Why are people stockpiling? - Page 3

[mightymoo]

Originally Posted by saintmom

You can put crystallized honey in a sink of hot water to melt it.

I know, hence the reason I was boiling it constantly to melt it. I had boiled the thing probably 20 times over the course of 2 years. It just wasn't worth it to me.

[velochic]

Originally Posted by mightymoo

While I like the concept, in practice it doesn't work well for me. I just threw out a huge jug of honey I bought years ago that had crystalized, it was purchased in a plan for home breadmaking with my breadmaker. I did make some, but I got out of the habit, the honey crystalized and I got very tired of having to boil it for 30 minutes every time I wanted a teaspoon of honey and went out and bought a small bottle of fresh. This is just one example of how for me it generally ends up being a larger waste of money.

This is a perfect example where, if you're stockpiling, you should store what you eat and eat what you store. Especially if you are embarking on a new culinary experiment. I always buy small quantities and do not stockpile them until I know that this is a dish or baked good that will be a staple when the stockpiled food is needed to survive.

[amyamanda]

Originally Posted by mightymoo

I just threw out a huge jug of honey I bought years ago that had crystalized...

If you had freecycled it, I would have taken it!

This reminded me that sometimes the things I buy are experiments, and it turns out our family doesn't actually like or eat the thing I bought. If I can't find a way to use it, I try to pass anything that is "still good" on to someone else I know who is also trying to stretch their pantry. It's fun to get a bag half-full of stuff you never would buy but might like to try, especially when you know who it came from (if the stuff is open/half-used). I've done this a couple of times (done a pantry challenge and found there were a few things I just couldn't manage to use up, so gave them to friends). Just a thought!

[mightymoo]

Originally Posted by velochic

This is a perfect example where, if you're stockpiling, you should store what you eat and eat what you store. Especially if you are embarking on a new culinary experiment. I always buy small quantities and do not stockpile them until I know that this is a dish or baked good that will be a staple when the stockpiled food is needed to survive.

Yes, I agree. At that point however I had been baking bread regularly and decided I was tired of constantly running out for more ingredients. My problem is that we aren't always eating what I want us to be eating, and how long these various healthy / frugal eating initiatives last depends on a lot of things, but I often end up with huge amounts of wasted food when other things in life kick in and take over. I don't want to stockpile convenience foods because I'd rather we not eat them, but when I try to stockpile the healthy alternatives when we end up in a convenience food mode, a lot goes to waste. I'm not dissing stockpiling in any way, I'm just saying I haven't gotten it to work for us yet. Usually it ends in disaster.

Originally Posted by amyamanda

If you had freecycled it, I would have taken it!

This reminded me that sometimes the things I buy are experiments, and it turns out our family doesn't actually like or eat the thing I bought. If I can't find a way to use it, I try to pass anything that is "still good" on to someone else I know who is also trying to stretch their pantry. It's fun to get a bag half-full of stuff you never would buy but might like to try, especially when you know who it came from (if the stuff is open/half-used). I've done this a couple of times (done a pantry challenge and found there were a few things I just couldn't manage to use up, so gave them to friends). Just a thought!

In our case, we are moving, I honestly haven't had time to bath, let alone freecycle anything right now, not to mention not having internet access during the move. It just didn't make sense to haul this old jug of honey to another house.

[MamaChel]

I don't consider that we have a stockpile where we are. We did in our old home. I do pick up an extra one or 2 of whatever is on sale when I can. There are weeks when I can't but generally, I tryto. In my old home, we could (and sometimes DID) eat for 2-3 months off my pantry.

Here, we only have one cabinet for food storage. I think it was supposed to be the linen closet but we use it for food. We don't have the $$ for a freezer. I'd find space for it if we could afford one. No room under the bed or in the other closets, so we make do.

[EnglishRose]

Originally Posted by Melilot Boffin

We just can't afford it. I think although many people just don't think they need to stockpile, I also think many like us, want to, but can't afford it. We just don't have the $ to buy 30 of something when it's on sale.

