Myth: You Only Need 72 Hours of Food – Reality: Be Ready for Longer

GoBag.One™ | GoBag or Stay Home™

72 hours is the starting line, not the finish. I’ve ridden out storms and supply hiccups that stretched a “long weekend” into a quiet week of thin shelves and slow service. If you can hold strong for 3 days, great—now build to 10–14. That’s where normal disruptions stop being emergencies and turn into inconveniences you barely notice.

Key Takeaways

• 72 hours = baseline. Target 10–14 days at home with shelf-stable food you actually eat.
• Plan by calories, not vibes. Rough rule: 2,000 kcal/day/adult, scaled by age, size, and work level.
• No-cook options matter. When fuel is tight, you still eat—ready-to-eat meals, pouches, and cold-soak items keep you moving.

Main Points

1) Do the math once, eat calmly later.
Write it down: people × days × calories. Two adults for 14 days at 2,000 kcal/day is 56,000 kcal. Add kids and adjust (teens who eat like linebackers count as adults). You don’t need perfection—just a number you can build toward. Track what you already eat; buy extras of those items first.

2) Build a pantry, not a museum.
You want food you rotate through monthly—rice, pasta, oats, canned meat, beans, veggies, soups, shelf-stable milk, tortillas, nut butters, cooking oil, salt, sugar, coffee/tea, and morale boosters like chocolate or shelf-stable cheese. If it never hits your dinner table during normal life, it’ll collect dust and guilt. Buy what you eat, eat what you store.

3) No-cook + low-fuel layers.
Grid down or low on propane? You still eat. Stack items that work with zero flame: tuna and chicken pouches, ready rice (cold-soak acceptable), peanut butter, tortillas, granola, instant soups that will soften in warm water, canned chili/stews. Then your low-fuel plan: single-burner + small canisters, or a safe outdoor stove. Keep a metal pot, long lighter, windscreen, and a carbon-monoxide awareness plan—stoves are for outdoors or well-vented areas only.

4) Protein & fat carry the load.
Carbs are cheap calories; protein and fat carry performance. Aim for a daily spread you can tolerate: canned fish/chicken, beans + rice combos, shelf-stable cheese, nuts, and shelf-stable oils. If you’re working (tree cleanup, hauling water), you’ll feel the difference in recovery and mood.

5) Special diets aren’t special in an emergency—they’re mandatory.
Gluten-free, low-sodium, diabetes management, allergies—plan for it now. Swap in safe staples and keep a duplicate of your real-world snack bars and meal bases. Emergencies aren’t the time to experiment with your gut.

6) Water and food are married.
Dry staples assume water. Pair pantry builds with treatment (filter + tabs) and a stored water buffer. If you’re short on water, eat lower-sodium and higher-moisture items first. Keep at least a couple of no-water meals per day ready in case taps run ugly.

7) Rotate and label like a pro.
First-in, first-out (FIFO). Mark tops with a bold month/year. Keep a simple pantry card: add when you buy, subtract when you eat. When you hit a low threshold (e.g., “below 8 cans of beans”), you restock without thinking. Make rotation part of normal grocery day, not a prepper holiday.

8) Morale is a survival tool.
Bad weather + long nights = short tempers. A warm drink, a sweet bite, and familiar flavors keep morale steady. Don’t underestimate the power of hot cocoa when everyone’s wet and cranky.

Pro Tips

• Menu the stash: Build three 3-day menus you’d actually eat. Repeat and swap sides to stretch to 2 weeks.
• Cook once, eat twice: In outages, batch hot meals and save half for cold lunches—saves fuel and dishes.
• Quiet packaging: Transfer crinkly bags to gasketed bins; pests and noise both lose.
• Fuel math: Count boils and burns per canister. Keep a sharpie tally on the stove case so you don’t guess.
• Seasonal swap: Summer favors no-cook; winter leans hot, salty, higher-calorie. Adjust quarterly.

Related Links

72-Hour GoBag Checklist • Rotate & Refresh Your GoBag • Shelter-in-Place Supply Checklist

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