Ver3.5 Prudent Food Storage FAQ, 1 of 9

Version 3.50

Updated November 1999

Supersedes Version 3.00

PRUDENT FOOD STORAGE: Questions & Answers

From the House at Cat's Green

Alan T. Hagan

Author of

The Prudent Pantry: Your Guide to Building a Food Insurance Program

Available from Borderline Press

"In this work, when it shall be found that much is omitted,

let it not be forgotten that much likewise is performed."

Samuel Johnson, 1775, upon

completion of his dictionary.

Courtesy of James T. Stevens

FOREWORD

This Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) file is concerned with those methods and techniques that are most useful to extending the nutritive and palatability shelf lives of foods suitable for use in food storage programs.

In this compendium you will be taken through the ins and outs of how to put away your storage foods and have a reasonable expectation of getting something edible back out of the container when you finally use them. Also covered will be food spoilage -- how to recognize it and how to combat it. A resource list detailing where to find supplies and further information is included at the end.

While you are working on your food storage program, please don't overlook your water supply. Without safe drinking water it won't matter how much food you have put away, within a few days you must find water or perish. An excellent water storage FAQ (Water FAQ) by Patton Turner may also be found here on the Providence Cooperative site in the House at Cat's Green.

This file is updated as sufficient material becomes available. Lend a hand -- point out mistakes, contribute data or information, or provide us with new sources. As a contributor you will be cited in the FAQ, unless you wish otherwise.

The Prudent Pantry: Your Guide to Building a Food Insurance Program

There is much more to creating and using a food storage program in times of crisis or disaster than just knowing what foods can be packaged in particular ways to keep them at their best for long periods of time.

Before acquiring foods to put into your storage program you first need to identify the potential problems you are concerned with surviving. Having done that, you'll then need to know:

#1 - How to plan for the particular circumstances of each problem you feel the need to prepare against;

#2 - How much of what kinds of food to put away to meet each challenge;

#3 - How to keep track of it all;

#4 - Where to store it;

#5 - How to cook it should your normal means of food preparation fail; and

#6 - Just as importantly, how to safely cope with the inevitable result of all food consumption - sanitary needs.

With this FAQ having already grown to a cumbersome 130+ pages these additional topics cannot be covered here, to do that would expand this work into a good sized book.

Which is exactly what has happened. To address these other, also vital, considerations I have created The Prudent Pantry: Your Guide To Building A Food Insurance Program. The subject areas outside of those relating strictly to the how-to of putting food into storage and keeping it at its best that could not be covered in the Prudent Food Storage FAQ have been covered in-depth there along with all of the FAQ material presented here. A complete contents listing of The Prudent Pantry may be found at Borderline Press.

Updated: 9/18/96; 4/16/97; 7/21/97; 10/20/97; 9/15/98; 11/02/99

Excluding contributions attributed to specific individuals all material in this work is copyrighted to Alan T. Hagan and all rights are reserved. This work may be copied and distributed freely as long as the entire text, my and the contributor's names and this copyright notice remain intact, unless my prior express permission has been obtained. This FAQ may not be distributed for financial gain, included in commercial collections or compilations or included as a part of the content of any web site without prior, express permission from the author.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Diana Hagan, my wife, for endless patience and tolerance in the three years since I created this FAQ; Susan Collingwood for sage advice; BarbaraKE; Gary Chandler; Skipper Clark, author of Creating the Complete Food Storage Program; Denis DeFigueiredo; Al Durtschi for resources and encouragement; Craig Ellis; Pyotr Filipivich; Sandon A. Flowers; Amy Gale, editor of the rec.food.cooking FAQ; Geri Guidetti, of the Ark Institute; Woody Harper; Higgins10; Robert Hollingsworth; Jenny S. Johanssen; Kahless; James T. Stevens, author of Making The Best of Basics; Amy Thompson (Saco Foods); Patton Turner; Logan VanLeigh; Mark Westphal; a number of folks who for reasons sufficient unto themselves wish to remain anonymous; and last, but certainly not least, Leslie Basel, founding editor of the rec.food.preserving FAQ, without whom I'd never have attempted this in the first place.

DISCLAIMER: Safe and effective food storage requires attention to detail and proper equipment and ingredients. The author makes no warranties and assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in the text, or damages resulting from the use or misuse of information contained herein.

Placement of or access to this work on this or any other site does not mean the author espouses or adopts any political, philosophical or metaphysical concepts that may also be expressed wherever this work appears.

PLEASE DIRECT CONTRIBUTIONS, COMMENTS, QUESTIONS AND/OR CRITICISMS TO:

athagan@sprintmail.com

Written material may be sent to the address below:

A.T. Hagan

P.O. Box 140008

Gainesville, FL 32614-0008