lentils, peas and Powdered milk
Dried fruits such as apricots, prunes, mangoes, figs, or cranberries can also last up to 1 year if kept at 16ºC or less.
Other very long-lasting food items:
Jams last about 18 months.
Dried eggs, sold in powdered and pasteurized form, can presumably last up to 26 months.
Some canned foods, such as tuna, only say “best before” date, so…
Canned fruit juices and pastes presumably last 2 years in storage.
Canned potatoes or sweet potatoes, as well as dried potatoes and canned dried meat, last up to 30 months in their original packaging.
High acid foods such as tomatoes and other fruit will keep their best quality for up to 18 months; low acid foods such as meat and vegetables can last from 2 to 5 years.
General warning: NEVER USE food from containers that show possible “botulism” warnings: leaking, bulging, or badly dented cans; cracked jars or jars with loose or bulging lids; canned food with a foul odor; or any container that spurts liquid when opening. Even a minuscule amount of botulinum toxin can be deadly.
Can linings might discolor or corrode when metal reacts with high-acid foods such as tomatoes or pineapple.
As long as the can is in good shape, the contents should be safe to eat, although the taste, texture and nutritional value of the food can diminish over time.
Finally, in a special category is freeze-dried food, which is presumed to last 15 to 25 years in storage but is usually more expensive. This food comes in sealed packages that we should not open or modify in any way, beyond keeping them in a cool, dry place.
References:
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Centers of Disease Control and Prevention – U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (2019, 19 enero). Food & Water: Preparing for a Disaster | Natural Disasters and Severe Weather. Recuperado 19 de abril de 2024, de https://www.cdc.gov/disasters/foodwater/prepare.html
Cichello, S. (2014). Oxygen absorbers in food preservation: a review. Journal Of Food Science And Technology/Journal Of Food Science And Technology, 52(4), 1889-1895. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-014-1265-2
Coons, L., Halling, M. B., Lloyd, M. A., Ogden, L. V., & Pike, O. A. (2004). Quality of regular and parboiled rice in long-term storage. BYU ScholarsArchive. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/67
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