Storing food long term is not easy.  There are many things that will go wrong and ruin the things you saved, it’s so aggravating to pack then away only to find a big mess later.  Here’s a list of things I’ve found that help the process:

1. Always use Ziploc bags on EVERYTHING.

It doesn’t seem to matter what you are storing, it will be affected by moisture in some way. Putting each group of like items or individual item in Ziplocks keeps moisture out, prevents odors from permeating packages, and keeps any packaging failure localized. I’ve had things rupture and ruin an entire 20 gallon Tupperware bin, bagging it would have stopped that from happening.  This is addition to a Tupperware bin, or cases of #10 cans in boxes.  Put one of the 20 gallon bags around any cardboard boxes, as they will absorb moisture and deteriorate.

2.  Don’t rely on desiccants, and NEVER use Damp-rid!

I made a few mistakes early on, the biggest was using Damp-rid inside containers. That stuff turns into a soupy mess of water and is highly corrosive. It ends up putting pools of water in your storage bin, which is exactly what you didn’t want. It’s far better to seal everything, and try to store in a low humidity environment. Silica gel may work, but I suspect it also gets saturated.

3. Be very careful with canned goods.

I have had soup rust through from the inside in only a few years, modern cans are not the same as the old tin plated soldered versions. People claim canned food will last decades, but that has not been my experience. I have no canned good in my storage as a result, it’s all dry mix.

4. Don’t store flour or corn meal unless there is no alternative.

They have very short shelf life, and can be made up from canned popcorn and wheat berries.  You could repack flours, but the taste and nutritional value is just not there.

5.  Buy items packed in metal cans or glass jugs/jars whenever possible.

Believe it when people say plastic is permeable. Same goes for paper, foil,  or cardboard. It doesn’t seem hold up to storage and picks up funky smells.  Many staples can be purchased in cans, from places like Emergency Essentials or Rainy Day Foods.  I switched over to cans on dried corn, baking powder/soda, cocoa, sugar, powered milk, drink and soup mixes, and spices. I got really tired of replacing stock. Example: I had a brand new plastic bottle of aspirin stored, the pills started growing whiskers and clumping together. I can only assume this was moisture getting in, but in any case it didn’t hold up.

6.  Buy powder vs liquid.

This is a shelf life and volume issue, the powders weight less and seem to keep longer than liquid versions.