In Investments for Preparedness and Wealth Preservation That Your Financial Adviser Will Never Mention, we outlined several non-traditional ways to invest your money for protection from a variety of different calamities ranging from financial stock market meltdown to outright economic collapse. Food, of course, was one of our key portfolio holdings for a number of reasons, including the obscene price increases for core agricultural commodities over the last two years and the fact that, as an investor, you have no counter-party risk because the physical asset remains in your possession until such time that it is needed.
As demand for commodities continues to rise due to an ever expanding global population, price inflation climbs because of monetary easing, and systemic meltdown fears among the populace become more broadly accepted, more individuals everyday are turning to preparedness investments that include food, gold, guns, and medical supplies. The prepper movement has gained so much steam, that some manufacturers, including freeze dried leader Mountain House Foods, report an inability to keep up with demand.
If you failed to take our alternative investment advice a year ago, then missed it again in our 2011 recommendations, and are still contemplating where the general price and supply trends are headed, consider the most recent price moves in Cosco’s freeze dried food line.
While Mountain House freeze dried food is backlogged and distributors report months-long delays, Shelf Reliance freeze dried, distributed via Cosco is still available (for now) – albeit at an ever increasing price point.
Via Zero Hedge:
Back in October, Zero Hedge discussed a Costco offer for Shelf-Reliance THRIVE’s one year’s supply of dehydrated, freeze dried food, better known as “apocalypse rations.” Six months ago a one year’s supply of food for one person which included 5,011 total servings (84 #10 cans) could be purchased for $799.99 (the link for the offering is here, or rather was, here). A series of events made us encounter a comparable THRIVE offering at Costco. To our amazement in six months, the real price inflation in apocalypse rations, when factoring proportioning, is almost 50%! While the original set that was presented back in October is no longer available, what Costco does offer is a Shelf Reliance THRIVE 6 month supply supply for the price of $579.99: this represents the pinnacle of that ultimate in inflation disguising techniques: cutting the price by X while cutting the amount offered by Y>>>X. Indeed, to last a person a full year, one would need to be two of the 6 month supplies for a price of $579.99 or $1,159.98. And even that has to be indexed: the current set has 2,470 total servings, whereas the previous offer had 5,011, or 203% more. In other words, to index for the proper serving ratio the final price is actually $1,176.65. We can only hope that there are those who purchased this product when we first presented it (and don’t worry, with a 25 year shelf life, it lasts a looooong time) and saved themselves the 47% inflation in 6 months! And then there are non THRIVE product offerings, such as the one below for 2 people for 3 months for $999.99 (and includes its own 55 gallon water storage set), which represents price inflation well over 100% for those who need a little extra caloric kick (and, naturally, post-apocalypse social status with the neighbors). Something tells us in another 6 months, the Costco price today will be just as lamented as the price from 6 months ago currently is.
Then (link):
And now:
And for those for whom greeting apocalypse in style means price is no object…
Expect the trend in price to continue, and consider acquiring freeze dried food as a part of your complete food preparation plans, because at some point, Shelf Reliance may not be able to keep up with continued demand in the preparedness market segment.
It Took 22 Years to Get to This Point
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This article was originally published by Tyler Durden at ZeroHedge. With the changing of the...
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Just stoppd by the local Publix to pick up a few things on the way home. Most of our BIG shopping trips for food take place over at Sam’s Club, Restaurant Depot and the Penn Dutch meat market. You really don’t have to be a ‘rocket-scientist’ or super observant to see that the packages are getting smaller and everything getting more and more expensive with each week day that goes by. The guy over on aisle #3, who was very carefully reading the list of ingredients on the less expensive brands of hot dogs, in order to make sure that he wouldn’t be feeding his family lips, assholes and ears if he bought them; he told me that it had cost him $70.00 to fill his Ford F-150 today!
Holy Crappppp!!! Where does it end??? When we are forced to eat grandma in order to stay alive????? Sorry grandma.
And we really don’t have it all that bad here in the United States quite yet. I feel sorry for the folks who live in the countries where the average daily income is around $2,00 a day.
