How much food do you currently have in your home? The average individual likely has less than a week's amount – and a fair percentage of it may be perishable. During a disaster, such as a hurricane or blizzard, this supply is insufficient. If you are to be self-sustaining for the next few weeks, stock up on freeze-dried food.

Help may not come for a few weeks. To prepare for any type of situation, you need food storage, with enough items to last you a year. But to accumulate such a vast amount of food, where do you start?

Begin with the basics: grains, dried beans, powdered milk, sugar, and oil. While these items can sustain you, they result in a limited diet. For variety, adding freeze-dried food is recommended.

Freeze-dried food comes in a kit, with portions of entrees or individual vegetables, fruits, carbohydrates, or proteins stored in pouches or #10 cans. All containers are airtight and can last five years to a few decades if unopened. Kits range in size, providing enough freeze-dried food to sustain an individual a few weeks to a year. If all recommended portions are followed, a freeze-dried food kit allows you to live on 1,000 to 2,000 calories per day and get all nutrients for staying healthy and alert during a disaster.

When it comes to actually serving freeze-dried food, how to you prepare it? Because resources are limited during an emergency, freeze-dried meals involve minimal preparation. All you need is hot water, which is added to a serving. The water rehydrates the freeze-dried food, and after a few minutes, the meal is ready to eat. Some prefer to cook, rather than relying on prepared entrees, however, and freeze-dried food still allows you to do so. If cooking equipment is available, you just need to rehydrate servings of vegetables, fruits, protein, or carbohydrates and combine them together in a pot or pan.

Although unopened cans and pouches of freeze-dried food can last many years, storage conditions are crucial to prevent deterioration. All containers need to be kept in a dark, cool, and dry place; light and moisture decrease the quality of the food. Closets, crawlspaces, and some basements are ideal. These spaces, however, need to be free of chemicals: no cleaning supplies, and the food should not be kept in a trash can or liner. The containers, as well, should not be buried in the ground.

Although pouches typically contain two servings of food, #10 cans have several. Preparing all food from a can at once is not recommended. Instead, the leftovers need to still be kept in an airtight container. Three possible options can be used: freezing the food, storing it in an airtight bag, or re-sealing the #10 can. All leftover freeze-dried food, once stored properly, can last a year.