Your pre-made calculator guide to help you plan your food stores, including how much to have from all the necessary food groups.
You may decide to invest in a food dehydrator or freeze dryer as well as other food preservation methods to save money in the long run.
There are lots of reasons to store food. Storing food means you are prepared for an emergency but it also means you’ll never run out of something if you need it in a pinch. No matter what your reason for storing food is, you need to understand how much food to store and what categories of food to include.
Below I’ve laid out an easy-to-read table with the amounts of food a single adult will need for 2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, or a year.
This guide has everything you need to get your emergency pantry started on the right foot.
Should I Freeze Dry My Own Food
This is a question we get a lot now; especially since food prices have started to rise. I personally think owning a freeze dryer is essential today. (If your budget won’t allow that a food dehydrator will still help you preserve food.) Instead of wasting left overs you just freeze dry it and build your food storage up that way.
Plus you can do like I am doing and raise rabbits and quail for meat as well as having chickens for eggs. And so I put that all in the freeze dryer to store real food that we know we will eat. I also have a garden and all our extra vegetables we freeze dry for the same reason. We keep our freeze dryer going 24/7.
Here is a video I did showing myself freeze drying a bunch of raw eggs using my Harvest Right freeze dryer. I go through it step by step and show you how easy it is to freeze dry your own food.
How Much Food Should I Stockpile?
The Red Cross and U.S. Department of Homeland Security recommend having a minimum of a 3-day supply of food and water for your whole family. FEMA suggests having a two-week supply.
In the last few years, it seems like there’s a major natural disaster every few months that leave people without electricity for weeks at a time. I would recommend having at least a two-week supply of food and clean water on hand and I would stockpile more than that if you have the storage space.
How Many Calories do Men and Women Need Each Day?
The average woman needs about 2,000 calories per day and the average man needs 2,500 calories per day. The amounts of food calculated below should be sufficient to meet these dietary goals. Factors that influence how many calories you may need include your weight, height, and activity level.
If you want to get very precise you can use a calorie counting app like Cronometer to get an average of the number of calories you eat every day. The answer may surprise you but will help you prepare your pantry better.
How Many Calories do Children Need Each Day?
To store food, you should consider children as anyone seven years or younger. Older than that and you should treat them like an adult in terms of how many calories they need in a day. You may want to overestimate your storage if you have teenagers.
Children under seven consume around 1,500 calories/day. If you have very young children or may have a baby soon, be sure to store baby formula and pre-made baby foods.
How Much Water Should I Store Long-Term?
Plan to store at least 1 gallon of water per person per day. I wrote a post on the best ways to store water long term that I recommend reading.
How Were These Numbers Calculated?
The numbers in the table below are calculated based on the CDC and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Home Production and Storage manual. Remember these are baseline numbers and you can adjust them how you see fit.
You may notice some of the items have the same amount for more than one period of time. For example, mayonnaise is listed as 1 quart for both two weeks and three months. You can adjust these items for your personal taste.
For me, I can’t imagine going through more than 2 quarts of mayonnaise in a year since I don’t eat it very often, but if I’m going to buy it, I probably wouldn’t buy less than a quart at a time.
Grains
With so many folks allergic to wheat these days, it could be a good idea to stock up on gluten-free items. Substitutes for wheat and flour include almond flour, coconut flour, and cassava flour. If you are storing whole wheat, make sure you have a non-electric way to mill it.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Wheat | 9 lbs | 50 lbs | 100 lbs | 200 lbs |
| Flour | 2 lbs | 8 lbs | 15 lbs | 30 lbs |
| Corn Meal | 2 lbs | 8 lbs | 15 lbs | 30 lbs |
| Oats | 2 lbs | 8 lbs | 15 lbs | 30 lbs |
| Rice | 3 lbs | 18 lbs | 35 lbs | 70 lbs |
| Pasta | 2 lbs | 8 lbs | 15 lbs | 25 lbs |
| TOTAL GRAINS | 17 lbs | 98 lbs | 195 lbs | 390 lbs |
-- lbs of Wheat for -- people over -- Months.
Fats and Oils
Additional fat and oil items you may want to consider: coconut oil and ghee. Ghee is dairy butter that has had the milk fat taken out, has a long shelf life, and gives your food a buttery taste.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Vegetable/Olive Oil | 1 gal | 1 gal | 2 gals | 3 gals |
| Shortening | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 4 lbs |
| Mayonnaise | 1 qt | 1 qt | 2 qt | 2 qts |
| Salad Dressing | 1 qt | 1 qt | 2 qts | 3 qts |
| Nut Butter | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 4 lbs |
| TOTAL FATS | 2 lbs | 7 lbs | 13 lbs | 26 lbs |
-- lbs of Vegetable/Olive Oil for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Legumes and Beans
Dry beans and legumes are great sources of protein and fiber. Consider how much work it takes to soak and cook beans when you lay away these items. It may be worth it to buy prepared beans in addition to (or instead of) lots of dry beans.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Dry beans | 2 lbs | 10 lbs | 20 lbs | 30 lbs |
| Lima beans | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs | 5 lbs |
| Soybeans | 1 lb | 3 lbs | 5 lbs | 10 lbs |
| Split peas | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 2 lbs | 5 lbs |
| Lentils | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs | 5 lbs |
| Dry Soup Mix | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs | 5 lbs |
| TOTAL LEGUMES | 7 lbs | 18 lbs | 35 lbs | 60 lbs |
-- lbs of Dry Beans for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Sugars
The total sugars in this table are way under what the average American consumes in a year. An average American will consume 152 pounds of sugar in one year. I don’t advocate for high sugar consumption, but I will say that comfort food in an emergency is highly valuable.
