Financing Food Storage

Financing Food Storage

                Basically, our food storage money comes out of our money budgeted for groceries, with a few additions. I wanted to get the basics in in a year’s time and go on to extended storage.

        So I was in a hurry to get it done in the
time I allotted myself. These are the other sources I used:

1.                  Delete vacations. Put that money toward your basic storage. You may be able to get it all at once-we were not able to – our vacations don’t cost a lot.

2.                I used to spend big bucks on Christmas. We scaled back on this and still have a great holiday season!

3.                I have several gardens and fruit trees and bushes. Your grocery bill will drop in the summer as these fruits and vegetables ripen.

4.                Eat simpler meals. You don’t need to have bread, several vegetables, a salad, and a dessert - especially dessert at every meal. We have one big meal of the week - Sunday dinner.

5.                Learn to can, freeze, and dehydrate what you grow, and buy from other sources. Before the last bit of celery, etc. goes weird, dice it and dehydrate it or freeze it.

6.                Buy fewer ready-prepared meals. Learn to cook ahead and freeze your own ready - prepared meals for Mom’s night off.

7.                Use less of a food or product so you buy it less often.

8.                As you start your basic storage, learn to use what you have purchased.

9.                Make one new meal every week or so and save that money for storage. The number of items you have to buy at the store each week will start to drop, until you do not need to shop except for perishable items. This week my list was 3 items long!

10.           Use up your leftovers. Keep a list in the frig door of what’s languishing in there. In 2 year’s time, you can almost throw out a  year’s supply of spoiled food.