Emergency Kit Shopping List--Week 2

It's Wednesday, so you know what that means! Garbage day, American Idol and, of course, week 2 of our Preparedness Shopping List. As you are making your shopping list for your next jaunt to your local grocer, add these items to the list:

• Water (one gallon, per person, per day for at least 3 days, more if you have pets)


• Granola bars with a long shelf life (Nature Valley ones are good)


• Cereal


• Canned fruit (enough for each person in your family for 3 days)


• Canned vegetables (something that you and your family will eat, no need to torture yourself with lima beans if you know you'd rather starve than eat them)


• 4-5 cans of meat (doesn't have to be unidentifiable mystery meat, there are some very tasty varieties of canned white-meat chicken)

And that's it. Put all these new treasures into the large plastic tote that you bought last week and you're on your way. Now, you may be tempted to grab some cheap canned food at an outlet or liquidator. While I love shopping for bargains at places like Prospector Liquidator, I would caution using those canned food items for your kit. There is a reason they are discounted and it's generally because their "use-by" date is rapidly approaching, which is counter-productive for long-term storage. Take a minute to look at the date and make sure you can store it for 6-months to a year. Happy shopping!