Additionally, sugar does add a quick source of energy so if you’re someone with a sweet tooth you may want to store more than listed in this table.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Honey | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs |
| Sugar | 2 lbs | 10 lbs | 20 lbs | 40 lbs |
| Brown Sugar | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs |
| Molasses | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb |
| Corn Syrup | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lb | 3 lbs |
| Jams | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs |
| Fruit Drink, powered | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs | 6 lbs |
| Flavored Gelatin | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb |
| TOTAL SUGARS | 9 lbs | 15 lbs | 30 lbs | 60 lbs |
-- lbs of Honey for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Milk and Dairy
See my article on What Foods Can or Cannot be Freeze-Dried to find creative ways to store dried milk and milk alternatives. You can freeze-dry several dairy products (even some cheeses) as well as ice cream to liven up your pantry and give yourself a source of fats.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Powdered Milk | 3 lbs | 18 lbs | 36 lbs | 60 lbs |
| Evaporated Milk | 1 can | 4 cans | 8 cans | 12 cans |
| Other | 1 lb | 4 lbs | 8 lbs | 13 lbs |
| Total Dairy | 4 lbs | 22 lbs | 44 lbs | 75 lbs |
-- lbs of Powdered Milk for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables are an essential source of nutrients but are some of the harder items to store long term. Check out my article on 15 Fast and Easy Ways to Preserve Eggplants to get some ideas on how to store vegetables in more creative ways.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Canned Fruit and Veggies | 14 qts | 80 qts | 160 qts | 320 qts |
| Dried Fruit and Veggies | 4 lbs | 23 lbs | 45 lbs | 90 lbs |
| TOTAL FRUIT and VEGGIES | 14 qts plus 4 lbs | 80 qts plus 23 lbs | 160 qts plus 45 lbs | 320 qts plus 90 lbs |
-- lbs of Canned Fruit and Veggies for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Meat
Meat is an excellent source of protein. Check out my guide on 10 Ways to Store Meat Without a Refrigerator for additional meat storage ideas.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Canned/Dried Meat | 1 lb | 5 lbs | 10 lbs | 20 lbs |
-- lbs of Canned/Dried Meat for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Cooking Essentials
Don’t you hate it when you’re about to make bread, only to realize you don’t have baking soda? Don’t let this happen in an emergency. Note that one gallon weighs eight pounds.
| Item | 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply |
| Baking Powder | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb |
| Baking Soda | 1 lb | 1lb | 1 lb | 1 lb |
| Yeast | 1 lb | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 2 lbs |
| Salt | 1 lb | 2 lbs | 3 lbs | 5 lbs |
| Vinegar | 1 gal | 1 gal | 2 gals | 3 gals |
| TOTAL | 12 lbs | 13 lbs | 23 lbs | 34 lbs |
-- lbs of Baking Powder for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
Water
Humans can live for several weeks without food, but only a few days without water. Above all else, make sure you have a secure source of water stored up.
| 2 Week Supply | 3 Month Supply | 6 Month Supply | 1 Year Supply | |
| Water | 14 gal | 129 gal | 183 gal | 365 gal |
| Bleach | .5 gal | 1.5 gal | 3 gal | 6 gal |
-- lbs of Water for -- people over -- 2 Weeks.
How to Store Water Long-Term
Long term water storage can quickly take up all your pantry space if you save enough for an entire six months to a year. Water should only be stored in FDA-approved food-grade containers. Don’t be tempted to recycle old milk jugs as these are hard to properly clean and the residue can spoil your water. Likewise, never use a container that previously held something toxic like bleach.
You can purchase food-grade water containers at camping stores. Another option for long-term water storage is to buy cases of plastic water bottles.
A more practical option if you live in a climate that supports it would be to have a good water filtering and cleaning system in place in addition to a few weeks’ worth of water.
Safety Tips for Storing Water
- Replace your water stores every six months
- Label the water and put the date on the container
- Don’t store the water in direct sunlight, as this can cause the plastic container to break down.
- Try to store water somewhere that is between about 50-70 degrees Fahrenheit for maximum freshness.
- If using a large barrel to store water never scoop water out with your hands or an unwashed bottle.