I know the feeling.

If you can't afford to buy 30 of something on sale, just buy one more than you think you need (IOW, if your meal plan includes two tins of corn, and corn is on sale, buy 3 tins of corn and put the extra one in your storage. If you do this consistantly, it adds up really quickly.)

[1growingsprout]

I know not everyone has as large of a family as we do. But stockpiling has saved DH this week. I am out of town and he is forced to fend for himself and ALL THE KIDS. I know they are eating canned pasta and convenience items but i stockpile for pennies on the dollar so I dont mind. If DH had to go out and buy spaghetto's at 1$ can today he would need about $6-7 worth for lunch... i got them for under a quarter a can.

Also with the price of fuel we cant be going to the store every day or couple of days for things. My grocery budget is set to allow for the bargain prices and i can buy as many as possible. For example last time i was in walmart they had small cans of mandarin oranges for 25 cents, they are usually closer to a buck here. I got all 30 cans for $7.50 now canned oranges were not on my list but i will use them over the summer months for salads, baking etc and the kids sometimes like to just eat them.

I find that with stockpiling you need to be flexible and not essentially brand loyal. IMO spaghetto's are gross but DH can handle that and the kids are fed and happy.

I am currently waiting for a smoking sale on boneless skinless chicken breasts as well as boneless porkchops. I will probably get 50lbs of each.
Kroger had 3lb rolls of ground chuck on sale for 2.99, reg 8.99. the date was still good but they had rec'd extra shippments so i got about 15 packages.

Stock piling saves us $$ in the long run. I am also a religious coupon user

[Chicky2]

I am trying to stockpile, and always have to a certain extent. We recently took 3 more ppl (one preggo) into our home, and I am realizing I'll have to up the amount I previously thought was "extra" for the pantry/freezer, lol. It's hard to adjust, but I'll figure it out. In addition, we are about to start getting goats on the hoof from down the road and my dh will butcher them. Much cheaper. We also raise chickens and guinea fowl, and have a huge garden. It'll all really pay off. Oh, and we raise meat rabbits, so we should have lots of bases covered. My dh found a free chest freezer off of craigslist if he would just haul off the guys branches for him. No problem! He did it, and we gave the chest freezer to a woman we know w/dairy goats (we buy raw milk from her). Now she can freeze the milk we buy and now we don't have to use as much gas driving out there as often. In exchange for the freezer, she is fattening up a goat for us to butcher at the end of the summer.

Hopefully in a couple of weeks we can pick berries and wild plums and freeze the berries and juice the plums for jelly (that's all these particular plums are really good for). We also will harvest guinea fowl at my moms this Fall, so that'll help replace meat we've eaten out of the freezer.

I definitely need to do more canning than last year. I love to have things in the freezer, but I'm also worried what would happen if we lost power. I guess a generator is in order for Father's Day?

Anyway, I need to stock up more on canned/dried things and grains. I have quite a bit of grains/flours, but I don't think it'll last more than a couple of months.

Does anyone dehydrate food? I've been wondering if I should venture into dehydrating or not. Any input???

[lilgsmommy]

Ive just recently started a small stockpile of groceries and household items. We live in a small apartment, and I never really thought we had space to do it, but with a deep freezer and a few free standing cupboards, we are making it work.

Our trips to the store for food we need are cut in half now, and the amount we spend on last minute purchases has been cut down too. We never had room in the freezer for meat or cheeses or what have you when it was on sale....but we were always at the store buying "tonights dinner" cause we didnt have what we wanted or needed in the house.

Yeah Ive had to declutter, and yeah my kitchen is a little crowded, and yeah my closet looks like I robbed Walgreens, but we are set right now for atleast 2 months if something were to happen.

