Eat Like an Astronaut with Freeze Dried Food
Freeze dried food is a tasty and wholesome option for food storage as part of planning for emergency situations. It’s also great for on the go meals when camping or traveling. All that is needed to prepare freeze dried food options is clean water. An on hand food supply in times of crisis enables you to maintain energy levels and increase your health and survival.
Many museums and novelty shops sell delicious freeze dried ice cream as a souvenir, because freeze dried food was created as a way to preserve food for long term space exploration. People may think of it as astronaut food. The long shelf life and quality of freeze dried food options make them an essential part of emergency preparedness and handy for camping and travel.
The unpredictable nature of emergencies makes preparation with emergency food a key to surviving difficult times. Families should keep a supply of freeze dried foods on hand for extended power outages and other emergencies. Freeze dried food items are available in quantities to last a couple of days to quantities to last years. A few servings of freeze dried food are a good addition to a safety kit stored in the trunk of your automobile as well. If you spend a lot of time hiking or camping, freeze dried food is a smart addition to your travel gear.
Nutritious freeze dried foods retain color, texture, and nutrition. Ready prepared meal options as well as fruits and vegetables gain a shelf life of 25 years with freeze drying. Freeze dried meats last up to 15 years. Many people enjoy freeze dried fruits without re-hydrating as a snack item. Delicious freeze dried entrees are available for each meal of the day and are a staple of survival kits. Preparation is simple; just add water and in a short time, you can enjoy soups, pasta, cereal, and more.
Read MorePreppers and the Zombie Apocalypse
People have been forecasting the end of the world throughout history. Doomsday prophecies are nothing new. What is novel and gaining popularity is extreme disaster preparedness. With broad media coverage bringing stories of weather, war, epidemics, and more from around the world into the framework of our everyday lives, people logically become a little anxious. End of the world paranoia can make finding a balance between living for the moment and planning for the future a challenge.
The truth is that an extreme weather event or other emergency could strike at any time, and preparing for emergency situations with survival supplies is quite sensible. Unfortunately, many people may feel the hoopla over the end of the world is unwarranted and blown out of proportion and fail to prepare for much more likely emergency events. Fires, sickness, power outages, and severe weather are not uncommon. Having first aid supplies and emergency food on hand to contend with these emergencies is responsible behavior and shouldn’t be scoffed.
Taking doomsday preparation to the extreme, people known as preppers are preparing for global catastrophic events. Preppers will certainly be ready for isolated emergency scenarios, but their goal is to survive cataclysmic disaster. Preppers stockpile survival supplies and develop detailed survival strategies.
Modern mythology meets real life when preppers plan for the potential of a zombie apocalypse. In the event of world-wide disaster, preppers refer to desperate humans that resort to violent measures to survive as zombies. Preppers get ready for the zombie apocalypse with self-defense and self-preservation measures such as emergency bunkers, weapons, and supplies of food, water, first aid and medicine. Only time will tell if this extreme emergency preparation is warranted, but anyone looking to improve survival odds in the event of more typical emergencies can learn from these dedicated people.
Read MoreConsidering Water Storage in Emergency Preparedness
Building up food storage is a significant aspect of emergency preparedness, but beyond freeze-dried food kits and basics, water must be included. Nearly all emergency meals rehydrate with water, and thus, a supply must not only cover food preparation but also drinking and hygiene.
The average citizen uses roughly 110 gallons of water per day. In times of emergency, however, this amount is greatly reduced. As a general rule for emergency preparedness, store 14 gallons per day for an individual and 56 for a family. Multiple approaches, in this regards, can be taken.
Cans of emergency water have a 30-year shelf life. To stay in good condition for several decades, the cans won’t burst from boiling or freezing and, in the rare instance of flooding, actually float. Rather than storing rain in a barrel, building up a water supply, or using a hand pump, cans provide a sufficient and treated supply at once.
Those more inclined to self-sufficiency tend to use rain barrels and water storage tanks. Made out of blue food-grade polyethylene, these emergency water tanks can gather rain for storage or hold any water brought up from a pump. Much like emergency food, water storage tanks should never be kept in sunlight. Water can expand in a tank, however, and in winter, one of these containers should be no more than 90-percent full.
Gathered water has one drawback – it’s not treated. Before use, be it for bathing or cooking, the water must be purified and filtered. Boiling or a few drops of bleach are common methods, but they require too much equipment or can be poisonous, respectively. Filtration and purification systems are far more reliable and are often portable.
Purification removes hazardous microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses, cysts, and protozoa, while filtration gets rid of debris, chemicals, and other contaminant. UV purification devices, for instance, sterilize all microorganisms in the water, while a two-part filtration device (ceramic with hard-block carbon or glass fibers for short-term filtration) removes most small particles of dirt, debris, and chemicals.
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