Food Shortages in America - It Can Happen Here

Within days of an event like Katrina, most of those who were impacted ran out of food, water, fuel and medical supplies. They were not prepared to take care of their selves or their families, they expected the government to step in and provide them with salvation and sustenance. That didn't work out too well. What if there had been two disasters that FEMA had had to respond to simultaneously? Say a major earthquake on the west coast on top of hurricane Katrina. Do you think they could have handled it?

Most of our population no longer know how prepare for disasters. Even worse, almost nobody cares! After all it could never happen to them! (sarcasm intended). Folks just assume they'll always be able to run out to the local supermarket to get whatever they want. They assume that if something goes wrong in their lives that the government will rush in to help them. After all we live in America and these kind of things only happen to other people in other places. Wake up folks.

We, as a people, are unprepared for even a minor disaster. Only a small percentage of us even have the knowledge required to do something as basic as raise a garden. How many of you have a pantry with more than a few days of real food? Do you have a source of clean water for drinking, cooking and sanitation? What if you were to turn on the tap one day and nothing came out? What about your pets? Do you have food for them in the event of an emergency?

Hundreds of years ago when a ship set out for the new world, they took everything that they needed with them. There were no hardware stores or clothing stores along the way. If you forgot to bring something you ether made a new one yourself or went without it. A hundred years ago our great grandparents lived in a world where foods were available only when they were in season. If you wanted some peaches in January, you couldn't drive to the market and pick some out of the fruit bins. People would can and preserve their peaches when they were in season so they could have them the rest of the year. In the 1800's it was unheard of to have salads and fresh vegetables in the winter. In green beans were in season, then you could get fresh green beans to eat or can. If they weren’t then you had to eat what you had preserved when they were in season. My point being that if your didn't store food, you went hungry.

Our present day food distribution infrastructure is incredibly complex. It is extremely fragile with a multitude of points of failure. Something as simple as a spike in the price of diesel fuel could cause a truckers strike and the food chain would be broken. Modern grocery stores operate on what's called “just in time” or “JIT” inventory systems. What that means is that they depend on a two to three day inventory turnover and resupply. It's not just the stores. There is a logistical chain that involves warehouses, trucking and train distribution centers, transfer stations, ships, ports, airports as well as health and customs inspections along the way. A breakdown at any point could cause an interruption of the flow of food to your local market that could take weeks or months to correct. And while were on the subject, fuel is another commodity that relies on JIT inventory to keep the wheels of modern civilization turning.

These are but a few reasons to keep a well stocked pantry. We need to relearn and employ some of the habits of our ancestors. Putting something away for rainy day doesn't just mean money in the bank, it also means food in the cupboard.

Self Sufficiency Part 2 - Canning at home

Being aware that there are many points of failure in the food chain and learning what they are is not being paranoid. It's simply having knowledge of the system that supplies you with the things you need to live from day to day. Our view of “prepping” is what we consider positive and balanced. We don't sit around in fear waiting for the end of the world. What we do is kind of what our great grandparents did. We endeavor to be as self sufficient and self reliant as possible. Producing and storing our own food is the same as money in the bank. You think nothing of buying auto insurance, medical insurance or even live insurance. Okay so what about food and water insurance? FEMA recommends that you keep a 72 hour supply of food and water. Most people don't even keep a seven day supply of food and water. I think a months worth of food is a good start and a bare minimum. It takes a little organization but it's easy.

Q – How do I find out how much food is needed for a given amount of time for my family?

A – There are several food storage calculators available on the Internet:

About.com Food Calculator

The Food Guys Food Calculator

Living Providently Food Storage Calculator

Q – Won't the food we store simply spoil eventually?

A – That depends on you. All food will eventually spoil if it's not used. The key is to store what you eat and eat what you store. You have to rotate your inventory. Incorporate what you store into your families menu. As you use something out of your supplies, replace it. Use the oldest first.

Q – Where can I learn to can food?

A – There are hundreds of books available on canning. There are also several videos on YouTube:

How to Can Tomatoes and Vegetables

How to Can Fruits and Vegetables

Pressure Canning 101 vs Water Bath Method

I hope this helps.  Feel free to post any questions comments and suggestions.

Self Sufficiency Part 1 - Overview

A lot of people are asking for information on prepping and self sufficiency lately.  Many are concerned about being prepared for a wide spectrum of possibilities:

• War
• Pandemic
• Economic collapse
• Earthquakes
• Forest fires
• Asteroid impacts
• Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP)

Or something as simple as losing your job. It doesn’t matter what the “event” is. If you survive the “event”, we all need the same things to keep ourselves alive: water, food, shelter and a means of defense. It doesn't really matter If you live in the city, suburbs, dessert or mountains, your needs will be the same.

