[HGeiger]

Are there any people out there stockpiling stuff for the economic "downspiral?IF so, what are you guys stockpiling mostly? I would assume that the usual makeup, glade smellies and stuff wouldn't be on top priority... I need some help getting my family of 6 in order... I'm getting kinda spooked with all the "water cooler" talk about the economy and what the media is saying we should be expecting within a short while... Please give me some ideas as to what is good stockpiling. I have a canner both bwb canner and pressure canner... I also have a large dehydrator... all of which were under utilized due to time constraints this past year. I was hoping to fill my pantry this next year, but am afraid that its gonna be a little to late... Any information would be great... TIA


OK- Same idea but a different question... WHAT ARE YOUR STOCKPILING GOALS?
i.e. a few months supply of everything, cutting your budget, etc...

[wannasavemoney]

take a good look at what your family really need to get by. If your big veggies or pasta family etc get those items. Also I would say if you do not have already shampoos and hba tp etc

Im sure you will get lots of good ideas from all of us

[Cheri]

I am stockpiling anything with a long shelf life. Also, items that can be used in multiple ways. I think canning would be a great option since it requires no refrigeration. I plan as if I had no electricity or water...which is what happened to us during Ike.

[lifeworthliving]

Honestly there isn't anything I don't stockpile for one reason or another. But, what I have been working on for awhile now is food that will not expire soon. Can goods, pasta, rice, sugar, coffee and dog food. If something was to happen to my job at least Jake and I could eat for some time to come. Unemployment does not go far. I have the good smelling stuff, shaving stuff, hair stuff.

I might end up unemployed but I will have smooth legs, nice hair, well fed dog and sweet smelling home!

[HGeiger]

Originally Posted by lifeworthliving

Honestly there isn't anything I don't stockpile for one reason or another. But, what I have been working on for awhile now is food that will not expire soon. Can goods, pasta, rice, sugar, coffee and dog food. If something was to happen to my job at least Jake and I could eat for some time to come. Unemployment does not go far. I have the good smelling stuff, shaving stuff, hair stuff.

I might end up unemployed but I will have smooth legs, nice hair, well fed dog and sweet smelling home!

LOL... That's great.

[jillibean1978]

I'm stocking up on anything and everything that we use and or will use. Don't have much room but I will put up with "clutter" if need be.

[HGeiger]

Is anyone stockpiling things like rice and beans and stuff? I guess this probably sounds like an odd question now that I think about it... The what to stockpile thing... but I need to line out my priority stock items...

[lifeworthliving]

Do you guys eat rice and beans? I do so I have a nice supply of that. So many things you can make from rice. From breakfast to a nice dinner. Got a can of soup and some rice, you got dinner. Got some chicken? That is great with rice.

We were so poor when my kids were babies rice was there cereal every am. Put some sugar and milk on it. YUUUMMMMYYYY. Make deserts out of rice. Got some butter and cinnamon? Bake cooked rice with that mixed in and you got a nice rice custard. Ok I said we were poor. My kids didn't know the difference.

[Luvs2Shop]

I find that mozzarella cheese (I love Polly-O) always goes on sale around Thanksgiving and Christmas time. I stock up and put it in the freezer. I buy enough to last until Easter, when it goes on sale again. It doesn't get crumbly like cheddar does once defrosted. That saves a lot! The lowest price I found so far was 1.69 for 16 oz. of the Shoprite brand mozzarella. Usually these cheeses are over $4. I also stock up on whatever goes on sale--tuna, beans, tomato sauce, etc. Baking items also go on sale around the holidays--sugar, condensed milk, cake mixes, etc. HTH.

[cheryllsm]

Originally Posted by HGeiger

Is anyone stockpiling things like rice and beans and stuff? I guess this probably sounds like an odd question now that I think about it... The what to stockpile thing... but I need to line out my priority stock items...