God Bless & good luck to all.
$70!, hell it took $90 to fill my GMC..it was close to empty, took 25 or so gallons..they say its on its way to $4 and above that before long.
It all comes down to price gouging, the food, the fuel, the clothes, etc..everydambitofit!
Greed!..
New law, greed is a 10 year offence, second time, …Life, and i dont mean sitting in a cell and being fed, i ment Life.
I guess TPAB want to see how far they can push this train off the cliff, before the rest of it follows to a smoking heap at the bottom of the abyss.
First off, Mac, your site host is really slow. May I suggest Host Gator? On the second note, I don’t understand all the hoopla about dried freeze stuff anyway. It’s overrated. Why spend $$$ on dried freeze if you can store peanuts. Peanuts have the most protein and nutrients necessary for the body cells to re-build. Raw peanuts don’t go bad for many months due to its low acid content unlike other nuts. Peanuts are also the easiest to grow. I threw a bunch of them into the sandy soils of Florida and they grew without watering or fertilizing regiments in multitudes. No regular garden tending is required for peanuts. Folks, anywhere in the U.S. should try it. Carolina varieties are the best seedlings by far and they are still very cheap to grow and store. All the canned food has a risk of Botulism if kept beyond shelf life, whereas there’s no such thing for peanuts. Good luck to all and God Bless!
Mr. G, thanks for your comments re site hosting. We just upgraded from an older server to a newer dual core about a month ago… it seems that our traffic volumes are still overloading the server. We are upgrading to a quad-core server over the course of the next 72 hours. This should resolve load-time issues – hopefully permanently.
Also, thx for the comments on peanuts. Will relay to wifey Slavo.
mac
Took 97 dollars to fill up my ford f150 in california today at 4.03 a gallon.
Folks if you arent getting your storage now your going to be paying a whole lot more later. Bad things are coming soon and those that prepare will be far beter off than those that leave thier hope on other men and agencys to provide for thier well being .
Plant a LARGE garden this year and load up on canning supplies we are going to need it!! In an earlier life my wife was a vegitarian and she is a fantastic cook so if need be I guess I will learn to eat many different things.
Probabley a lot better for my health anyway.
I have about 2 1/2 acres of the best farm land in the world in midwest and a small tractor to work it. As long as I can get some diesel I can use it with a 3 point cultivator to produce enough for us and the food bank if necessary.
The only thing I worry about is if this gets REALLY bad is looters then all bets are off. I hope and pray it doesn’t come to that. God Bless, James
As a Shelf Reliance consultant, I can tell you that the packages you are comparing are alive and well on the Shelf Reliance website. You are comparing apples to oranges, as each has unique items in combination. The packages in question cannot be compared strictly on servings and calories. Also, no matter how big of a package you order online from Shelf Reliance, the shipping currently tops out at $16.00, even if the cost of fuel continues to rise. So if Shelf Reliance or Costco raises the product price to offset the cost of shipping, then more power to them, I say.Costco is most definitely marking up their items, as is currently allowed in our “evil, capitalist society.”
Comments…..started stocking up and paying off debts over two years ago…hoping right now that my fruit trees and berry bushes make good this year. packaging is getting smaller and prices are going way up almost as fast as the rise in gas prices.. a person has to really think about where they are gonna go and how many stops they need to make in one trip so as not to waste a drop. i am also seeing big increases in things like satelite tv, electric rates, water rates. and yes, it is to some extent price gouging but not entirely..it is lifestyle too…of those who wanna have it and gotta have it now.  so far, i have not seen too manyfolks giving much thought to their lifestyle other than cutting back on eating out some. kids are still driving cars instead of taking the schoolbus..i figure that when we see the teens back on the schoolbuses then we will know that things are finally starting to hit home for many of the “sheeple”.
Unfortunately, people in dire need will steal regardless, and that’s why its important to have more crop inside the earth rather than above the ground. By this I imply peanuts and potatoes. Your thieves won’t likely have hand shovels to help themselves over some acres unless of course the land is detached from the homestead. The Russians have withered famine and two World Wars on potatoes alone but that’s not to say you shouldn’t plant cabbage 🙂
Happy gardening everyone and God Bless!
