72 Hour Kit Food Questions being answered...

Last April our family put together our 72 hour kits.  It took a lot of preperation to complete them, but was well worth the peace of mind I had for that year.  However, when we started doing 72 hour kits again this year I dumped my kits and realized why so many people don't have kits!!  If we have to redo them every 6 months to a year... it's alot of work!  Only the truly motivated are going to have theirs put together when reassembling that often.

 

So I thought the mylar bags would somewhat solve our problem because we would only have to rotate kids clothes intead of food too (only every 5 years instead of 1). 

 

My intent is for us to seal our 72 hour kit food in mylar bags for longer storage life.  I thought I would email the experts at Emergency Essentials because I have also been eyeballing the MREs they sell.  Here was her response... 

• If we sealed our prepackaged food (such as jerkey, granola bars, fruit cups, etc) for our 72 hour kits in a mylar bag would it make it last longer than expiration date? If so, do you know how much longer?

   

  • Emergency Essentials® Hi, Jessica.Thanks for your question. You can extend the shelf life of dry goods by packaging the items in a metallized bag with an oxygen absorber. Typically this extends the shelf life to at least 5 years (if kept at a cool, constant temperature). Both granola bars and jerky should work fine. A metallized bag will not extend the shelf life of high-moisture packaged foods such as fruit cups. You can use wet pack canning for a longer shelf life on fresh fruits.
    --Sarah
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  • Jessica Braithwaite Other than MREs is there certain foods you would recommend in 72 hour kits?
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  • Emergency Essentials® MREs are a great option for emergency kits. LRPs and Mountain House pouches are also great if you're able to pack the extra water to rehydrate them. They're really lightweight, and there are quite a variety to choose from (just don't forget to pack that extra water): http://bit.ly/10a7sXK
    
    You could also include some individual food ration bars, like New Millennium bars, as a quick option for a meal. They're small and they offer a good amount of calories and nutrition to sustain you in an emergency (~400 calories): http://bit.ly/XfyX4o They are small compared to a meal from a pouch or an MRE, so you may end up with a grumbling tummy if you rely on these bars alone for three days, but they'll provide you with good nutrition and valuable calories.
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