Freezer Purchase = Doomsday Prep?
 

After reading about inflation, gas prices, fertilizer prices, Ukraine/Russia being the world's "breadbasket" I started to get the feeling that food is next.

Trying to keep this out of PARF and just looking for input and suggestions to help ease the burden that seems to be fast approaching.

I just bought an upright freezer from Home Depot. 16.5 CF capacity, no backorders (delivery Tuesday) and seems like it will work OK for our means. After shopping Costco last Saturday and the large package of country style ribs that I bought 2 weeks ago for $12 were now $20. Scallops have tripled in price and vegetables can't be far behind.

We already have 2 fridge/ freezers and I wanted something devoted to strictly frozen foods. I'm not so much a "doomsday prepper" as much as I am a "cheapskate".

My Wife is German and lived there during Chernobyl. No food grown in Northern European countries was fit for consumption and I think to this day mushrooms grown in the area are verboten. All it would take is some type of "accident" and we could have a real food crisis on our hands.

Anyone else thinking of trying to stay ahead of the curve? I read where in the 1950's almost 25% of Americans grew vegetables in their backyards, today that number is around 1.2% That might be my next project along with canning and preserving.

Solar chest freezer?
Mylar bags in 5 gallon buckets w/ rice, beans, grains add some nitrogen and O2 scrubbers.


Wait, is this a preppers thread?

More of a "Try and stay ahead of food price increases" thread. Also trying to avoid any shortages and bare shelves, I'm having PTSD flashbacks of empty meat cases and toilet paper aisles from early COVID days.

I feel ya and I do have a chest freezer in my basement but how much food do you think we can keep frozen? 3 months? 6? More?

Ever since Sandy slammed us for more than two weeks I've kept backpacker type rations on hand and canned soups. Other than that to be a real prepper one needs land and climate.

We do this, too. Stock up when stuff is on sale. Plus, we like some seasonal fruits (like berries) that freeze well and can be used in smoothies and pies year-round. If you don't already have one, I'd strongly suggest getting a vacuum sealer, too. That way you can break down huge packs of whatever into single- or two-serving portions. Will keep in the freezer much longer, too.

I've been brewing beer just in case! Never can be too careful!

I have the vacuum sealer and we hit up the Farmer's Market's on the weekends. Just figured this would work best for buying food on sale as you suggested and meal planning.

Even with 2 fridge/freezers our freezers would fill up quick since we do a lot of Costco shopping and at times wouldn't have a chance to take advantage of sales due to no room in the freezer.

I know you used to be out our way and we also hit up the farm stands on the 126 for strawberries and other fruits.

I know barley and hops is affected by the war in Ukraine. I used to homebrew, might have to jump back in!

If there is doomsday, those with spoons will be knocking on your door to claim the contents of your freezer

I have a deep freezer in my garage, I purchased just over a year ago.

I have a butcher box subscription, that comes every 3 months.

Right after I purchased the deep freezer I upped my orders with Butcher box and started buying way more proteins that we will eat in 3 months. My goal was to fill the freezer up. I accomplished that with my last delivery, now I am just ordering enough to restock and rotating out the meat that is there.

If there was an issue where we could not purchase from them, we should have enough food to last us about 5 months or longer if we were forced to conserve.

I just told my wife I wanted a larger freezer, I saw on in Home Depot this morning that was 3X what we currently have, IIRC ours is a 9 cubic foot freezer it is purely used for proteins though.

Produce we get locally as needed and also my wife uses Misfits for weekly deliveries.

We have a few small family farms near us that we visit once every month or two.

All beer lovers around the world should come together and put an end to this war!

On the plus side, at least they were polite and knocked first. :D

I already have that side of the equation covered, I don't need to be bothering the neighbors.

This is the one I have coming. I just noticed it's now backordered with a tentative April 30th delivery in my area. Maybe for once I was finally ahead of the curve!

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Frigidaire-16-cu-ft-Frost-Free-Upright-Freezer-with-Garage-Ready-EvenTemp-and-Reversible-Door-in-White-FFFU16F2VW/311372548

I kind of like that, makes it easier to find stuff. One of my complaints with the chest style deep freezer is you have to dig around a lot.

This is the one I saw today.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Frigidaire-24-8-cu-ft-Chest-Freezer-in-White-FFFC25M4TW/303207329

Dooms day = no fancy electricty for your freezer

A few quick things. I married a farm girl who grows more things in astounding variety than I ever imagined...and knows how to "can" vegetables. Once canned, no electricity required.

For the price of the freezer, you could buy years worth of canning equipment...takes a bit to learn but well worth it.

There are, and I can take pictures for proof, at least three growing lamps over seed pots as I type, dozens of small plants waiting for Mother Earth in our garage, and two tables of plants that have been growing inside over the Winter.

We cover herbs and other plants in her garden over the winter. She is a complete freak show: She has volumes of seeds she organizes into, I kid you not, packets that she keeps in older CD organizers.

If I lived in California I would grow everything and preserve it.

IMHO.

There will only be food shortages if folks start to horde.
caveat: a shortage may loom - if your diet consists of Caviar and Russian Vodka.

The toilet paper shortage scenario comes to mind.

Hopefully the world after doomsday will be populated by people like you and yours.
As long as photosynthesis is still working the planet can start over, and it would be nice if good people were the ones that were left. (You might want to get a couple of water filters, though!).
I'm pretty sure I'm gonna be in the group that gets 'downsized' by a cataclysmic event
Can't help it bout the shape I'm in I can't sing I ain't pretty and my legs are thin.

First off, the "Doomsday" quote in the title was a jab at myself for buying a freezer. I know how to can and preserve, I know how to brew beer, I know how to make sausage and charcutteri, I have a dehydrator for jerky and fruits and vegetables.

I also own 2 generators to run the freezer in case of power outages.

I got the freezer because I can see the price of food rising and I think some are going to be in for some "sticker shock" during the coming months when the cost of growing, harvesting and transporting food really takes off.

I went with an upright freezer figuring it makes it easier to see what you have and rotate stock so that you are always eating food that is reasonably fresh, not "dumpster diving" in a chest freezer and finding a pot roast at the bottom that you bought to prepare for your Super Bowl XXXII celebration.

As I have said before, my Wife and I like to cook, rarely eat out and this adds additional incentive to eat better and shop smarter.

And save a few bucks to spend on ammo for when the feces really hit the fan! :)