*September is Rice Month*

By Stryder

01 September 2004

September in my storage plan is rice month. Rice is big part of my family's storage plan. We eat a lot of rice, plain or seasoned all year long and count on it to stretch meals. I know plenty of folks that swear by Emerald rice, Sweet Jasmine rice or other types. We eat it all, like it all, and find it stores about the same for us. Remember that I'm up North where it it is a little cooler and less humid than for some of you southern folks. Prior Month's suggestions are on my web page at http://www.alpharubicon.com/~stryder/survive.htm.

You're food storage plan, should include labeling of the purchase dates of the foods and a rotation plan. If you've been around the survival game for any time at all you've heard the stories of the guy or gal who dropped a big chuck of change into #10 cans of food they stored in the basement or garage for "The Big One". Fifteen years later the stuff was still there, untouched and no good. Rotate out you food and use it! A one year supply of food consisting of dried corn, rice, beans and wheat is better than no food at all and if my family was starving (they never will be!) I'd take it in an instant. But a balanced store of foods you know how to cook and that you eat on a regular basis is a God-Send when the going gets tough!

Buy what works for you! You're going to see Sushi rice on my list to buy this month. My family happens to like sticky sushi rice soaked with vinegar wrapped around slivered vegetables and COOKED meat or fish in sushi wrappers. If that doesn't work for you, buy what does.

So September is Rice month. The suggested goal in the literature that I've seen is 100 lbs. of rice per person/per year. Fifty dollars this month will buy about 100 lbs. of rice, enough for about 1 man-year.

#10 can of rice = 5.75 lbs.

One gallon of rice = 7 lbs.

6.5 gal. pail of rice = 50 lbs.

Storage

I buy most of my rice in bulk and repack it into 5 gal. pails with oxy absorbers. The rest is small packages of instant rice or flavored rice meals and I just store those on the shelves in the original store packaging.

Rice, Mixes or Flavored - 12-18 months

Rice, Kraft Minute Rice - 24 months

Rice, White in Pails with oxy absorbers - 60 months or indefinitely in some literature but I don't have experience with anything over about 5 years old.

Rice-a-Roni - exp. date on package

Here's my list for September:

White rice 75 lbs. $21.00

Instant "Minute" Rice 8 lbs. $8.00

Sushi Rice 11 lbs. $10.70

Flavored Rice Mixes 16 6oz. pacs $ 12.00

You know the drill - If you're good to go already with one of those suggestions, move the money and buy extra of one of the others where you're a little weak.

And if you're completely good on rice (and I find it VERY hard to believe that) then you might want to spend this month's $50 on going back over the prior months suggestions and filling in a month where you feel there is a weakness.

Keep chugging away on that food storage!!

Stryder

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