As soon as you start learning about preparedness, the subject of long term food storage comes up. When we start to learn about this, we realize that we don’t really know what kinds of foods last a long time. At least that’s been my experience.
We put together this list to help the beginning prepper or homesteader. The idea is to share with you the foods that last a long time so that you can start to store them and you will be prepared if any emergency situations come up.
So, let’s get right into it. This isn’t going to be the end-all-be-all list because we don’t know your personal taste in food. We’re going to do our best to give you practical advice and let you be the judge of whether or not these are the right foods for you and your family.
19 Foods That Last a Long Time
- MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat)
These were originally created for soldiers and were designed to have high-energy sources of food that lasted for a long time. These are also one of the first foods you tend to learn about (and sometimes buy) when you first get started with prepping. - Dried Beans
If you package dried beans in the correct way, they can last for up to 30 years. That means that these are going to be one of the top things we recommend storing. The price point on dried beans is enticing for the budget prepper, and once you learn to cook beans with some proper spices they aren’t that bad.
If you were to only eat beans every single day, you’d probably get sick of them. But that’s the case with everything. The best bulk bean buys we came across were the Augason Farms Pinto Beans which are on sale at Amazon. They come in a 6-gallon watertight container which contains 432 servings. - White Rice
Another staple for foods with a long term shelf life is of course, white rice. It’s super cheap, very easy to get and its incredibly easy to store. It also has a shelf life of up to 30 years when stored properly.
You want to make sure that you are using food-grade containers and food storage bags to keep it for the long term. For food-grade containers we like the OXO Good Grips that come in a 5 set piece here or the 10 set here.
The food storage bags we recommend are the 1 Gallon ShieldPro Mylar Bags (10″x14″) & 60-300cc Oxygen Absorbers which is a fancy way of saying they work and will keep your food for ya. - Legumes: Lentils and Peas
If you haven’t started stocking lentils yet, you should. Many experienced preppers have known about lentils for years and swear by them. They are a great source of fiber and super easy to cook on their own. They can be added to a variety of other dishes too once you learn how you like them. They also have a shelf life of around 4-5 years. - Canned Baked Beans
Baked beans aren’t just for Summer Picnics! When I was young, and even in college, I’d always have baked beans. They were cheap and extremely easy to make. Another benefit is how long they lasted.
You can also buy them at any grocery store, and you’ll often find deals like 2-for-1 or buy one get one. - Pemmican
What is pemmican you ask? Some people call it the ultimate food system for any crisis. It was actually invented by Native Americans and is made of lean meat of local wild animals.
The meat is dried over a fire, then mixed in with fat and berries for flavor. It’s then pressed into little biscuit-sized snacks. You can learn more about how to make pemmican here. - Twinkies
If you’ve ever seen the movie Zombieland, you know that twinkies are the main thing that Woody Harrelson was after throughout the movie.
There was a little experiment in 2012 where a science teacher did an experiment to see how long twinkies would last. He ate a pack of Twinkies that was 30 years old and they were completely fine, besides the breading being a little stale. - Honey
Honey is one of those mysterious things to me. I remember being a little kid and having honey and absolutely loving it. As I grew up, I kind of forgot about it and stopped buying it.
Once I started reading more about all the benefits of honey I started buying it again. It also lasts seemingly forever. Some people say that it will last over 100 years when stored properly. Who knows how long it will really last, but with an estimated storage life of 100 years it’s a good idea to store. - Pasta Products
Ooooh pasta! Who doesn’t love pasta? It’s so delicious when it’s cooked and seasoned properly. Dry pasta that has been kept sealed will keep for 2 years in the pantry. Fresh pasta will only last for around 5 days in the fridge though. - Potatoes
One of my favorite things to get when I grab a burger is french fries… and those come from potatoes! A 5 pound bag of potatoes can be bought for about $2 and it’ll work for quite a few meals if you use them correctly.
You can bake potatoes, toss them in soups, add them into casseroles, make french fries or even potato salad. They’ll also remain good for 4-6 months when you store them properly. - Dehydrated Fruit
Do you ever eat dehydrated fruit? It’s a pretty good snack to have from time to time and it lasts for a pretty long time. Buying them at a store can be expensive though.
That’s why we recommend getting something like the Gourmeia Food Dehydrator and slicing up and drying fruit yourself.
The majority of dehydrated fruits will keep up to 5 years, but if you preserve them like you will with beans, they could last longer. - Cheese
Yes! An essential that makes every meal better in my opinion. You can store cheese in a variety of different ways. You can store cheese in wax, get canned cheese from Kraft and they even have freeze-dried cheese that can last for a really long time considering its a dairy product. - Dried Corn
Any corn lovers reading this right now? If so, dried corn is another thing that we recommend for storing.
Did you know that dried corn has a shelf life of 10 years? It’s cheap, tasty and easy to make as well. - Oatmeal and Oats
At a price point of around 20 cents per half-cup serving, this is another great food for long-term storage. Quick oats (those one-minute oats) can be kept for 2-3 years. Instant oats and the steel cut oats only last 1-2 years.
Oats aren’t just for breakfast either. You can use them for cookies and bread, they can be used for stretching ground beef. Plus, oatmeal and honey is always a great breakfast food for lasting energy! - Frozen Vegetables
Frozen vegetables are an easy way that my family gets our veggies into our diet when we run out of the stuff we grab from the local farmers market. My favorite thing about them is that they don’t go bad as quickly as the fresh stuff does.
That makes them a great food for long-term food storage. - Peanut Butter
A cheap and versatile protein source. It can be used for so many different things. Right now it’s around lunchtime for me and as I’m writing i’m craving peanut butter and chocolate because I’ve been looking at foods for this article.
It can be eaten by itself, put on sandwiches, bagels, cookies and fudge. A lot of Asian inspired dishes include peanut butter as well… ever had Thai peanut chicken? Mmm!
Unopened jars of peanut butter are good for around a year past their best-by date that is printed on every jar. If you’ve already opened your peanut butter, you still have around 3 months of it being good. If you keep it in the refrigerator it might last up to 6 months. - Stock/Bouillon
With a shelf-life of 10 years, this is a great addition to the list here. You can use this for extra flavoring to dishes you make, or just in their normal use of soups.
Bouillon is also a great thing my family has used to get nutrients when someone is sick. It’s great in the winters to warm it up and sip on some warm bouillon when getting over a cold. - Freeze-Dried Foods
This is similar to the MRE’s mentioned earlier. They are a common item found on lists similar to this one and are a great addition if you have extra storage space (a spare freezer).
These would be great if you ever are in a bug-out situation and need to grab something quick that still provides the nutrients you need/ - Instant Coffee
I know that coffee isn’t technically a food, but I wanted to include it anyway. It has a long shelf life and who doesn’t enjoy a morning cup o joe that gets you up and moving in the morning?
Every single person who starts to learn about prepping and food storage comes across this issue about storing foods so that’s why we put together this list.
One piece of advice that I’d like to give you is to play around with cooking different variations of these meals so that you can see what you like and dislike. Maybe there is food on this list that you absolutely hate, but you’ve heard its good for storing.
If it’s something you and your family don’t personally enjoy, why would you want to store it? You want to have stuff that you will enjoy eating in the times that these scenarios could happen.
Many natural disasters can happen and it’s important to be prepared. We never know when something is going to happen, so that’s why it’s important to be as prepared as we possibly can, for the most likely scenarios.
