How long can you last?

[Grant Lamontagne]

I asked this a while ago but I couldn't find the thread to bring it back up, but how much of a food supply do you have? 

After a flood washed out the only supply lines to my province I found out that we have a very limited amount of food products here and that our fresh food would start to dwindle after a surprisingly short period.

This lead me to start bolstering our personal food supply with more non perishables than before to ensure that we would be fine should something like that happen again, and with a greater, more significant impact.

I would say that we are currently up to 2-3 weeks with normal consumption, a month with minor rationing and, well, more if need be.  Plus we have the opportunity to obtain more, as, IMHO, we have a crapload of deer (overabundance really) here and I don't believe hunting seasons apply in emergencies.  And if they do, well, that's what the crossbow is for....

In that vein, if things got difficult in your area from a natural disaster or something, how long do you think you could last?

Def

[Antti Lammi]

Well in current situation with all food we have now we should survive week but it mean minor rationing.

[MadPlumbarian]

This is a tuffy, do you still have electric? Cause if so then we’d be set, cause not only can we cook everything cause I lost my camp stove, but all the goods in the fridge will stay good, as for dry foods we have a huge 5shelf cabinet which is like 5ft tall that’s stocked, the kids got his own shelf, but it’s also chips and some other junk, there’s also two other cabinets that have cans and box foods, yet out in the garage there’s two chest freezers, a 5 cubicft and a 7cubicft, now there not packed but I mean heck there’s two 15lb turkeys in one, but if we were to lose electric then we’re screwed, yeah I got a 20lb propane tank to cook on the grill but all the fridge and freezers food will be gone so let’s see,

Still electric, if we ration I’d say 3-4months, some of the food wouldn’t be able to be made because it would go bad, like milk, or bread even though we have tortillas which are good till march,

But no electric, all the fridge and freezer food would automatically go, unless it’s winter,, but cans and boxes, I’d say 45days, I mean there is at least 30lbs of just rice,,
JR

[Vidar]

About a week or two of food in the freezers. Limitless water. People lived off the land here before, and in an urgency we could resupply a fair bit immediately and a lot more if given the chance to plan a season ahead. Fish in particular would be quick pickings all year round.

What I would like to have around is a power producer - water turbine, wind mill - that kind of thing. (We have two gasoline power generators, and one of those 220v battery ones, but they are more about storing and transforming energy rather than producing it).

[LoopCutter]

Interesting question. 

Presently as inventoried, 3 to 4 weeks.

Heat for cooking if gas and electric failed, wood is available.  And have looked at the Rocket Stove designed being and efficient method to consume wood to cook, boil water, and for an outside heat source.

Then, snares for small game, squirrels, rabbits, and other critters is practical, even in my suburban setting. 

I have noticed some areas of my country are supplied via truck, just in time inventory. Maybe a week at best.  It can get ugly very quickly as civilization will deteriorate in about three to four days for 85% of the residents depending on experience growing up in the world before the 90s.

Cooperation is the key to success.  Northwest Carolina is a good example. Quality of people and values to support each other.

[IMR4198]

   Western North Carolina?   Where have I heard that before?  Oh, yeah.  I live there.  Supposed to be 8 inches of rain, so looks like things will be flooded out here.  Again.  It is raining hard and steadily with more to come.  As long as the electricity stays on, I could coast through a month for sure.  With the power off, I might have to tap out and find another place to stay after a couple of weeks.  Depending on outside temps. 
   I used up a lot of my reserves after the hurricane aftermath, and the ice storm.  Power stayed on in both cases in my immediate area.  Fortunately, I never heard of violent or desperate anarchy after the hurricane.  Lots of the roads were blocked which probably helped.  There was some outside assistance, but much more local pitching in to help here.  Folks here learned if you need help, you likely will have to generate most of it by yourself.  The average age in my locale is about 60.  The national media told lies about militias threatening federal workers during the last blow.  If you held a militia recruitment here, you couldn't get two people to join.  Even with free snacks and a door prize.  People are still cleaning up areas in WNC to this day with no pay. 
    If the mighty Cullasaja gets out of its banks again and cuts off old IMR's exit routes, or a tree falls in my rustic driveway I will take some pix.  If the winds which hit to the east and west of my location had veered in either direction, there would have been no more annoying posts here by yours truly after the last hurricane.  My house would have been a stack of really old lumber with me underneath somewhere like a pit in an olive. With a few pocket knives scattered in the wreckage.  Best wishes.  G
  

[Alan K.]

