March is a great time to stock up on your pantry goods with deals around the internet. We found this special from Wise Foods that you should take particular interest in. First things first, I am not affiliated with this food company in any way, but a deal’s a deal!
Those of you who have purchased pre-packaged emergency food knows that it can be pricey. But a necessary expense. Currently, Wise Foods have nine different food kits you can purchase for half off!
There’s Something for Everyone!
They’ve got everything from a basic 1-person five day supply to 2,160 long-term food supply on sale. I’m looking at the breakfast and entree bucket and maybe the fruit combo. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, right?
I’m a big proponent of having layers of preparedness especially when it comes to food. You never know how long a preparedness emergency will last. If you are new to preparedness, one of the most important facets of prepping is to have a solid food storage plan and having some freeze-dried foods is a great investment, in my opinion.
The Pros
There are many pros to having #10 cans of this long-term food source in your prepper pantry. Freeze-dried food is flash frozen and then put in a vacuum container causing the water to vaporize, and leaving the food item with 98% of its water removed. Nutritionally speaking, the food retains all the nutrients that it had in its original form after the freeze-drying process and contains little to no additives. This process keeps a majority of the nutrition intact. Gary Stoner, Ph.D., and the American Institute for Cancer Research have found that the antioxidant phytochemicals found in fresh fruits is about the same as in their freeze-dried versions. However, some ascorbic acid levels and the amount of polyphenol, a cell-protecting chemical in berries, were measurably reduced by freeze drying. Source
As well, the cook times are drastically reduced which is helpful during emergencies when energy must be conserved. Moreover, many find that when they are in the midst of an emergency, stress loads increase because of drastic changes and having these “just add water” meals ready to go cuts down on the stress of food preparation. It is estimated that 98% of moisture from the food is eliminated, thus reducing the weight of the food by 80%. Those who plan on evacuating will appreciate the lighter weight during transport – especially with all the other supplies they will have in their pack. Last but not least, the 25-year storage life makes this ideal for preppers who are looking for long-lasting food options. On a personal note, my family purchased freeze-dried food in 2004 and it’s still just as fresh as when we opened up the first can. Keep in mind, once your freeze-dried food can is opened, the shelf life quickly diminishes and you will need to throw it out in six months, and if you live in a humid area, the shelf life could be cut in half.
The Cons
While the pros are great, it usually comes with a hefty price tag (although at 50% off, you are getting a good bargain). The reason it can be pricey is from all of the specialized equipment and energy it takes to preserve the food for a long shelf life. One case of freeze-dried meals can set you back over a hundred dollars with shipping included. As well, having this type of food source for your long-term food needs will require extra space to store the food. An entire years supply fits into a 2 ft x 3 ft area, stacked 5 ft high. As well, food cans could be strategically hidden in the home, underneath beds, above kitchen cabinets, and in the closet.
If you are going back and forth about whether or not to invest in freeze-dried food or dehydrated food, here’s a good answer. Because 98% of the water is removed from freeze-dried foods, it will take more water to reconstitute it for meals as opposed to dehydrated foods needing a fraction of the water. An article on Modern Survival Blog gives a great explanation:
“It does take more water to reconstitute freeze-dried food than dehydrated food. I randomly pulled out a few freeze-dried food packets that I have on hand here, so that I could read the directions. The average amount of water required is a bit more than 1 cup of water per serving (which you would heat up first). On the other hand, some dehydrated food can be consumed without re-constituting with water (particularly fruits or meats). My experience with re-hydrating foods that I have previously dehydrated, are that I tend to use less than 1 cup of water per equivalent serving of vegetables than a freeze-dried food.”
Also, keep in mind that many of the freeze-dried meals are high in sodium. Many outdoor enthusiasts and hikers complain that you have to drink so much water to overcome the thirst the meals create. Make sure you have extra water on hand if you plan on using this as your main food source. As well, the high sodium can cause your bowels to become sluggish. To remedy this, purchase some over the counter meds for constipation or look for low-sodium freeze-dried options. One website states that the real key is the balance.
“If you are concerned about sodium content in your food storage items, keep in mind that you can balance out the higher sodium foods you consume in a day with lower sodium foods. For example, many freeze-dried vegetables contain low or no sodium. There are also many breakfast items, like granola or oatmeal, that have very little sodium, if any.
Just like with a fresh food diet, the key is balance. If the only thing you ate every day was chicken, you’d quickly find that your diet is not providing what your body needs. But when you add lots of fruits and vegetables to that chicken and you will begin to achieve a more balanced diet.”
In that same vein, I highly recommend you also investing in sprouting seeds to ensure you are getting some fresh vitamins into your daily diet.
Related: Is Freeze-Dried Food Worth the Investment?
Check out Wise Foods and see if any of their discounted items would be a good fit for your household.
