Understanding Survival Foods
What exactly is survival food? Survival foods are foods packaged for long-term storage for survival and emergency situations, such as short-term disasters like hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes, being stranded in your vehicle somewhere, and even camping or hiking. There are many different kinds of survival foods, from power bars, containing all the necessary nutrients and calories for a whole day, to dry and powdered food, like powdered milk, and eggs. There are also dehydrated or freeze-dried foods, and MRE's which are "Meals, Ready to Eat". Canned goods are also considered survival food.
MRE's require no cooking, which makes them one of the most popular survival foods. They are sealed in containers or pouches, which prevent any unnecessary exposure to air or moisture, ensuring a shelf life up to 25 years or more. You can find meals like mac and cheese, chicken and rice, lasagna with real meat sauce, vegetables, breakfast, and desserts.
Although some meals are ready to heat-n-eat, as mentioned, many survival meals require water to reconstitute the powder or rehydrate the freeze dried foods. Water is perhaps the most important of survival supply, because while a person can go up to seven days or more without substantial food, without water the survival rate is half. Most people don't consider that, in a survival situation, a natural disaster, fire, flood, or earth uake for example, water sources can be contaminated. Sewer lines can rupture and get into the water supply, as well as a number of other contaminants. Chances are also likely that you will not have any water supply at all from municipal sources, especially right after an emergency. If you are out in the woods, you cannot count on that stream to provide you with clean drinking water either.
So, when you are getting your survival food supplies in order, make sure you include water bottles, packs or pouches, and water treatment chemicals. Make sure to buy water in a box because water can be damaged if in clear containers, from light and heat sources. It is also recommended the water is approved by the Coast Guard, and has a shelf life of at least three years.
When buying survival food, the expiration date is an important thing to consider. You always need to check the shelf life of the survival food supplies you buy, and keep track of the canned goods, boxed and dehydrated food, to make sure the dates are still good.
Wondering how much survival food supplies you need? Technically, you should have enough survival food to last 72 hours, for each person. Even at these minimums, it is always a good idea to double, or even triple that amount. When hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana, it took up to a week or more for emergency services to kick in, so it is better to be safe than sorry.
Companies such as Wise Foods and Sunrise Survival Gear were created to help families, businesses and individuals prepare for unforeseen disasters or emergencies with uality, dependable survival food supplies. Don't be caught in a disaster without your survival food and water supplies. It is never too soon to stock up, so why not get yours today.