[damona]

when i was a very small child, like 7 and under, my mom had a huge garden and she canned/dried/froze a ton of stuff. we moved after that, and while we often had a small garden, she didn't do so much of that stuff anymore. the thing i remember is that when i was about 15 i found the last jar of pickles from about 5 years before! anyway.

my mother stockpiled everything. we're talking years worth. i'm not quite that dramatic about it, but i do keep a pretty full pantry. we are pretty broke, and with as many kids (boys!) as we've got, it's worth it to always have enough on hand. there was a week back in january when i was really sick, like bedridden sick, and dh had to fend for himself and the kids with no input from me. i haven't heard too much nonsense about keeping a full pantry since then!

i generally keep a good stock of canned goods and pastas and rice and dry beans. it's all stuff i use pretty regularly, so it doesn't go bad from sitting around, i just rotate stock.

i'll post more later, i'm out of time now!

[Melilot Boffin]

Originally Posted by velochic

Would you be able to buy 1 extra when you are shopping? Perhaps you are buying canned tomatoes and they are on sale for 45 cents a can... buy one or two extra. Next shopping trip, you're buying dried beans on sale and grab an extra bag. That way you are spending only and extra $1 a week, but slowly building a stockpile. This is actually how *most* people do it. Slow and sensibly, not panic buying.

Originally Posted by EnglishRose

I know the feeling.

If you can't afford to buy 30 of something on sale, just buy one more than you think you need (IOW, if your meal plan includes two tins of corn, and corn is on sale, buy 3 tins of corn and put the extra one in your storage. If you do this consistantly, it adds up really quickly.)

Oh we do! Then we eat it! We do buy more of something on sale, but it's just extra for us to eat that month. Never enough to stock away. My boys eat like teenagers already, I'm pregnant, the toddler is eating a lot more that that my milk has dried, and DH, well, he like to eat too. We're active people, and therefore are big on calories. We hike in the mountains daily for example. So, when my usual food items go on sale, we get the few extra we can afford, and then enjoy some well-earned bigger portions.

[pranamama]

I microwave my honey, it finally has stayed liquid since the 3rd time I nuked it. I must have melted every last crystal finally. I also like to keep very small servers on hand. I would find a glass honey jar, and keep it on the counter/table to try and use honey instead of sugar for tea/coffee /baking if I thought I needed to use it up quick.

Small servers are a sanity saver if the kids are self-serving. A tiny table top syrup server has really cut down the pancake syrup quantities I am going through lately.

[p.s]

we don't stockpile in general, except when I buy bulk Tierra Farms organic stuff through an MDC co-op ( like dried fruits at 50% Whole Foods prices) or when Stonewall Kitchens, a specialty foods co., had their annual barn sale, I bought bags and bags of sauces and jams.

I like fresh. I firmly believe in the benefit of vitamins and minerals in fresh fruits and veg. And I can't stand the flavor rancid oils or starches.

I've played the scenario in my mind, and in almost any case of emergency (Katrina-like), I think I would have 1 hour to pack up the important house stuff and stop by a grocery store on the way to wherever.

I should add that our weekly grocery shop is planned, in the grocery store, around whatever is on sale, and looks fresh. We also make a weekly stop at a local dairy farm for raw milk, eggs, and meat, and weekly at the farmers' market in season.
oh and also despite this, I can't remember ever doing a last minute run to the grocer.

[velochic]

p.s. - I know exactly what you are saying. Our single greatest grocery expense if fresh fruit. However, studies show that frozen vegetables are even more nutrient rich than fresh because they are preserved within hours of being harvested, whereas fresh produce is often picked when under ripe, and they degrade by the time they are sold and eaten. I think the average "garden to table" time, even for local markets is 5 days. I like the taste of fresh more than anything, as well, but I also think it's important to plan for a time when the basic need of food in the stomach may come about.

A Katrina-like disaster is just one of many, many scenarios. What if you have a drought at the same time truckers finally get fed up with spending $1000/tank of diesel and go on strike? You have no access to local food, and the store shelves are empty. If you had put by some food from your garden or set aside and extra 20lb. bag of rice, it would be enough to get you through a short-term crisis of that nature.

Then assuming it passes, you can go back to eating the fresh food you prefer.

