It's Time To Store

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Dried peas, beans (assorted), potatoes and soups would also be good additions to the basic ration . . . as would Jell-O, which keeps indefinitely.

By the way, if you expand your reserve beyond the bare necessities, choose only foods your family will eat! An emergency is a poor time to introduce unfamiliar items into a person's diet. The psychological shock of the new situation or problem will cause people to reject unusual food to the extent that they will go hungry rather than eat it. Quite often, it's this "cultural shock" that disables and kills in times of crisis.

HOW TO BUY FOOD

"How can I afford enough extra food for a whole year?" you may be wondering. As an answer, let's set up a buying program that will—within twelve months—accumulate a one-year reserve for a family of four. Our hypothetical people will need four times 365 pounds of wheat, or 1,460 pounds. If we round the figure off to 1,200 pounds and leave the odd 300 to be obtained later, that's one 100-pound sack which must be purchased every month. The 400-pound quota of sugar can be bought as one five-pound and three ten-pound bags monthly (and at that rate, the family will end up with 20 pounds extra). A 50-pound sack of milk added every four weeks will build up to a year's supply in just eight months. Canned goods can be laid away by picking up a few extra items each shopping trip.

To find a source of wheat, look under the following head ings in the Yellow Pages of your local telephone directory: Flour, Grain brokers, Grain dealers, Food brokers, Cereals. When you inquire, specify that the grain is for human consumption and must be untreated. Some of the same businesses also carry bulk alfalfa and cress seeds, mung beans and other items that are good for sprouting . . . and if you don't know how to grow sprouts for fresh vegetables, you've no idea what you're missing.

Wholesale grocers and wholesale and retail dairies are likely sources for dry milk in 50- and 100-pound sacks.

WHERE TO STORE YOUR RATIONS

Since lack of space is always a problem—and the most frequent excuse for not storing food—in modern homes, let's dismiss at once the old complaint, "We just don't have any room!" If you want to do something badly enough, you'll think about it and find a way.

Remember that food must be kept cool, dry and away from direct light (sunlight, etc.). If your attic and basement are unsuitable for the storage of edibles, move other items into those areas and fit your stockpile into the space you've cleaned out. You can always tuck canned goods and wheat in meta containers under the bed.

HOW TO STORE THE RESERVE

The following five principles are essential to good storage:

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