Thanks for the tip : America the Beautiful where you can live on peanuts a month! Seriously I will be adding them to my seed stash next trip to the garden supply. We have been planting a bigger garden each year and I haven’t even tried freeze dried yet. Thanks Marc for spreading some truth and providing this forum. Keep getting ready kids Nero just picked up his fiddle 😉
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@Caryn: Those, that are forewarned are better prepared, however it’ll take a major cataclysmic event to shake the unbelievers from their slumber. It basically is based on survival instinct that is within everyone of us. Kids don’t know any better because the have never been subjected to hardships, at least not in the U.S. of A. My experience from surviving dating back to early to mid nineties in the mob ridden Mother Russia taught me to never trust what the eye would meet. This is one inherent sense you would not have had inbred unless experienced and thus the “modern kids” wouldn’t have it. I am teaching my 5-year old son to shoot a recurve bow and use a flint and a striker to start a fire. These are essential survival skills that kids need to learn instead of sitting before the TV screens or playing PC games. Too bad most kids nowadays won’t even know what oil dipper stick is..let alone do anything else..
@Mac: Thanks for keeping this great blog going! I hope your server runs on Linux 🙂 and withstands the web traffic. I didn’t realize you hosted your own site.. I did that some time ago but decided it sucked up too much power being 24/7/365 and outsourced.
I’m on this site every day,
and I’ll have to say that everybody has an opinion that makes sense
or has a logical aspect.
And thats all fine and dandy.
but are you really prepped
(ask your self) could you pull the trigger first with out hesatation ?
can you kill an animal ,cut open it’s gut sack and eat its liver?
if you can ,then i would say youre’ prepped
and if you cant ,you might think about that food storage thing.
but none of it will matter if you can’t protect your’e self from the takers
who will be worse off than youÂ
Think twice and always have a back up plan
Are there any farm scientists, farmers or other experts out there?Â
What’s an easy way to grown plants from seeds?
How often do you have to water them each day during germination?Â
And which types of peanut butter do not require refrigeration after opening?
Â
Thanks a lot to politicians and technology. What a fantastic civilization!!!
Â
  I have a small amount of freeze dried food, but am concerned about the water requirements when using. I try to store what I eat and ezat what I store. I fear that the demographics of USA will work against us as things get worse. I am hoping for a somewhat slow descent (probably punctuated by crises), but am sure of a descent all the same (hope and change I guess).
  I have noticed food inflation for at least a year, and have noticed I have fewer FRNs availabel to buy extra.
  The cost of eating out is evident even at places like KFC. I find it a much less frequent occurence that I go to a sit-down resturaunt. This has not dawned on most Umerikns because we have more room in our personal incomes than in most societies (this too will change).
  I think it says a lot that Items like those discussed in this article are even available at Costco. Five years ago I would never have expected to see such items in inventory at a place like Costco or Sam’s.
Okay- you guys wanna play “can you top this?’ I just spent $841.88 to fill up. Of course the truck I drive has two 120 gal tanks and they were both gettin’ thirsty. (yeah, it’s a Freightliner) I remember when diesel fuel went to $5/gal in 2007. We were paying over a grand to fill up. And you gotta fill up every TWO days!! So, factor in fuel prices at maybe 5 to $6 later this year and you can see what transportation costs are gonna do to the already skyrocketing prices of most goods. Like the guy in Jurassiac Park said “Hang on to your butts!”
Jane;
best gardening tips,  “marjori  wildcraft” google.   and then follow the  u tube trail to  growing potatoes  in a bag,  or a 100 lbs in  in  a half barrel,  etc  square ft gardening
Mr. G. NUTS! I got you beat I-35 & I drive a F250 with 2 auxs. If I fill up after 4 months I freak out the convience store girl & Visa @ truck stop. Do you burn DEF.