I, for one, store more than just food. I also stockpile medical supplies, vitamins, water, and most importantly, seeds. I'm not convinced that what we are headed into is a short-term bumpy ride.

[p.s]

From May - Nov, we buy local/ farmers' market, so I think still more nutritious than frozen.

Originally Posted by velochic

What if you have a drought at the same time truckers finally get fed up with spending $1000/tank of diesel and go on strike? You have no access to local food, and the store shelves are empty.

I have a hard time imagining any emergency for which I wouldn't have a 30 min head up, enough time to run to the store and buy. What other scenarios were you thinking of? A drought takes at least weeks to define, no?

[velochic]

Originally Posted by p.s

I have a hard time imagining any emergency for which I wouldn't have a 30 min head up, enough time to run to the store and buy. What other scenarios were you thinking of? A drought takes at least weeks to define, no?

I personally would not want to be in the riot situation and risk my life if I had to "run to the store" in a time of crisis. During Katrina, ATMs were empty and credit card machines weren't working. Do you have a few hundred bucks put back to buy the supplies? What do you do if you are a little bit late to the store and the shelves are already cleared out? What if the situation is that the store owners are price gouging (which also happened during Katrina). You might take your $100 to the store and come home with 10 cans of tuna and bottle of salad dressing. I'm not trying to be doom and gloom, but I think it's more prudent to simply put by a store of food as insurance. I'm assuming you have car insurance. You hope you never have to use it, but what if. Same with stockpiling. And in these times, by buying when thing are on sale, you don't have to buy it when it's NOT on sale.

Good luck. I don't expect you to agree with me, but I hope it makes you think a bit.

[heathenmom]

Originally Posted by p.s

I have a hard time imagining any emergency for which I wouldn't have a 30 min head up, enough time to run to the store and buy. What other scenarios were you thinking of? A drought takes at least weeks to define, no?

A 30-minute heads-up - or even a week's heads-up - wouldn't do you much good in a crisis where the vast majority of people haven't bothered to prepare. You'd be there with hundreds of other people vying for the same limited quantities of food/supplies. Having even a modest supply of necessities on hand would allow you to avoid such a circumstance. Living in a hurricane zone, I've seen that scenario over and over again. "Hurricane's heading our way: everybody run out and clear the shelves of water and canned goods and plywood!" Now, it's been many years since we've actually been hit by a hurricane, but we live in an area where it's a well-known risk. Why aren't those folks prepared? Doesn't make sense to me.

eta: I cross-posted with velochic. What she said.

[beccalou79]

Originally Posted by velochic

I also stockpile medical supplies, vitamins, water, and most importantly, seeds.

Out of curiosity/ignorance, how long are seeds "good" for? I think I remember seeing expiration dates on the packets before...

[VisionQuest]

I used to keep a well-stocked pantry and am planning to do it again, mostly by stocking up on canned vegetables and fruits, pasta, sauces, etc. Living in Ohio, my main fear would be tornadoes, and there's no heads-up to make it to the store in time.

When cans of vegetables or fruits go on sale, I would usually buy at least a dozen at a time.

My problem now is my family is bored of what I fix (and so am I), so I need to find some new recipes and go from there on stocking my pantry.

I do want to buy some water to keep on hand in case of emergency and just rotate it with new water every so often.

[p.s]

Originally Posted by heathenmom

Having even a modest supply of necessities on hand would allow you to avoid such a circumstance. Living in a hurricane zone, I've seen that scenario over and over again. "Hurricane's heading our way: everybody run out and clear the shelves of water and canned goods and plywood!"

This also doesn't make sense to me. Who ever heard of a hurricane that lasts 7 days? We shop weekly, so if a hurricane was coming, we would have enough food to last a few days, and battling a hundred people for not enough loaves of bread would be the last thing I would be doing.

OTOH, for those mamas that stockpile b/c they have the time to manage and find that it lessens their food budget, to me that does make sense.

I do though stockpile candles, matches, batteries, etc.