Long term food storage that actually holds up

White rice, hard wheat berries, dried beans, rolled oats, and pasta in Mylar with oxygen absorbers all reach 25-30 years stored cool and dark. Honey, sugar, and salt last indefinitely if kept dry. Powdered milk and freeze-dried meats reach 10-25 years. Fats and oils are the short-lived category - 2 to 5 years - and need rotation, not deep storage.

Build over 12-20 weeks instead of buying everything at once. Weeks 1-4: rice, beans, water. Weeks 5-8: canned goods, pasta. Weeks 9-12: fats, proteins, seasonings. Weeks 13-16: freeze-dried meals and specialty items. Weeks 17-20: supplements, comfort foods, redundancy. Roughly $1-$2 per person per day buys a 30-day supply over a few months.

Food-grade 5-gallon buckets with gamma-seal lids, lined with 5-mil or thicker Mylar bags, sealed with an iron or impulse sealer over an appropriately-sized oxygen absorber. The bucket protects the Mylar from punctures and pests; the Mylar holds the oxygen-free environment that gives food a 25-year shelf life. Direct-into-bucket without Mylar gives you about 2-5 years.

Below 75F, dark, and dry. Every 10F decrease roughly doubles shelf life, so 65F storage is dramatically better than 80F. Avoid garages, sheds, and attics where temperatures swing widely - those swings damage food faster than oxygen does. Interior closets, basements, and insulated pantries are ideal.

HAVEN's Supplies tab tracks every container with packing date, weight, category, and best-by date. It calculates coverage in days based on household size, alerts you to expiring items, and supports first-in, first-out rotation so nothing sits forgotten. Works completely offline.