NWO U.N. blue NAFTA DHS TSA – COP KILLER
Bye Bye American Pie…
I shot and killed a NWO U.N. blue NAFTA DHS TSA Cop with my .45 semi-auto black Glock today… a Disabled, Homeless, Cold and Hungry Veteran… I live by the river beneath a bridge… I deserve better than this… tsk, tsk, tsk…
I had done my time… stood my watch upon the wall; a Guardian of Liberty… and after a fall… now a Stone Cold Cop Killer?  Running from the Amerikan Fascist Traitorous Law… why? why? why?
The false NWO IMF homo druggy prostitute barry soetoro- a.k.a illegal president barack obama and AIPAC Israeli jew controlled U.S. congress… stopped “Canceled ALL†social security checks the other day… on APRIL 8th, 2011… they Stole all the Social Security Funds, Food Stamps and Medicare too… intentionally Broke america’s piggy bank… gave away the pennies to the Banks and told me “Sorry” none for You! You are Many! We are Few… MORE FOR US! None for You!
I am a Disabled Veteran… I once Served My Country with Honor and Pride.
I Murdered Killed a NWO U.N. blue NAFTA DHS TSA Cop Today… why? why? why?
 I had robbed the local Korean corner store… while the radio on the shelf played “Bye Bye American Pie”… I’d only pocketed a milk, hot pocket and a pie… ran by the Screaming Korean Clerk for the open sky… hopped on my ex Asshole Psycho Neighbors kid pink huffy bike… peddling in a crazed manic flight… hauling fast down the lane… making my one handed get away… thinking “bye bye american pie”… smiling in mirth… while with my other hand grabbing from my shirt, a half frozen Hot Pocket… then a crushed Moon Pie… shovin’ an munchin both in a hunger frenzy… my adrenaline and sugar high now kicking me into Over-Drive… I had gotten away … then I swore… “SHIT!”… crumbs dribbling down my beard… I thought to myself; I shoulda done like Ben Bernanke… acted like a greedy shifty Banker whore and taken more, more, more… for you see – IT’s ALL ABOUT ME! When I’m HUNGRY!
Then down the way… my calves screaming in pain… I slowed down… a mistake… an A.P.B. an All Points Bulletin – had gone out – “All Patrols Be On The Look Out for a Crazed Long Haired Bearded Hippy Hobo Bum, Riding a Stolen Hot Pink Huffy Bike Down Main Street!â€; I’m screwed now… a NWO U.N. Blue NAFTA DHS Cop car pulled up behind, tires screeching… siren blaring , lights a twirling, screaming over the horn “PULL THE FUCK OVER!”
At that time… I “Snapped†grinned an said to myself “Screw It!” an thought “I’m homeless cold and hungry”… “This Asshole Cop isn’t gonna do me like “Rodney King”!  “The NWO U.N. IMF Greedy Banker Fuckers did this to me!”… “It is either Him or Me!†I skidded to a stop “swiiishhhh!”… planted my worn out combat boots upon the cool concrete of the street… reached into my sweat soiled pants waist… an pulled my cold heavy .45 Glock like slow dead weight… fingers numb… pointed and leveled it at the windshield of the NWO U.N. NAFTA blue Patrol Car… looking the Cop dead in the eye… I recognized him, he use to be nice to me, always smiling when we met on the street… Officer Friendly, now wearing NWO camo green Combat Gear, with U.N. sky blue Patches… once our neighborhood hero… here to “Protect and Serve”… now no more… now he is a DHS TSA Federalized Thug… a NWO U.N. NAFTA blue Storm Trooper Whore… ordered by our illegal alien false president obama to “Punish and Enslave!”
And while the innocent curious child side of me… kept asking… “why, why, why ?”… the newly found grown up tired Stone Cold Cop Killer in me… didn’t bat an eye… I aimed an pulled the trigger BLAM BLAM BLAM 1,2,3… It was HIM or ME you MUST see… I emptied the entire clip right through the windshield… into the NWO U.N. blue NAFTA DHS TSA Whore’s red screaming face!!!
