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If you couldn’t do any food shopping from now...

143 replies

IsTheRainEverComingBack · 28/08/2018 18:55

How long could you last feeding your family on what’s already in your house? I’ve always been a bit of a food hoarder and eat a lot of staples (beans, lentils, rice, pasta) that are easy to store, but I’ve just looked round now and reckon I could probably feed us (just me and DP) adequately for a month definitely, maybe longer at a push, on just what I’ve currently got. How would you fair?

Might take myself up on my own challenge and see how long I can go without a food shop. If I can at least buy milk for my coffee as that’s the only thing I’m low on!

OP posts:
IsTheRainEverComingBack · 28/08/2018 20:30

I think I only have one or two tins of baked beans, they’re not the only thing you can keep in a cupboard you know?!

Tbh it’s very unlikely we’d suddenly have no money, but memories of those times stay with you. I can’t stand to not have enough of anything.

OP posts:
TheFairyCaravan · 28/08/2018 20:31

There’s only me and DH so about a month. I’ve gpt plans to sort out my food cupboard tomorrow because there’s probably a lot hiding at the back I’ve forgotten about.

HarrietSchulenberg · 28/08/2018 20:31

We have enough proper food for about 10 days worth of meals, but the kids would kill and eat me when the crisps ran out, which is likely to be tomorrow.

bpisok · 28/08/2018 20:39

Funnily enough I just did my internet shopping and my last order for £220 was 3 weeks ago, but that included 6 bottles of (cheap) wine, toiletries etc and we ate out 4 times. There's 3 of us but I don't eat meat but do eat fish and DD doesn't eat fish but probably eats meat once a week and DH will eat whatever he is given (except fruit)
If I absolutely couldn't get more food I reckon we could last another 2 weeks. In the cupboard/ freezer/fridge there's rice, several dried pastas, tinned toms, Tom purée smoked salmon, chorizo, tinned salmon, tinned beans and baked beans, soup, sweet corn etc weirdly loads of peppers still OK, tomatoes OK, fresh chilli and ginger, dried noodles, tinned bean sprouts, peanut butter, mushrooms and some broccoli but would need to be roasted, I have big potatoes still OK for roasting, onions, sweet potatoes, sour cream still in date, eggs, flour, soy sauce, coconut milk. In the freezer there's meat, chicken, salmon, flaky pasty, filo pastry, haddock, veggie burgers and sausages, spinach, oven chips, falafels, pizza, garlic bread (this is small freezer). I have garlic and chickpeas so could make hummus. There's passatta, pesto, bake in the oven bread, tinned tuna, cheddar, mozzarella, Camembert. Lots of dried herbs, spices, a jar of chilli, 3 lemons and a lime, garlic. So if I was being REALLY creative I reckon I could probably stretch it to 3 or 4 weeks? But by the end I probably wouldn't want to eat anything that appeared from my kitchen!!! Ask me on Thursday and I would say 7 or 8 weeks......but I would have to increase my wine order. Perhaps I will do that now 'just in case' 😀😀😀😀😀

ElizabethinherGermanGarden · 28/08/2018 20:42

Just been and worked this out. Bit staggered but I reckon 4-5 months. 😮

RedLemonade · 28/08/2018 20:46

Hmm. I’ve very little by way of stashes of tinned goods but God bless DH because he’s actually gone a good way to making us self-sufficient this past year or two. Potatoes, tomatoes, beetroot, cabbage, frozen blackberries and blackcurrants. Lots of nettles and other random things I’d never have thought of eating too.

We’ve friends with chickens and bees too so could barter a bit. Could get us through the winter assuming war/pestilence/looters weren’t an issue and we could keep planting.

Wow... well done DH.

champagneplanet · 28/08/2018 20:46

We could go about two weeks, week three would consist of very plain food or odd concoctions. Nice to know we could get through if we had to. We'd miss fresh fruit and milk though, we go through that by the truck load.

I used to overbuy and a lot ended up in the bin, now I meal plan but always have extras in the store cupboard/freezer.

Bestseller · 28/08/2018 20:49

I reckon we could survive for about three months but the meals would be mostly carbs after about a week.

RiddleyW · 28/08/2018 20:54

About a month I think. Have lentils pasta tinned beans of various sorts. Quite a lot of flour so could make bread. Tomatoes from the garden and aubergines. I’m amazed at people saying months - I don’t have the cupboard space!

LikeLemondrops · 28/08/2018 20:55

Probably 2 weeks for 4 of us. Have frozen veg and fruit, tin toms, rice, pasta and garlic as well as spices and several portions of raw meat in the freezer.

BigBumandMumTum · 28/08/2018 20:56

My ex has a zero hour contract. I've got used to stockpiling, I make enough for us to eat and 2/3 portions to freeze. I have a chest freezer full

I also have bread mixes, dried things like pulses, pasta,rice etc, uht/soya milk,

We could live for 2 weeks on my general food.

