We’re concerned by the direction current events are going, and like many of our neighbors are striving to become more prepared. Preparedness includes not just being ready for political or economic instability, though that appears to be a distinct possibility, but also natural disasters and financial insecurity.
We have a 72 hour kit in case wildfires, floods, or earthquake force us to evacuate in a hurry. We’ve also been adding gradually to our food storage supplies, for longer term uncertainty. And we use the terms “food” loosely. If we were unable to shop because of economic, physical, or financial constraints, we would also want soap, toothpaste, toilet paper, pet food, etc. Some of these supplies, like cooking oil or toothpaste for example, we just buy extras of and rotate our stock. Some, like wheat and beans, we buy in special packaging that is good for hundreds of years. And we try to buy some ready-to-cook products for when we can’t or don’t have time to prepare a meal from scratch. Macaroni and cheese or ramen are good choices for short-term storage, but for the longer term we want food specifically designed for storage.
Recently, we met some people selling GoFoods, dehydrated packages of food that are good for up to 25 years. The price per serving is reasonable, generally under $2 if you buy in quantities. A pouch of Three-Cheese Alfredo Pasta, for example, costs $9.95 and serves 4 – but if you buy 13 pouches the price drops to $7.26 per pouch ($1.82 per serving). A pouch of Potato-Cheddar soup costs $7.95 for 4 servings, lower if you buy in quantity. There are also combinations available that will bring the price down even further.
We tried several of their selections and found them quite tasty. They also promise No GMOs, which is a guarantee I haven’t seen anywhere else. The foods are easy to prepare: most just need to have water added and be simmered for 15-20 minutes. Many would also be good for camping, or even easy-to-fix lunches.
We have tried several other preparedness food companies. Some don’t taste very good. Others expect you to spend $500 per month on their products, which is way out of our budget. GoFoods seems to fit the bill for easy-to-prepare food that can be stored long-term. (We plan to store it in sealed buckets so the mice can’t get into it.)
If you’re interested in trying GoFoods, check out their products here. And if you do try them, please let us know what you think!
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