I always have rice, canned beans (&dried), pasta, & canned tomatoes on hand (I would love to learn to do my own canning) BUT we eat beans all the time. I'm constantly making 'throw together' whether it be a soup or casserole. I've recently added lentils to my stock pile & my husband in thankful for something new LOL.
Also my youngest has rinsed beans for a meal all the time (I have weird kids LOL, the oldest likes to snack on garlic)
I'm currently dairy free so a lot of throw togethers are based on tomatoes, so spaghetti like, or gumbo, or mexican.

This is a recent addition to our planner & i think i had lunch 3-4 times as well as 2 more dinners out of it
Friendship Soup Mix in a Jar - Allrecipes

[Tinkerbellny]

I stock up on rice, pasta, frozen veggies, some can goods, toliet paper, paper towels, tissues and most HBA items.
As a pp mentioned stocking up on mozzarealla cheese is something I do as well. We use it a lot and it freezes well.

Hope this helped.

[Kmchamplin]

My stockpiling tip...if it is on sale and a GREAT deal...then stockpile it.

Remember that even though there is an expiration date on it, it doesn't mean that it is bad on that day. I use cereal that is at least 6 months expired.

So try to rotate, but don't throw just because of the date.

[Lynda1811]

I'm trying not to think of if/when I will be effected by the sluggish economy. Thankfully right now things are going ok, but, I think I may be the only one who isn't happy about the gas/fuel prices dropping. Why, because it cuts into my DH pay, he is a truck driver, so fuel goes down, so does the pay for the load, on fuel surcharges.

Right now I am stocking up on the items that are shelf stable. I do a lot of freezing.

I also like to have a good stockpile of things my DH will need in the truck. You wouldn't believe the prices he has paid at truck stops. I told him to try to go to walmart, or target, at least it would be a little cheaper, but in a semi, he can't easly navigate through towns, especially ones with weight restrictions.

With kmart doing doubles again, I'm stalking up on the higher priced items that we use on a regular basis. It might not end up being free, but will be a lot cheaper.

I'm only getting the things that we really don't need, if it's free after coupons. So I plan on getting tic tac chills, we don't need these, but will be free after the double coupon.

Lynda

[Lynda1811]

Wanted to add, be careful on the box food items, rice and things like that. I heard that after time it will get bugs in it. I also heard that storing it in the freezer will help prevent this.

Now when I open mac n cheese, I inspect it before cooking.

Lynda

[HGeiger]

Originally Posted by Luvs2Shop

I find that mozzarella cheese (I love Polly-O) always goes on sale around Thanksgiving and Christmas time. I stock up and put it in the freezer. I buy enough to last until Easter, when it goes on sale again. It doesn't get crumbly like cheddar does once defrosted. That saves a lot! The lowest price I found so far was 1.69 for 16 oz. of the Shoprite brand mozzarella. Usually these cheeses are over $4. I also stock up on whatever goes on sale--tuna, beans, tomato sauce, etc. Baking items also go on sale around the holidays--sugar, condensed milk, cake mixes, etc. HTH.

Thanks for the tip on the mozzerella... my family eats alot of pasta dishes, so mozzerella is a prime ingredient used... I'm still learning about the times things typically go on sale. In fact until I found this site, I didn't know they were really cyclic... I just assumed they were... well, I guess, just overloaded with stuff, time to put it on sale. Kinda naive now that I put it that way, I guess, I just didn't think about it. Thanks!!!

[HGeiger]

Originally Posted by cheryllsm

I always have rice, canned beans (&dried), pasta, & canned tomatoes on hand (I would love to learn to do my own canning) BUT we eat beans all the time. I'm constantly making 'throw together' whether it be a soup or casserole. I've recently added lentils to my stock pile & my husband in thankful for something new LOL.
Also my youngest has rinsed beans for a meal all the time (I have weird kids LOL, the oldest likes to snack on garlic)
I'm currently dairy free so a lot of throw togethers are based on tomatoes, so spaghetti like, or gumbo, or mexican.

