You never know when disaster could strike and stored food and water supplies suddenly become highly valuable and necessary. Every household should have at least a small food storage pantry for if an emergency arises. The best way to avoid danger and pull through survival or emergency scenarios is to be prepared with a plan and with some gear and tools that could save your life. Food storage is a challenging task — properly securing rations and water is tough due to the space it takes up and issues keeping food items from spoiling.
Nutrition is absolutely key during a survival scenario, so having at least a small supply of food and water to ensure you’re health is in good order is incredibly important for enduring emergencies. There’s a lot of material out there that has to do with effectively storing and preserving food — check out this survival handbook on emergency food storage for some help thinking through your safety plan.
We’ve put together a top list of some great food storage containers that will have you and your family covered in case of a serious emergency. Whether you’re an all out doomsday prepper or just want to be ready for an extended power outage or winter storm, there are some excellent and affordable options here for preserving rations and water in order to keep you safe longer.
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1. Best Overall Emergency Food Container: FoodBrick Stackable Food Storage Container, 3.5 gallon
Pros:- Holds quite a lot of food and is stackable - great for maximizing food content in an emergency pantry or shelter!
- Stacks compatibly with the WaterBrick making for an effective food and water storage system
- High capacity at 3.5 gallons
Cons:- The handles for this unit do not come included
- Fairly expensive
- Holds loose, dry foods better than packaged foods due to its shape
The FoodBrick stackable storage container is a seriously cool and effective approach to preserving rations and food items. Each unit has a three and a half gallon capacity and is totally stackable — it’s like legos for all of your emergency food supplies! Made from the makers of WaterBrick, this unit will make a great addition to your survival shelter or pantry.
WaterBrick is an excellent choice for emergency water storage, and stacks compatibly with this unit for a really effective and space saving approach to storing your food rations and clean water. Check out the video below for a demonstration on how easy these units store and stack.
There’s a wide mouth on each unit, so you can fit a lot of different food items within — but these containers are probably best paired with dry bulk food. For those emergency preppers who have a designated space or shelter for preserving survival rations, the FoodBrick and WaterBrick combination is a seriously effective and affordable option in emergency preparation.
Find more FoodBrick Stackable Food Storage Container, 3.5 gal information and reviews here.
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2. Best Portable Emergency Food Storage Container: Large Silver Aluminum Foil/Clear Resealable Moistureproof Zip Lock Bags
Pros:- Simple and easy to use food storage unit that can be stored effectively and used quickly when you need them
- Very easily resealable!
- Very affordable
- Doesn’t require a vacuum sealer or heat sealer
Cons:- Preservation is inferior to vacuum sealed or heat sealed containers - but the simplicity of the zip lock system is ideal for shorter term food storage
- Shouldn’t be relied on as your sole food preservation system
- Zip lock closure could potentially pop open on you
Here’s a solid, shorter term solution to storing dry bulk food and other survival rations. These 22 by 31 centimeter zip-lock bags will provide you with a pretty decent stash of preserved food.
Probably not ideal to rely on as your main food storage unit in a survival bunker or pantry, these units are best used for shorter term use or for use traveling. These bags are waterproof, moisture proof and conveniently resealable. If you pair these storage bags with some oxygen absorber compartment packs, you can really add to their preservation power.
I find the portability of these bags to be their best feature. If you need to hit the road in order to get to safety, then owning a set of storage bags like this could be the perfect way to load up some rations and go.
All in all, there are definitely superior long term food storage options — but in terms of portability and affordability, these bags are a great choice to rely on.
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3. Best Food Storage Unit for Use in a Freezer: GINOVO 12″ x 6.2″ x 6.2″ Fridge and Freezer Storage Organizer Bins
Pros:- Great option for storing food items in the fridge and freezer
- Clear design allows you to see what’s inside containers
- Built in handles for easy handling and stacking
Cons:- Size may be a little small for some food items
- Not very practical for storing lots of food unless you have a designated refridgerator
- Good value, but fairly expensive option
Here’s a great option for storing food items in a refrigerator. These organizer bins by Ginovo are suitable for storing frozen foods over long periods of time.
If your home has a generator and a back-up refrigerator, these are a solid choice for stocking up on frozen foods. These bins are made of high quality, BPA-free plastic, so they fit the bill just fine for safe food storage.
They stack nicely, and there’s even built in handles for easily moving them around within your fridge or freezer. For $25 you get two units — a pretty solid deal considering the resilience and quality of the plastic used here.
I know quite a few outdoorsmen who annually stockpile the meat they shoot and harvest each hunting season — storage bins like this would be ideal for that purpose.
If your emergency food supplies include frozen meats, vegetables or any other rations, then consider lining your fridge or freezer unit with a number of these bins by Ginovo.
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4. Best Affordable Emergency Water Storage: 2.5 Gallon Samson Stacker Emergency Water Storage 8 Pack with Cap Wrench and Spigot
Pros:- Includes cap wrench and spigot
- This product is made in the USA
- With this purchase you get quite a lot of water storage at a very reasonable price
Cons:- The lighter color of these containers may make the water contents more susceptible to influence by light, and therefore bacterial growth, so keep this units in a darker place
- Expensive system
- Only one size available
Here’s an affordable option in preserving clean water in bulk. These emergency water storage units could really prove useful if an emergency situation arises that leaves your area void of clean drinking water.
The BPA free, food-grade plastic employed in this design ensures your stored water will remain uncontaminated. These units are both portable and stackable, so they won’t take up an unreasonable amount of space and can also be taken with you if you need to leave your home or emergency shelter.
This package deal comes with one center-tapped cap, a wrench and a half turn spigot for accessing water from the containers. This is a pretty reliable and affordable solution to having at least a short term supply of clean water when and if you need it.
The size on each storage container is eight by nine and a half by twelve inches, each holding two and a half gallons. For a very reasonable price, you get eight units for a total of 20 gallons of water storage.
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5. Best Mylar Bags for Emergency Food Storage: ShieldPro 1-Gallon 5-Mil Thick Mylar Bags for Long Term Emergency Food Storage
Pros:- Quite a large size food storage bag, there’s a lot of capacity here
- Bags are sealed and resealed with heat closure - more effective than a zip-lock system
- Also compatible for vacuum-sealing
- Highly affordable
Cons:- Sealing these bags with heat will require energy, so be prepared with a charged heat sealer or have your rations already prepared and sealed prior to any emergency scenario.
- No organization potential
- Only one size available
Here’s a larger option for mylar storage bags. This 25 pack of emergency food storage units can preserve quite a lot of food considering the large capacity of each unit (one gallon).
This product comes at an exceptionally low cost ($15) and will ship free if you purchase two orders for a total of 50 bags. This style of storage is heat sealable, and the manufacturer recommends use with 300cc oxygen absorbers.
Customer reviews insist you can seal, and reseal these bags using a regular clothes iron and a plank of wood, but here’s a link to an actual bag heat sealer for those emergency preppers looking to maximize the precision and effectiveness of their food storage system.
These bags can also be vacuum sealed. These are the industry leading five millimeter, five layer bags for safely preserving rations. I personally like this system of food storage because you can fill these bags as much or as little as you would like, keeping you from wasting any space when separating and organizing your various rations.
As an emergency food storage system, the preservation power, portability and convenience of these storage bags are tough to top. Having a set of these units tucked away with or without rations already sealed could no doubt come in handy when you might need to secure some nutrition for long term storage.