At least a month's worth of food and medications.  Once my meds run out it won't much matter how much food I have. I hope everyone has the means to store drinkable water, or purify whatever water is available as well.

[MadPlumbarian]

At least a month's worth of food and medications.  Once my meds run out it won't much matter how much food I have. I hope everyone has the means to store drinkable water, or purify whatever water is available as well.

Well if that’s the case, I said up to 4 months if we still had electric, but now that you mentioned it, I’d run out of Rx easily in under a month, same with the Mrs, we’d both be screwed, I mean heck, my Rx got upped over the last 3 weeks and just yesterday I had 4 seizures..
JR

[nate j]

It is an interesting question.

I would guess maybe 1-2 weeks without rationing.  I’d like to store a bit more food, but I just don’t have the space for it, especially given the number of people in my household.

It would depend on a number of factors though.  As JR says, do we still have electricity for refrigerators, freezers, oven, and electric range?  I do have some fuel for my camp stove, though probably not enough for multiple weeks.  (I did have the foresight to purchase a model that can run on regular gasoline if need be, so that could be an option in a pinch.)  I also have a fireplace and there is some usable wood around, but not a limitless supply, especially if everyone else in the area is using it as well.

There are critters about that could be hunted or trapped, and fish in the creeks.  But in a situation where everyone around was trying to do this to feed themselves, I’d expect those resources would be tapped out pretty quickly.

Water I don’t think would be a problem.  We have a small creek close by.  I have some water filters (mostly Sawyer minis), and of course there is boiling (as long as we have the fuel).

I agree with LC that there is real potential for things to get ugly fast.  I read a study once (can’t find the link now) which claimed that after three days without food, otherwise law-abiding folks would generally be willing to steal food.  Perhaps not coincidentally, at about the same time, those with food become willing to kill to defend it.  After seven days without food, people are willing to kill to obtain it.  (And this doesn’t account for the habitual or career criminals, who are likely to take immediate advantage of any breakdown in law and order.)  We can argue over the accuracy of these exact timelines.  But the larger point is that, in a TEOTWAWKI or major SHTF scenario, unless one is exceptionally well-protected and or well-hidden, one may not live long enough to run through months of supplies anyway.

[AzteCypher]

With what we currently have, I'd think we'd last at least two weeks without rationing and still feeding all the pets.  We also have a generator with plenty of spare fuel, and plenty of firewood.  This is only because we just went grocery shopping.

[LoopCutter]

I recall a statement that Paul Harvey  shared after  Hurricane Katrinna devastated New Orleans and Louisiana.

“Civilization begins to erode quickly after only 3 days without a warm shower!”

[AzteCypher]

Isn't that the truth.  I don't sleep well at night if I don't shower beforehand.  And I've taken freezing cold showers when we had no power.  No fun at all.

[MadPlumbarian]

Oh come on, a nice cold showers nice ,, waaay back we lost power for over a week, actually the whole state we were living in lost it, the dumb thing is I just put a new water heater in that day before it shut down, but I took me a shower in pure cold water, I mean now she’s gotta have a “warm” shower, and since we have to literally watch each other due to medical, but she’ll turn the water cooler as I help her, then I’ll get in and still turn it down, she’ll look at me and just shake her head not believing how cool of a shower I can take..
JR

[pfrsantos]

Well, I have a few fat old neighbours that won't put up much of a fight, so... I'm good!