Ever heard of the 5 P’s? Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. It’s a sales concept, but one that I apply to my daily routine. Essentially, the better prepared you are for a situation, the better you will be able to handle it. Not really a complicated concept, but one that seems to elude people anyway 
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I was talking with my mother about what I would be doing if the economy collapsed and the entire country went to hell. I’m not planning on being a doomsday-er, but you can’t say that card isn’t in the deck, because it’s become much more of a likely possibility in the last couple of months. Between pissing off Russia with their nukes (and the rest of the world for that matter) and the economic collapse that is upon us because of greed on wall street, it seems only prudent to prepare oneself.
There is lots of information out on the web about how to survive a nuclear fallout, flood, hurricane, etc. There is also an abundance of survival information available. All the information is of varying degrees of usefulness. The one thing I couldn’t find easily was what sort of food supplies I should keep around the house, in case I had to rough it on my own for up to a year.
The tricky part is being practical. I refuse to get a bunch of food I wouldn’t eat and would have to throw away after a year. Additionally, I’d like to make sure that it is affordable and that I can rotate it out with my weekly meals so that it always stays fresh. So without further ado, my current list for survival in the event the U.S. economy collapsed. Please feel free to use the comments to make additional suggestions!
Non-Food Items:
Battery Operated Ultraviolet Water Purifier
50 pack of AA Batteries
50 pack of AAA Batteries
LED flashlight that runs on AAA.
Extra bulbs for the LED flashlight
9 hour candles.
Waterproofed, strike anywhere wooden matches
Bleach
Lestoil
Dish soap
Laundry Soap
Bottled Water
Paper Towels
Toilet Paper
Paper Plates
Warm clothing worn in layers
Warm and comfortable blankets
Multi-fuel Mini-stove
Hunting Rifle with plenty of ammo (Food Source)
.357 Handgun or better with plenty of ammo (Self defense)
Beefed up first aid kit (Regular stuff plus Epi-pen, other injectable medicines (more on this later) )
Rope
Clothespins
A good pocket knife
Multi-tool
Hatchet
Whetstone
Compass
Topo map of your local area
Access to a wood stove
Long Term Food Items:
Bottled Water
Access to a large water source
Vinegar (is also a disinfectant and food preservative)
Bacardi 151 (flammable/disinfectant/pain reducer in case of surgery)
Brandy (can be used medicinally and to preserve some foods)
Powdered Drink Mixes with some nutritional content like Tang, Green Tea, Cocoa, Gatorade
Canned meats
Brown Rice
Whole Grain Pasta
Pasta Sauce
Crackers
Shake Cheese
Dried Soups
Dry Milk
Instant Potatoes
Ginger Ale (real stuff)
Honey (lasts forever, healthy, good flavoring, avoid this with young children)
Whole Wheat Flour
Cooking Oil
Mac and Cheese
Dried lentils and beans
Beans in the cans
Brown Bread
Canned tomatoes
Dried fruits, raisins, apricots etc.
Nuts in cans
Bouillon Cubes
Canned Meats; tuna, chicken, ham, anchovies…
Peanut Butter
Fruit Preserves
Popcorn
Cough Drops
Salt (preservation/flavoring)
Short Term Food Items: (first 14 days, for use in a minor, local emergency, like flooding. While you are awaiting national guard rescue)
Butter
Cream Cheese
Fresh sharp cheese
Fresh Potatoes
Fresh Onions
Fresh Carrots
Fresh Cabbage
Fresh Apples
Fresh Pears
Flat Bread, whole grain
Rice Cakes
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