Food Storage & 72-hr Kit Weekly Purchase List

As promised, here is the list I've been using for several years now to help me purchase long-term food stock and items for my 72-hour kits.

The list is broken down into months, and then weeks within the month. Each week, you buy the items that are designated for that week. You really don't have to stick to the weekly schedule though, it's just a suggestion.

I liked cutting out the lists for each month and taping it to the corresponding month on my calendar. As I made my shopping list, I could look at the food storage list on my calendar, see what we needed, and try to coordinate it with the sales ads. As I made my purchases, I simply crossed them off the list taped on my calendar.

January:
Week 1: 7 gallons of water, 10 candles
Week 2: 3 cans tuna fish (or other canned meats), 5 cans tomato soup
Week 3: 10 pounds rice
Week 4: 5 gelatin mixes, 5 pudding mixes
Week 5: 10 lb bag of sugar, 1 box macaroni & cheese
This month for your 72-hr kits, get a backpack or tote bag and 2 bars of soap.

February:
Week 6: 2 lb peanut butter, 1 box crackers, “dried” soup mixes (5 Ramen or 1pkg Lipton, etc)
Week 7: 25 lbs flour, 2 cans refried beans
Week 8: 10 lbs pasta (macaroni, spaghetti, etc)
Week 9: 10 cans/jars of fruit
This month for your 72-hour kits, get 1 large candle, 2 2-liter bottles of water for each person, water purifying tablets, and any supplies needed for infants.

March:
Week 10: 7 cans of mushroom soup
Week 11: 2 large bottles of pasta sauce
Week 12: 2 boxes or bags of cereal
Week 13: Toiletries (toothpaste, shaving cream, toothbrushes, shampoo, razors, etc)
This month for your 72-hr kits, get matches and a battery powered radio (or batteries for the radio if you already have a battery powered radio), and add 10 one dollar bills to your kit.

April:
Week 14: 10 lbs powdered milk
Week 15: Mixes: cake, pancake, muffin, cookies, etc.
Week 16: 10 lbs dried beans
Week 17: 7 cans cream of chicken soup
This month for your 72-hr kits, 2 flashlights with batteries (or replace batteries if you already have flashlights), paper and pens, and 10 one dollar bills.

May:
Week 18: bottled juices
Week 19: 10 cans/jars of vegetables
Week 20: 10 lbs oats
Week 21: 5 lbs oil or shortening
Week 22: 1 bottle vitamins
This month for your 72-hr kits, toilet paper, paper towels, paper plates, cups, plasticware.

June:
June:
Week 23: 2 cans pork and beans, 1 large box mashed potatoes
Week 24: condiments: mustard, mayonnaise, catsup, pickes, etc.; 1 box salt
Week 25: aluminum foil, plastic garbage bags, Ziploc bags
Week 26: laundry detergent, dish soap, etc.
This month for your 72-hr kits, make sure you have a change of clothes for each family member (including shoes & socks), sleeping bags, and extra blankets. Add food items for each family member requiring no refrigeration or cooking (graham crackers, granola bars, raisins, canned fruits, canned meats, pudding snacks, etc). Be mindful of specialty items like formula or baby food needed for infants or small children.

July:
Week 27: 9 gallons of water, sweeteners (honey, syrup, etc)
Week 28: feminine products, Tylenol, Motrin
Week 29: 3 cans tuna fish (or other canned meats), 4 cans tomato sauce, 2 cans soup
Week 30: 10 pounds rice
Week 31: 5 gelatin mixes, 5 pudding mixes
This month for your 72-hr kits, make sure you have a can opener, utility knife, and first aid kit (band aids, Neosporin, Benadryl, gauze patches, swabs, cotton balls, hydrogen peroxide, etc).

August:
Week 32: 10 lbs sugar, 1 box macaroni and cheese
Week 33: 2 lbs peanut butter, 1 box crackers, “dried” soup mixes (5 Ramen, 1 pkg Lipton, etc)
Week 34: 25 lbs flour, 2 cans refried beans
Week 35: 10 lbs pasta (macaroni, spaghetti, etc)
This month for your 72-hr kits, make sure you have feminine items, plastic bags and ties for garbage, Ziploc baggies, a set of scriptures, copies of patriarchal blessings, copies of legal papers (passport, drivers’ license, social security card, immunizations, wills, insurance policies, birth certificates, etc).

September:
Week 36: 10 cans/jars of fruit
Week 37: 7 cans of mushroom soup
Week 38: 2 large bottles of pasta sauce
Week 39: 12 rolls toilet paper
This month for your 72-hr kits, add 10 one dollar bills, a small ax, a single flare, and laundry soap.

October:
Week 40: 2 boxes or bags of cereal
Week 41: 10 lbs powdered milk
Week 42: mixes: cake, pancake, muffins, cookies, etc.
Week 43: 10 lbs dried beans
Week 44: 7 cans cream of chicken soup
This month for your 72-hr kits, add extra supplies to first aid kit, and over the counter medications (Tylenol, etc) as well as prescription medications.

November:
Week 45: bottled juices
Week 46: 10 cans/jars of vegetables
Week 47: 10 lbs oats
Week 48: 3 cans pork and beans, 1 large box mashed potatoes
This month for your 72-hr kits, add a plastic bucket with a tight fitting lid, and personal hygiene items (toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, razors, etc).

December:
Week 49: Treats for baking: cocoa, coconut, chocolate chips, vanilla extract
Week 50: 12 rolls toilet paper
Week 51: 10 boxes macaroni and cheese
Week 52: 2 lbs peanut butter, 1 box crackers, “dried” soup mixes (5 Ramen, 1 pkg Lipton, etc)
This month for your 72-hr kit, add 10 one dollar bills. Add food items for each family member requiring no refrigeration or cooking (graham crackers, granola bars, raisins, canned fruits, canned meats, pudding snacks, etc.).

Now of course, this isn't the "list to end all lists." You may not like macaroni and cheese, so there would be no reason to keep it on this list. Instead, you can substitute the macaroni and cheese (or cream of chicken soup, or dried beans, or anything else on this list you may not like) with something else, something you do like. There's no sense in stockpiling something that will be difficult to swallow later on if you had to eat from your food storage. So definitely feel free to mark up this lst to suit your own needs. :)

And also, note that your long-term food storage isn't just about food. It's important to have other items stored on-hand, such as your toiletries, storage bags and condiments. We all use this, might as well buy 'em up. Especially if there's a sale and you have a coupon, right?

If this list isn't quite what you're looking for, never fear! There are more lists to come, so check back often as I will continue to post more food storage helps.

Happy New Year, everyone!