Empty inside… now that I had unleashed all my NWO New World Order – Bilderberg Debt Slave Hate!
I simply stood astride my stolen pink huffy steed… staring dead pan at the car’s brown vinyl covered rear seat, red blood, white bone chips and grey pink brain matter splattered over it. Staring through the shattered windshield and GAPING cavernous blood red hole that had been, Officer Friendly’s Red Raging New World Order U.N. blue NAFTA DHS TSA Cop Face.
Humming to myself “BYE BYE AMERICAN PIE”… thinking “I’m still Hungry!â€
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author after note:
-Property of TekRoanin { There are over 600,000 unemployed war trained experienced Homeless poor starving Veterans just like our “hero†above living in the woods, abandoned homes or storm drains of your neighborhoods!} Just think about that for a moment America… there are more Veterans joining our ranks every day from the Illegal NWO Global Domination Wars and Economic Debt Slave War here in America. JUST PAUSE THINK ABOUT THAT FOR A MINUTE! Scary? Maybe a little. The Veterans Administration employee’s are FAILING to help Veterans in need! Living Fat like a greedy Hog on the pain and suffering of Veterans! V.A. = Eugenic’s!
Wake up America, there are 1 million – 1,000,000 foreign troops and american traitor troops under the United Nations blue Flag, NAFTA blue and IMF Bank Control right now; at this very moment here on American, Canadian and Mexican soil. Just waiting for our Illegal President Obama to call MARTIAL LAW! Upon which time they will crash the dollar, invade america and place you all; america under their U.N. NWO IMF military control. It’s either YOU or THEM!!!
U.N. AGENDA 21 is here! NOW is the time to… Talk to family and friends…
AMERICA IS A LIE – owned controled by the family Rothschilds – The Bank Of England!
You don’t elect a President – One is CHOOSEN FOR YOU!!! By the Real Owners of America! (( ObamaCrimes.Com)) BARRY SOETORO AKA OBAMA was Born in Kenya, He is adopted! An Illegal Alien Puppet runs America! WAKE UP AMERICA an FIGHT!!! (( ObamaCrimes.Com))
US DC Capitol Hill, The President, US Supreme Court and Congress; ARE ALL BOUGHT AND PAID FOR = BRIBED!!! By AIPAC Israeli Jews GoldmanSachs Monsanto Rand Corporation etc etc…
YOU ARE NOT FREE! You are DEBT SLAVES! Corporate Owned – Who Owns You?
ARM UP STOCK UP PREPARE… PREDITOR OR PREY THE CHOICE IS YOURS!
FALSE FLAG – 9/11 was An Inside Job! Evil = Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, George Bush Sr. w/ idiot son bush Jr. and Israeli Jew Massoud (CIA) FBI Illuminati Bilderberg Oligarchy Insiders Killed 3,000 + Americans and Blew Up the Twin Towers, Bldg 7 with Syntax Plastic Explosive! Twice! Oklahoma City Same crew then too with Bill Clinton Pushing the button! Murderers One and All! All Illuminati IMF Bank Owned! Wake Up! Open Your Eye’s! See the Truth! The US Gov, CIA, FBI, Secret Service, US ARMY SF and Israeli Massoud Jews are the REAL TERRORISTS! Your Taxes are paying to “Kill†your own sons and daughters Sheeple! America is a LIE! Fight! FIGHT! You must FIGHT IT! YOU are PAYING to MURDER KILL your OWN CHILDREN!!! DUH?! TAX DEBT SLAVE!
All US POLICE and SHERIFF DEPARTMENTS , NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS ARE NOW FEDERALIZED UNDER FEMA, DHS, NAFTA -UNITED NATIONS blue CONTROL!
They are NOT here to protect you! They are here to DisArm you – “Punish and Enslave!”
To Force you all under their one world NWO U.N. CFR Tri-Lateral IMF WORLD BANK government!
U.N. AGENDA 21 is here!
