My Emergency Freezer Storage

Although a dry storage pantry is a good way to keep many foods, I've found that's it's more economical to keep some foods in frozen form. This would include eggs, some of our milk, and most of our meat. 

• Powdered eggs are very expensive, yet fresh eggs are relatively easy to freeze and take up just a small amount of freezer space (see this post on freezing eggs). 
• With regards to milk -- as many of you likely discovered this spring, powdered non-fat milk is expensive. Powdered whole milk (I use whole milk for making yogurt) is even more so. Most of us only have so much freezer-space to give over to those large gallon jugs of milk. So, I freeze several months' worth of whole milk for making yogurt and enough jugs of 2% drinking milk to get through about 1 to 2 months. The rest of our emergency milk is powdered non-fat, bought as cheaply as I could find.
• I do stock some canned meat. However, for variety and economy, fresh meat kept in the freezer is my preference.

So, what all did I buy (or plan to buy) for my emergency freezer supplies? Here's my list:

eggs and dairy

• eggs, frozen in pint containers, 6 eggs per each container, total of 10 dozen -- egg prices are still low, so I may add another 5 dozen eggs to the freezer in the next couple of weeks. This would give us a 3-month supply of eggs.
• whole milk, frozen in gallons for making yogurt, enough to make yogurt for 3 to 4 months. (I will add some 2% gallons for drinking as room allows in the next few weeks.)
• 5-lb bags of cheese (I was able to buy a few bags of mozzarella when prices were super low -- about $1.70/lb)

meat

• frozen whole chickens
• frozen hamburger patties (Walmart, GV, less expensive per pound than fresh ground beef)
• frozen hot dogs
• frozen bacon (both turkey and pork, bought before prices skyrocketed)
• frozen pork sausage links
• frozen ham
• I may add 1 or 2 whole turkeys this fall

fruits and vegetables

• frozen foraged and garden berries -- we plan on picking wild blackberries again this year. Last year we picked 16 ice cream pails full.
• chopped rhubarb -- I freeze it on trays then put in a gallon ziploc
• quarts of homemade rhubarb sauce
• frozen orange and apple juice concentrate, enough for several months (Walmart, GV)
• some garden herbs, basil and rosemary -- they retain more flavor when frozen as opposed to dried

fats and oils

• frozen butter (restaurant supply, case of 30 1-lb blocks, bought when prices were super low)

There's a major difference that affects quantity and choice between a dry storage and freezer emergency storage -- capacity. Unless you live in an RV or tiny house, your capacity for dry storage is actually quite large. You can store canned goods in spare closets, laundry rooms, basements, cabinets/armoires/trunks in living spaces, under beds, behind sofas, almost anywhere except bathrooms (too humid for many goods). In contrast, with freezer storage, the limit is quite obvious. Many of us just have the freezer attached to our refrigerator. Some of us also have a stand-alone freezer. I'm quite fortunate to have abundant freezer space. 

If I had to prioritize freezer space while thinking of frugality and stocking up for an emergency, I would focus on meat (because the price on meat can fluctuate greatly and I wouldn't want to be caught out with too little meat for an extended period), eggs (they take so little space to store in the freezer and we know that egg prices rise every fall through winter), canned juice concentrate (also takes up little room, with cans fitting in gaps between other items), and some butter (but only if found on sale). 

With surplus garden or foraged produce -- if my freezer space were limited, I would focus on canning those items. And for the milk, I would keep powdered milk on hand instead of freezing gallon jugs of milk, as milk takes up a lot of space in a freezer and powdered is a good alternative in an emergency.

Also, you should know that I have other foods in my freezer, just none that I bought specifically to get through an extended period without shopping. For example, I freeze leftovers, homemade stock, homemade bread and buns, ice cream in season, other meat that I find great deals on, some frozen veggies, and odds and ends from the garden. These are items that we use on a regular basis and are not held aside to use at a later date.

In addition to the emergency pantry, we have always planned on using the garden and orchard for at least a little fresh produce from March through October. The garden and orchard have always been a component of our "back-up plan."


Next week, I'll share how I ensure we use everything spread over a long period, while maintaining a lot of variety every week.