Lessons Learned from COVID-19 Quarantine and Food Supplies

In visiting with people prior to the shutdown, as the nouveau panic preppers were scrambling to purchase rice and beans or #10 cans of Mountain House, other people and I would mention the importance of eating what they normally eat, avoiding food fatigue by having a good variety in the diet, etc.  The normal stuff.  And we would routinely get dismissed with something along the lines of, "People will eat it if they are hungry enough."  I've decided to summarize some of their quarantine-diet observations below.

"I eat canned tuna regularly, but in February decided to get several dozen cans of X Chili, a favorite in my youth, because it boasted a lot of protein.  It was the first time in decades. It seemed to dehydrate me and left me drained and sluggish, even though I also had regular yogurt and vegetables.

It was basically thick beef tallow, and I didn't see much actual meat. If I had it to do over, I would have gotten actual meat.  This chili will ruin me."

"We used this quarantine as a test run to use up some old ABC and XYZ (major freeze-dried food companies) meals. We tired of it quickly and the salt was too much for my blood pressure. We're baking bread daily and I've been able to buy flour. When the quarantine ends, I'll start storing grains. We're eating a lot of eggs.  I should consider raising chickens. I stashed chocolate bars.  Those were popular and eaten quickly. Plans for this year's garden will focus on nutritionally dense foods."

"Same as the others have said. Too much sodium in the freeze-dried XYZ and ABC. We started adding rice, pasta, potatoes....  Sometimes added no-salt canned or frozen veggies.  We used the freeze-dried meals as starter or seasoning to supplement. Chocolate had to be rationed. We ate half of it in the first week.  Now it’s one piece on weekends. We are baking lots of bread, using natural yeast from our dried fruit stores.  We are eating a lot of eggs, twice as much as normal.  My supplies are lasting, but fresh is getting harder to come by. Local stores are still delivering but only about 25% of my order goes through."

"I think a lot of people are having the same experience. You summed it up nicely with 'Basically we used the freeze-dried meals as a starter or seasoning to supplement.' That is the way to go."

"XYZ tastes better but has too much salt. If we had to rely on them, I would cook rice then put 1/3 of a packet of XYZ on each plate to give it some flavor and add a piece of bread. Eating a whole pouch of either brand gets old fast.  The ABC would be more manageable for me due to the lower salt content. Stock both just to add some variety but look for other food options."

"I buy grain in bulk and then grind it fresh to maximize nutrition. A good electric grinder costs a small fortune but it pays for itself in a couple years. The bread tastes so good and is so filling it barely needs anything to go with it for a meal...a bit of peanut butter, hummus, cinnamon rolls, etc."

"The freeze-dried stuff has its place. When you are working hard you will likely do better with a little more salt. If not, then mix in some supplemental grains and stretch the flavors out a bit. Lack of salt can be a real problem with food, but having it along with other spices can make the difference between fatigue or lack of it."

Now for what people were glad they had stored:
Yeast
Salt pork
Evaporated milk
Pancake mix and maple syrup
Toilet paper
Oatmeal
Beef jerky
Coffee
Canned fruit
Cooking oil
Bacon grease
Pasta

And what they wish they had stored, or stored more of:

Bacon

Powdered eggs

Non-fish canned meats

Cleaning supplies

Hand sanitizer

More variety in ready-to-eat meals.  "I'm tired of Chef Boyardee, I'm running out of canned soup, and everything else needs prep work."

Lactose pills 

Onions

Milk

Cheese

Shelf-stable whipping cream

There is a Chinese curse that goes something like this:  "May you live in interesting times."  I think we've been Chinese-cursed and others are beginning to wake up to the fact.  There are reports from around the country of people starting to stockpile food and supplies again in the event that a second wave, as they are calling it, materializes.   I have no idea what's coming; I can only make guesses just like everyone else.  We can learn from what people panic-purchased and what they were glad to have gotten, and what they wish they had more of and prepare accordingly.

Our times are indeed interesting at present, and I fully anticipate that we have a lot more interesting experiences to pass through.  Now's the time to prep while the prepping is good.