If the color of your skin is any color of Brown – and you value your life – Beware the U.N. W.H.O Shots – All Shots! Israeli Jews, America, W.H.O, U.N., NATO is NOT your friend… RUN! They mean to Sterilize, abort your babies and Kill you – All! While they steal poor peoples organs to transplant into themselves – Real Oligarchy Vampires are now your MASTERS! Rise UP FIGHT!!!
I DARE you to prove me wrong… spread the word.
;0P – psssszzzzzzt NWO
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prices going up shouldn’t bother the people who were paying attention the past few yrs, they should be all prepped and have plans laid out to stay prepped.
Boone, yes to everything except, the liver or any organ meat would be my last choice for a meal unless it was all there was. organs just filter out the garbage, I butcher rabbits and chickens weekly and the organs go to the dogs.
Comments…..Jane, picked up three good books recently for gardening. Two by Eliot Coleman-“The Winter Harvest Handbook” and “Four Season Harvest. Coleman describes how he grows food in an unheated greenhouse in Maine all winter long. Another, The “The New Seed Starters Handbook” by Nancy Bubel is excellent. Also don’t forget your county co-op for information on growing a garden in your area. This literature is usually free. I start all my tomatoes, squash, cukes, in planters several weeks prior to planting in the garden. I also save seeds from all my heirloom vegs for the following year. Another good publication that I suscribe to is “Backwoods Home” magazine, a treasure trove of everything you need in your quest to becoming self sustaining. Best wishes and good luck.
Comments….. @just me, are you butchering cornish-cross chickens or a dual purpose breed? I’ve got a couple dozen RI reds for duals but have been thinking about cornish or ranger reds for meat. I know their usually in and out in several weeks. If you’re growing a meat chicken, how are you doing with them?
there are still a lot of great buys out there for the johnnie come latelys, right now one of our stores has solid white tuna, land O lakes margine,lipton side dishs and many other things all 10 for $10.. just the saving on those 3 items is over 23 dollars. If a person had the extra cash and the time, they could spend a day shopping around and come up wirt a yrs supply locally, cash is the key though, not credit card.
PO’d patriot
 duel purpose, I keep about 40 layers,leghorns, Rhode Island Reds and cull them out all the time, we just picked up 40 more at TS so we’ll be butchering 30. We butcher 3 a day and it works great for us as we can then, we get about 10 full pints of meat and about 12 qts of chicken stock from every 3 chickens, we’re eating chicken that we canned in 07. by canning them, we don’t have to think about ele for the freezers or a freezer stopping and we don’t have to pluck the chickens, we skin them.
@tekroanin,
You are a BIG WHINING BABY!
If you are not happy, you are not surviving. Pursue Happiness! This pay back you want from ‘society’ is not going to final pay out. ‘they’ are feeling like they owe you ‘0’ Period Dot . nada nada nada times nada … ‘they’ are losing the Freedom you fault [sic] for. It’s not looking good in the PayChecks for Freedom program, not with the loss of so much Freedom!
Put your gloc back.
Pursue Happiness! Decorate your underpass. At least clean your underpants. Don’t beg for money, beg for charcoal! Add the charcoal to a pipe with some sand and enjoy pure water. That’s better! Need protein? Check under a scrap of wood for crickets, toast them using twigs, taste like popcorn don’t they! The first salad plant ever (corn salad) grows wild in America! What are you going to use for salad dressing? Hmm…. ever cut a plant and see sap flow?
Embrace your Reality! (I’ll give you 4 hundred for the gloc!) With the 400 you can get a book about what is wild and edible and get a nice tent. Then get out into the woods so I don’t have to see your whiny ass under the overpass!
Get into what God has laid out for ya! We’ll all be there to join you soon and you will be the big expert in the woods!
Â
P.S. I did not read all of your post so I may have missed you 100% 🙂
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Hi every one, I live in north east, maine. Have a small farm. About 25 chickens. my husband and I sell some eggs…I know quite a bit about gardening. We have a garden every year. and of course this year we are thinking of canning more. Chicken feed actually went up $2 in two weeks. We live 50 miles from a big city, big for us. So we can not just run out and buy bargains. Blueberry season is coming up and I would love to find someone to trade with. Right now we are buying from Utah.We want rice, salt, flour in bulk. We have to plan for our city kids, who will not face what is going on in the country. Well. just trying to opena conversation. Lynda in rual Maine.
