By Tim Gamble (Nov, 2, 2021)
Yesterday, China's government issued a directive to Chinese citizens to start stockpiling food. No reason was given by the Chinese authorities, but this is a highly unusual step for the CCP to take. SouthernPrepper1 did a video on this earlier today (watch the video on his You Tube channel). Regardless of the reason, this is very good advice for all people of every nationality.
Quick Tips for Stockpiling Food:
- Stick to stocking up on foods you actually eat. Don't bother stockpiling foods you or your family members are allergic to, or just plain don't like.
- Figure out what you actually use on a regular basis, then buy extra.
- Frozen and refrigerated foods don't count. If the electricity goes out, frozen and refrigerated foods will spoil quickly, so don't count them towards your long-term food storage.
- Store foods properly in order to maximize their life-span. Can goods should be kept in a dry, cool place. Dry foods, such as rice, pasta, and beans, should be kept in airtight containers, in places that are dry, cool, and dark.
- Ignore expiration or best-by dates. Foods eventually go bad, but the expiration or best-by dates stamped on them are fairly arbitrary. Foods can go bad before the expiration date, and most foods can be good well past their expiration date. Instead, use your common sense and look for signs that the food has gone bad, such as bloated or leaking cans, signs of insect or mold damage, a foul order, and taste or texture that is "off."
- Food Storage: How Long Does It Last? I put together a very in-depth list of foods and their probable shelf-life. Read it by clicking here.
- Stock up on ingredient foods. These are foods that are often used as ingredients in recipes – chicken or beef broths, tomato sauce, tomato paste, canned mushrooms, cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, herbs & spices, and so on… Go through the recipes you make on a regular basis to see what ingredient foods you need.
- Stock up on tea and coffee. Tea, and especially coffee, are both typically hard hit by inflation, so stock up on them if you or your family are a big coffee or tea drinkers.
- Make sure you have water stored. See my article Emergency Water Storage.
- Stock up on foods that don't require cooking. The electricity and gas may be out for an indefinite period of time, so have some foods that don't require cooking. Examples include peanut butter, many canned meats and fish, pop-tarts, canned fruit, and many canned pastas, soups, and stews.
- A little at a time goes a long way. Most folks don’t have $500 that they can use to stock up all at once. But many can probably scrounge up $25 a week. Do that consistently, and you'll quickly build up a good amount of food.
Could be China is asking their people to stockpile foods in preparation for war...
ReplyDeleteThat is certainly one of several possibilities. Another reason to prepare hard for difficult times ahead.
DeleteMore likely for the energy shortages they expect to have over their winter months. Its much easier to control people that are not starving. That said you could be right on the nose about war.
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