Some people run out and buy huge quantities of freeze dried food, massive generators, 50 pound sacs of rice and beans. It can cost a small fortune and it's really not the best solution. There are some very basic simple things you can do.

Copy Canning is an excellent way to get started.  When you go to the store to buy something like a can of peaches, by two instead. Put one away and use the other can. You will be pleasantly surprised at how quickly you will build up quite an inventory.

Here are a few basic tips that will help:

1 – Only buy food you would and do normally eat.

2 – Keep an inventory of what you have.

3 – Rotate you inventory using the oldest products first.

4 – Store your supplies in a cool dark dry location. It will help extend the shelf life of many foods.

5 – Try to replenish your inventory when items you need are on sale.

6 – Large Tupperware tubs work great for food storage.

7 – Learn how to can fruit and vegetables.

8 – Start a garden. Even if you rent an apartment you can grow tomatoes and such in a small balcony.

9 – Learn how to cook and bake with basic ingredients.

10 – Keep some cash on hand. In an emergency odds are cash will be your only option. If the power is out your ATM card won't work.

11 – Keep your fuel tank at least half full.

12 - Have several flashlights and a good supply of batteries.

13 – Take a Basic first aid and CPR class.

The list could go on. I'm sure that you can think of other things. 

Over the next few weeks I'll be covering several topics related to preparing to deal with disasters and emergencies.   I'll also provide you with links to a host of related information.  

How’s all that hope and change working out for you?

The job market is in the toilet.  More and more of our domestic jobs are being outsourced to third world countries.  The national unemployment rate it over 9% and much higher than that among Hispanic and African Americans.  Our national debt is now putting the next several generations of Americans in hock to China and other people who are not necessarily our friends. 

That warm fuzzy feeling that all is well or at least okay in the world is being replaced by a sense of general apprehension.  

Have you noticed the price of food going up by leaps and bounds?   It has risen almost 30% across the board in 2011 alone.  As I write this it takes almost $1900.00 U.S. dollars to buy an ounce of gold.   How safe and secure is your job?  How’s that 401K doing since the market started tanking?  Does it bother you that we are giving billions of dollars in aid to people that hate us in places like North Korea while we have families here that are hungry?  

Apparently enough people are feeling the need to make at least some preparation for some kind of future event that even Madison Avenue and the big box stores are getting into the act.

Could it be that people are figuring out just how fragile the food distribution system is?  I can't say for sure.  The freeze dried food manufacturers around the world can't keep up with the orders.  Costco™ now has long term family survival food packages that are actually sold by the pallet.  Military surplus stores are doing a very brisk business these days.  Gun and ammunition sales are at an all time high.  Another interesting symptom of all this that many of the people who were the donors and contributors to food banks and soup kitchens are now some of the people being served by those organizations!  Food bank contributions around the holidays are shrinking every year as more people fall out of the middle class.

I’m not sure what the outcome of all this will be, but things are certainly not heading in a positive direction.  Here are some things that you can consider and may be a small part of the solution anyway:

·        

• Be as self sufficient as you can.
• Be as self reliant as possible.
• Be the change you would like to see.  Live as an example to others.  
• Plant a garden and grow as much of your own food as you can.
• Learn from each other.  The skills like gardening, canning and drying food are basic and should be learned and shared and learned by all.
• Learn to cook and bake.  Microwaving frozen foods is not cooking.
• Learn to defend yourself. (State, local, and federal laws taken into account)
• Avoid debt. (With the possible exception of a home loan).
• If something bad happens, deal with it the best way you can with the resources you already have.  Relying on politicians and government agencies to help you is what got us into this mess in the first place.
• Keeping at least some of your assets in physical silver or gold is not a bad idea.
• Learn first aid.
• Get to know your neighbors.  Form a mutual support network.

 Throughout history societies have blossomed, prospered and collapsed for various reasons.  We are no different today.  The veneer of polite civilization is and always will be fragile.  (Think “lord of the flies” etc). 

I’m just a regular guy that has taken a hard look at what’s going on around me. I’ve made the decision to try to be prepared for the future whatever it holds.  A disaster could be simply the loss of a job or as bad as a nuclear war, there’s no way to know.  Would planning for the future now and taking positive action now to cover  your back side in the future be a bad thing?   Even if nothing bad ever happened, wouldn’t you sleep better knowing have the skills and resources in reserve?