Great forum but is any one else getting tired of the bye bye American pie RANTING ? I’m preparing but not prepared to up the HATE. Less is more in that department
I agree. If American ingenuity does not pull us through this one, that would be a first. 🙁
Sometime Nature does a U-turn, even when there are signs that say ‘No U-turn’, you still get a U-turn. You gotta U-turn when Nature crys out ‘U-TURN!’ Do your U-Turn, Prep. Then go on along with Faith.
This is just simple Economics 101. Costco has raised the price for 2 reasons.
1. Their cost has gone up (because food costs & transportation are rising)
2. The demand is up.Â
Now before you crucify Costco please keep in mind that their profits on OTHER items have, with certainty, gone down. People are buying less kitchen ware, clothing & discretionary items. They are in business to make a profit so since they are likely losing money elsewhere they raise the price where they are selling & making money. So that they can stay in business.
I’m sure that their overall profit margin is the same, they are just getting revenue from a different place.
The big message here is that if you missed the 2009 & 2010 food stocking window, you might be too late – unless, God forbid – prices continue to rise.
Since I did stock food, TP, etc throughout 2009 & 2010, the way I look at this type of news is that I just made a substantial profit for my household. My money is far better off sitting in my food storage closets than sitting in the bank making 1%.
You really just have to be selective and shop around as there are tons of great places to pick up items you like and will need. I buy Pinto beans at Costco because they are $12 something a bag and a mile up the road they are $17 a bag. Walmart, Wholesale Sports, Dick’s and other stores have Mountain House meals on the shelve for a decent (affordable still) price. Mormon Storehouse raised their prices so they are not competitive enough for me to go there anymore.
I buy dehydrated for the most part i.e. TVP, carrots, potatoes etc. Freeze dried is cool and probably tastes better but the cost isn’t worth it and the upkeep once opened can be an issue if you don’t vacuum bag the contents. IMHO
I buy as many Mountain House single packaged meals but for me these will be a last resort, close to leaving my home.
I have a couple large truck trunks that I can put in the back of the van at a minutes notice to leave for the Sawtooth Mountains if it comes to that which are loaded with necessary supplies. Also have deer sleds for hauling these supplies once there.
good luck out there!
Scott
 just a word of caution when loading up the van, you probably still have 2 ply tires that aren’t made for heavy loads and high speeds.
Dear Readers, I am an independent consultant for ShelfReliance. One of my good customers emailed me this morning and asked if it was true. Has ShelfReliance raised their prices? Has Costco? Please allow me to set the record straight. The author of the post is not comparing apples with apples, so to speak. The packages used for comparison are not identical. They include a different combination of products which you can easily see just by examining the pictures a bit more closely. A package that includes more freeze dried fruits and vegetables is going to cost more than a package that includes a lot of beans for example since dehydrated beans are about 1/3 to 1/2 the price of freeze dried fruit. The newest package also includes a 50 gal water barrel, siphon, water purifier tablets, and a grain mill which are not part of either of the other packages described above. Shelf Reliance’s prices have been kept fairly stable and are a wonderful deal. BTW all of these packages are still available at their original pricing when ordered directly through an independent consultant. Please contact me directly [email protected] or visit our site. Shipping is less than 4 weeks and the product will be delivered directly to your door. Thank you for the opportunity to clarify this matter. — Leah
MadMarkie
 I just reread your post and was wondering what would make anyone buy hotdogs over a chicken, I haven’t ate a hotdog in over 20 yrs but always thought Nathan’s were the best, I see right now they’re on sale 2 for 7 dollars and a 7 pound chicken is selling for 7.25. maybe it’s just me but eating a garbage hotdog on a garbage white bun doesn’t make much sence when they could get so much more out of a chicken.