This is a recent addition to our planner & i think i had lunch 3-4 times as well as 2 more dinners out of it
Friendship Soup Mix in a Jar - Allrecipes

Thanks for the recipe... And my teen girl is weird too... she'll open a can of garbanzo beans and eat them right out of the can... and my son eats the peanut butter out of the jar too... bleck. Thanks for the tip... and it's super easy to can, just very methodical. Let me know if you need help getting started, I have a couple wonderful resources that I'd be willing to share for a wealth of information...

[foggy]

Originally Posted by Kmchamplin

My stockpiling tip...if it is on sale and a GREAT deal...then stockpile it.

Remember that even though there is an expiration date on it, it doesn't mean that it is bad on that day. I use cereal that is at least 6 months expired.

So try to rotate, but don't throw just because of the date.

[Mizzcoco]

I stockpile a lot of basics, things that are versatile and especially things that are on sale!

I definitely stockpile rice, bread flour, all purpose flour, beans, surgar, oats, baking soda, baking powder, all kinds of canned veggies, dry milk, water, canned meats, toothpaste, deodorant, soaps (for laundry and regular), lotion, feminine products, razors, shaving cream, peanut butter and that's just a few things.

I belong to Costco so every week, a portion of our budget goes to stockpiling. In fact, probably most of the budget goes to stockpiling and the rest goes misc. things.

[Alexdur85]

I live with my parents.. so I dont' much stockpile anything unless it's free... the baby sleeps with us so her room is my stockpile room.. everything is on the floor and in bags..but when we finally FIND a house (I thought this part would be easy!) I'm turning either half the garage or half my office into our stockpile room..

[MamaBaraka]

I keep 2 gallon heavy glass jars full of a constant rotation of rice, oats, pasta. We use these things constantly which is very economical but I also always have enough for a month just in case. In addition, I stock dried legumes and lots of canned goods. I wait for a sale (like the .03 a can for veggies @ publix from a few weeks ago) and add to the stockpile. I aim to always have a rotated supply of 1-3 months worth.

It saves $ but we are also doing this b/c of the economy, etc.

[homefortheirhearts]

We are a family of 8 and I stock pile anything that we might consume that has a long shelf life. I pack things in the free icing buckets I get from my grocery deli and canning jars to help keep the critters out and extend the shelf life. Also, don't forget to stock up on feminine products! I have enough for 2 years if we are conservative. Kotex is running a lot of coupons lately so that has helped.
I also can things. I even did butter this fall which has turned out great. I'm just waiting on a good deal to can a few more pounds.
Rotation is the key, use the oldest dates first. This requires shelves, space and organization. ">

[AshburnMom]

We also invested in a standing freezer for the basement that I use for stockpiling. It helps to be able to get stuff at discounts and freeze it. I've gotten some great deals on meat that was about to "expire" - just stick it in the freezer asap. You can get good sales on them or buy one off craigslist for cheap. We bought a new one on sale w/a $20 coupon at Sears. I thought it would be cheaper in the long run to pay a bit more upfront and have the energy savings for how ever many years we have it.

Here's a link to a sub-forum here that talks about freezing stuff:
http://www.afullcup.com/forums/frugal-freezer/

Good luck!

[justfluffyme]

veggie tip- this isn't really stockpile, but it'll stretch your budget:

Get a gallon ziplock bag, after every meal, put left over veggies in the bag, even if it's 3 green beans, just do it! When the bag in the freezer is full, make a stew! You already have all the veggies you need, and depending on what's in your fridge, could be a beef, pork, or chicken stew. Those veggies your kids don't/won't eat will not be wasted in the trash! Especially good to freeze for stew.

[grace.maddie]

maybe i am an odd one, but instead of stocking up on what we eat, we stock up and anything and everything thats free or dirt cheap and build our meals around that. we have been turned on to a lot of diffrent foods b/c we got paid to take them. i mean we are STILL eating enchiladas from the great target "market pantry mexican" q and that was like 2006

[melsmom64]

For items that I stockpile I re-evaluate every 6mos. If something is going to expire (like 4 cans of pasta sauce) I will use what I can and then give the rest to family or friends who will use it. People used to joke about my stockpiling but recent months more have been asking if I have extra.