GOING TO THE LDS CANNERY

I'm not part of the LDS church but I do belong to a Meet Up group of people who prepare for emergencies or dastards.  The man who runs the group is Mormon and was kind enough to set up an outing for us to go the LDS Cannery in Fountain Valley. 

This was our 2nd outing there and I thought I would share it with you.

This is a big warehouse where you can go and pick up dry foods in bulk.  Things like dry milk, dehydrated carrots, potatoes, oats, beans, sugar and so on.  The cost is great!  Much better then even the big stores like Costco.

Inside the warehouse is a sterile room where you can go and break down the large containers of food into #10 cans. 

Before you enter the sterile room you must wash your hands, remove any jewelry, put on gloves, an apron and hair net.  If you have a beard you must wear a face mask too.

Here we are waiting to get started.  We all had a good laugh at how everyone looked.  We felt like we were in the old TV show I LOVE LUCY where she goes to work at the candy store.

It's actually a very easy and fun process.  The food comes in big bags that get opened in a large plastic container.  Then it's scooped into the cans and weighed.

Photo credit: Preparedness Advice Blog

 



We put in an oxygen absorber, put a lid on the can and then hand it over to the person who is sealing them.

 

The machine spins the can as it seals it and will stop when it is completely sealed.

 

The label gets put on the can.  The date is written down where the year packed is at.  This way you know how long this product will be good for.

 

Wow!  You can keep some things for 25-30 years once they are canned this way.  When you open them, it will taste the same as when you canned it.

 

When you are finished canning, you put in your order and pay for what you purchased.  If you buy 6 cans they put them in a box and you get two free plastic lids to reseal the cans when opened.  You can purchase more lids if you like.

 

I purchased, carrots, milk, macaroni, rice, beans and apples this time. 

 

I'm already looking forward to going back again.  I had fun and got some great food for cheep.

 

The cannery is open to everyone.  You do not have to be Mormon.  You just need to call and set up an appointment. 

 

 

ARE YOU PREPARED?

Are you prepared for any type of an emergency that may happen near you?  Say, an earthquake, tornado, hurricane, terrorist attack or any other type of disaster?

I thought we were pretty well set here at my house.  We have an earthquake kit.  It has flash lights, batteries, candles, some water and food and things like that.

But, the more I read about things going on in this world, the more I see I'm not ready at all.

We always have a case or two of water that we drink.  But, we never had an actual supply of water that we saved in case we needed it.

We also never stock piled food, first aid supplies, tooth paste, toilet paper or other every day items.

It just seemed like we had some and since we have never had a major emergency here (thank goodness) we would always have to get ready later.

Well, it seems like weekly we are hearing of some type of storm, flood, earthquake or other natural disaster hitting some where.  Plus, there are always the threats of a big terrorist attack.  I also live near by a nuclear power plant, that not long ago, had some of us worried due to problems going on there.

I also watch that show on National Geographic called Doomsday Preppers.  Have you heard of it or seen it?

These people on the show are preparing for doomsday or end of the world, as we know it, times.

They have years worth food and water stock piled.  They have guns and ammo that could outfit a small army. 

To me, they seem to be going a bit over board.  OK more then a bit.  More like a lot over board.  But, who am I to say how much is enough.

We all know that any day we could have something happen that would knock out our food and water supplies.  We see gas prices going up and up and if it keeps on, soon the truckers won't be able to afford the gas and then supplies could run short or get so high we can't afford the.

A natural disaster could keep trucks, trains or planes from getting through and that would cause supplies to be very short and finally dry up completely. 

FEMA says we should all have at least 3 days worth of food and water.  Most experts say you should have much more then that.

I started today to stock up on some things.  You can see it's not much.  But just with what I got today, we have enough food and water to last us those 3 days.  We have breakfast, lunch and dinner and still would have left overs.

It's just me and my sister here.  But, I want to have enough supplies for the rest of my family too because I know they are not prepared at all and as of right now have no plans on getting there either.  So, we will have enough for them and they can come stay here if need be.

I've also joined a group that teaches you how to get prepared, what you need, how to survive without food, water, electricity, gas and even shelter.

So, as I go on this journey, I want to share with you tips and ideas of what I learn.

The first tip is what I did today.  On your next outing to the store, pick up some water and packaged food that has a long shelf life.  Start with a three day supply.  If you do that every time you go to the store, you will have a nice stock pile in no time.

You need at least one gallon of water per person a day.  Don't buy food that you have never had before or don't really like.  Get stuff you know you enjoy because if anything happens you will be very thankful you did.  Who wants to be stressed out and then find out the food you bought tastes so bad no one in your family will eat it.

Make sure you know what to cook with your supplies too.  If you buy 50 lbs of dried carrots, what are you going to do with them? 

Buy what you can, when you can and soon you will be ahead of 70% of the people around you. 

It seems like more and more people are seeing the world change with more natural disasters, the economy being so bad, gas prices going sky high and so on.

Because of this, more and more people are starting to get prepared. 

I say it's better to prepared and not need the supplies then to wish you were prepared should you need to be. 

Heck, if nothing else, you have a stock pile of supplies that you can use that most likely cost you a lot less then what they will cost in the future.

So tell me, are you prepared?