Just Me,
“cash is the key though, not credit card.”  Is someone watching what food I buy at the grocery store? I use my debit card (as a credit) every time I shop because my paycheck is direct deposited to my checking account. After all my bills, there’s very little left over to buy food for my food storage, so what’s the reason for cash? Please enlighten me.  Thank you.
Cindy- I think the main reason to avoid using credit cards is just to stay in the habit of not leaving any kind of electronic papaer trail whenever there’s another option. Get cash at an ATM then make purchases. That way the only trail is that you got a few bucks from the ATM then the trail stops. Nobody knows anything about which stores you frequent or what purchases. I realize that millions of transactions happen daily and the odds of one’s personal activities ever being scrutinized are very slim. Still, it’s just good OPSEC to leave the least trail possible. Sometimes I wonder if I’m being paranoid about this, but I still do it, just to stay under the radar as much as possible. 🙂
GA Mom said- “my money is far better off sitting in my food storage closets than sitting in the bank making 1%.” Well said! And a great reminder that EVERY month your cash sits in a bank and not in useful, storable stuff that you will eventually have to buy anyway, you’ve lost a few cents from each dollar.
In a yrs time and with rising prices of food and necessities that may even cost you 15 or 20 cents on each dollar. OUCH!
@ fiftyfiver – I am so sick of the “bye bye American pie†shit that I now just ignore all his post.
I get it but Damn, he’s madder than I am –
He’s obviously a raving lunatic!  Â
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@Just me thanks for the tire tip! About hotdogs – I actually purchased a couple cases for my daughter since she would love to have them in her food rotation. Didn’t think they tasted as great as fresh ones but since they are canned they will last along time.
try to fill up that F150 in Europe at 9 dollars a gallon. Â I HAD TO MOVE BACK TO Â SWEDEN AND i MISS THE GASPRICES IN THE us BIG TIME
Comments…..
SmokieOkie…my husband is a logger—-he already said if gas goes to $5, I better get used to his ugly face each day, because he won’t be logging…and I feel the independent truckers have stored food and saved funds for this as well, since they have to be the ULTIMATE ONES that ‘get’ this crisis.Â
I buy from
honeyvillegrain.com
My husband and I started prepping about 3 years ago. We started with our short term then moved to the freeze dried (mountain house, lots of Thrive, etc.). I bought an Excalibur dehydrator last year and I dehydrate my own frozen vegetables, frozen potatoes, etc. I love the dehydrator. I even dehydrate Spaghetti sauce and then grind to a powder to store. Just add water and you have spaghetti sauce again. (Actually learned that little gem from a hiking website). We have several large containers of rice, beans, sugar, flour, etc. that are sealed with oxygen absorbers and packaged in small sealer bags. We then put them in mylar bags and label the outside.
That’s just about the same price increase in precious metals over the approximate period. No coincidence here! Supply and demand be damned, It’s inflation alright.
SmokinOki,
You are not being paranoid. It’s called data mining and profiling. If you choose to leave those electronic trails, they will be mined and added to your profile. This is not an issue of “scrutiny” reserved for “terrorists” and “persons of interest.” This is something that can be done automatically on a massive scale. And it is being done, largely by the DHS, which has become the domestic spy and enforcement arm of the national security complex. Think of the DHS as an NSA that is focused domestically, i.e., spying on Americans.
The question then becomes, “do I care that my profile says I like McDonalds and Miller Light?” Maybe you do, maybe you don’t. You have no idea what their algorithms say about your spending habits, browsing habits, demographics, and other elements of your profile. But one thing that these systems are great at is spotting anomalies. Even though you think it doesn’t matter that your mundane purchaes at Walmart are being mined and profiled, it gives them baseline data against which to continuously monitor for anomalies. When anomalies occur, you may suddenly find yourself under the “scrutiny” you so fear, which will entail GPS tracking via your phone (or tagging your car if you don’t carry a cell phone), phone record reviews, and likely a PEN-tap (which is a full content wire tap these days).
You let me know how all that works out for you. I’ll be in some tropical nation that can’t afford the massive police state that the U.S. has built to imprison us all.