Related Articles:
11 Emergency Foods That Last Forever
Five Family Friendly Food Pantry Organizing Tips Anyone Can Do
5 Ways to Stretch Your Meals SHTF Style
Food Pantry: Take Care of Your Basic Needs
72 Hours Without This Will Kill You: Survival Water Fundamentals
Thanks for this prepper pantry article – good points both pro and con. I’ve always “stocked up” as winter approached, but decided to make my own little prepper pantry once I started reading prepping articles. Freeze dried meals CAN be pricey depending on what one gets & how much one needs, but if I can do it on my humble budget anyone can. A little bit at a time is better than nothing at all! Individual ingredients rather than meals works best for my situation (is there anything that can’t be freeze dried? the variety is amazing!) Veggies, fruits, meats, etc. so I can make my own meal pouches (think meals in a jar but put into Mylar bags instead) & have some control over the sodium. Looking forward to the next “Prep of the Week”!
I have accumulated my short term storage, my medium, and long term- which, for me is about 6 months. It is great for more than 25 years, but at my age…. I have watched the sales, and have been able to gather up 10 pails or so- ranging from oats and rice, to the buckets of freeze dried meals. We all have our favorites! I loved the article- and I am always looking for extra space to stash my “insurance policy”. Great tips on storage, as well as adding extra water and sprouting seeds. I started prepping long ago- remember Y2K? Only because my family was going through serious health issues with my baby girl. Well, old habits die hard, and having my own grocery store in the basement has helped more than one family. My emergency has hit again, and thank goodness feeding us hasn’t been a worry. Mine may be different than yours, and it never hurts to have a back up plan.
Thanks for the “heads-up” on a sale. However, my late grandmother spoke of feeding “hobos” from a nearby train stop during the Great Depression. I have inherited hundreds of canning jars from her that I feel obligated to use before investing in freeze dried meals. My hope is to raise enough produce to fill many jars so that I may be as openhanded as she was.
Your grandmother sounds like mine. She said when her family was living through the Great Depression everyone helped each other out. She said when hobos would walk by and ask for food, her mom would add more water to the beans and stretch it out the best they could. It’s strange how disconnected we’ve become from one another. There are many these days would will not help their fellow man.
I have been dehydrating fruit, veggies and herbs for over 20 years, way before I heard the term “prepper”. While we do have some freeze dried storage, most of our long-term storage consists of food I have dehydrated and protected with dessicant packs. We also have set aside a supply of toilet paper. We can do without paper towels or tissues, but toilet paper is much more of a necessity! My dehydrators (I have 2) run a good bit of the time, and I have made converts of several of my friends. I am currently sharing what I know with a group from my church.
Thanks for this informative article! It’s nice to have facts and not just hype. I love all the info on your Website!
Hi Arlene,
Thank you so much. We have try very hard over here at Ready Nutrition to present the facts, especially when it comes to preparedness. Our motto is there’s not need to live in fear. Just be informed, prepare what you can and have some faith.
Take Care,
Tess
I have a little more than a 2-week emergency supply on hand and am constantly looking for improvement and adding on to it. Your site is full of great information. Currently, I have a stash of water and various canned foods, because I like a variety. During the winter, we had our electricity to go out and luckily I was able to try out my portable collapsible stove and gas heat to see what it would do in an emergency. It worked great and I will purchase another stove and more heat to have on hand.
Thanks for the article and the tip for this sale! I, too try to keep an emergency supply of food, OTC medicines, paper goods and other necessities on hand for emergencies, and like one reader said, having your own “store” to fall back on when you need something late at night is a good feeling! I learned canning from my grandmother, and refer to my canned fruits and veggies as “kitchen jewelry!” It’s also nice when a church or community member falls on hard times, and I can take them a box of stuff right away. I have mostly home canned and commercially canned foods in my stash, but have lately been buying some of the long-term food storage items too. This sale will really help. We have a water filter, and live near a creek. We also keep goats, donkeys, chickens and a small but growing herd of angus cattle. Our four Great Pyrenees dogs help keep them all safe. We have a garden every year, but when I retire in a little over a year, I hope we can raise most of what we eat, as well as share with the neighbors!
Thanks for entering me in the contest!
Fizzlecat – Your comment has been so informative and helpful to the community! Thank you so much for posting. I’d love to send you the free books offered in the newsletter this week. Can you contact me with a mailing address? tp (at) this website.com
Thank you!!! I’m having trouble with the link provided- it takes me to a website for building websites. Could you contact me at sumacfarm@hotmail.com and I will gladly reply with my name and mailing address! I rarely win anything, and I’m so excited, and looking forward to some great reading!! Thank you again!!
Peter,
I completely understand your hesitancy about revealing your preps. Your advice on eliminating social media and smartphones is spot on too! People share way too much on their social pages these days.