Make a Food Plan for the Next Winter Storm Outage

2/10/2020 (Permalink)

With a supply of non-perishable food on hand and some planning, you will be ready to safely outlast a winter storm power outage.

Snow or ice storms can knock out power quickly, and the outage can last for days or even a week or more. An urgent concern then will be how you will feed your family. You’ll weather the storm more easily and healthfully if you prepare by having a supply of water and nutritious food set aside.

Keep the Staples on Hand

It’s become a joke: those pre-storm shoppers emptying the grocery store of bread and milk. Avoid that last-minute trip by shopping for staples well before the storm hits. Throughout the year, pick up extra non-perishables, and periodically check for freshness, replacing older items as needed. Then, when a storm is in the forecast, check your stocks of food and plan what to eat first.

Healthy shelf-stable options include:

• canned fish or meat
• canned beans
• canned vegetables
• fruit (packed in fruit juice)
• pouches of fully cooked whole grains
• peanut butter
• nuts
• whole-wheat crackers
• snack bars
• breakfast cereal
• shelf-stable milk or plant milk (sold in aseptic boxes)
• bottled water

Will Your Refrigerated Foods Be Safe?

Keep your refrigerator closed and it will maintain a safe temperature—below 40° F—for about 4 hours, according to the Department of Agriculture . A full freezer will stay cold for 48 hours, and a half-full one for 24 hours. (Pro tip: fill your freezer and gain another 24 hours by filling containers with water and freezing them.) 

Some foods often stored in the refrigerator will keep for days at room temperature: bread, butter, fresh fruit and vegetables, jelly and hard cheeses (such as cheddar).

Putting it All Together

Sandwiches will be a go-to during your power outage. For fresh salads, combine canned fish or meats, pouches of precooked grains, vegetables, beans and/or fruits.

Do your best to keep meals balanced and healthy, and make sure everyone is drinking enough fluids. Another pro tip: Include fresh or dried fruits and fresh or canned vegetables in sufficient quantities so that all family members get enough fiber.

If you have school-age children, a power outage can be a great opportunity for them to take over the planning and preparation of meals. Give them guidelines (fruit/vegetable + grain + protein, for example) and let them make the choices.

Who knows: with preparation, that power outage you dreaded could even be the source of some important family memories.

If you have suffered damage from a storm or other disaster at your home or business, call SERVPRO of Bloomfield/Enfield at 860-216-2785

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If you have suffered damage from a storm or other disaster at your home or business, call SERVPRO of Bloomfield/Enfield at 860-216-2785