Probably another month at least on my stockpile

BigBumandMumTum · 28/08/2018 20:57

Actually, make that 2. It wouldn't be very exciting food but we would manage.

And there's 5 of us

FurryDogMother · 28/08/2018 20:59

Months. I have loads of tinned soups, tomatoes, sweetcorn, spinach, fruit and beans, piles of pasta, rice, noodles and legumes, lots of various flours and yeast, a couple of tinned Fray Bentos pies from way back when, some microwaveable 'steamed' puddings, and then there's the fresh stuff in the fridge and a full freezer, plus potatoes and onions. We could probably survive on wine for a week or so, too! My spice collection is huge, so the legumes wouldn't be too boring, and we have plenty of instant coffee and teabags, 'cos I stock up on them when they're on special offer. Also sugar and sweeteners, growing herbs and chillies on the windowsill, and around 10 gallons of home made wine and mead which is almost drinkable ;) Oh, and there are a few part-baked baguettes and rolls as well, and some long life skimmed milk and almond milk.

bambootwentytwo · 28/08/2018 21:02

I reckon 2 weeks fairly easily. A month if I rationed stuff

Honeyroar · 28/08/2018 21:05

Six to eight weeks. I cook from fresh in bulk and freeze. Ive just done a load of cooking.

Another lentil eater here too. Love them!

irregularegular · 28/08/2018 21:07

I think I get the same kind of satisfaction from running down the fridge (no waste, forces you to improvise) and "just in time" inventory management (never run out of stuff, but never more than I need either) as some of you get from full cupboards.

And yes I do know you can store other things than baked beans. All food takes up more space than having savings. It was just illustrative!!!

NipInTheAir · 28/08/2018 21:07

Not long
1.5 bags pasta
1 Uncle Bens Quick Cook
1 tin beans.
2 tins toms
3 pckts cereal
1 sirloin steak
3 eggs
1 loaf
1 pckt cereal bars
2lb sugar
2lb flour
1lb cheese.
1 bag salad
1 cu
6 peppers
Cipboard of oils and herbs
Pckt frozen peas
Pckt frozen chips
2 frozen yorkies
1/2 chicken
2 onions
1 leek
Bag of carrots
Plus the current apple, tomato and hazelnut glut. OMG the hazlenut tree. 400 apples/8-10 toms a day
Oh, some basil and a mozzarella
Two rasperry tarts
Custard
30ish T bags
Jar coffee
Bag coffee beans
Hit choc
Mint tea
Crackers and camembert
16 rashers
Pckt noodles
Two tins tom soup
A well stocked cellar

About 5 days - 4 adults
Can we eat the cat?

stressedtiredbuthappy · 28/08/2018 21:18

Me and 2yo dd, if I had to I suppose 3-4 weeks? But it wouldn't be enjoyable just to survive, freezer is packed and cupboards have plenty.
As we're lucky we can get at what we want , I'll probably go a small shop in a few days.

NipInTheAir · 28/08/2018 21:27

If I had more rice, pasta and yeast reckon we cd last 8 days.

Getoffthetableplease · 28/08/2018 21:28

Um I'm not sure 2 eggs, 3 dubious looking potatoes, half a bag of frozen peas, 2 bananas and some garlic is going to last all that long for 4 of us and 2 pooches Blush

I know we have nothing atm but how do you all have so much?

keyboardkate · 28/08/2018 21:28

Milk can be frozen as can butter.

In an emergency I would only use milk for tea/coffee. So I pour the milk with a funnel (great fun!) into those ice cube making bags, freeze, then pop one or two as needed.

Porridge is a staple. Make it on water, pop a cube or two of milk and then honey. Keeps you going.

Tea is essential, not mad about coffee.

I also keep a carton of buttermilk and some bicarb in. The buttermilk lasts for ages. Just to make homemade soda bread and slather with real butter. You don't need much else besides CHEESE, which also freezes well, but crumbles when defrosted, who cares.

A few tins of tuna/salmon and corned beef.

Some stuff in the freezer, but not that much.

I think I'd survive for about a week or two. No veg, no fruit, but have multivitamin effervescent tabs instead during the emergency yay.

A few of bottles of wine, good cognac and vodka +mixers essential too!

Enjoying the thread.

HashTagLil · 28/08/2018 21:30

3 weeks but could probably eke it out to 4 if needed. There'd be no wine milk after the first week though!

shouldwestayorshouldwego · 28/08/2018 21:36

Without food shopping probably about 2-3 weeks. Without a fresh supply of Sainsbury's Lego cards am struggling to persuade ds to go more than a few hours!

eltsihT · 28/08/2018 21:39

I think a month I could live pretty well, then I would struggle but be ok for a bit longer,

I have powdered milk (which I use for camping) and lots of flours so suspect I could exist on scones once th bread flour rubs out.

bpisok · 28/08/2018 21:41

@Getoffthetableplease - didn't think we did have a lot. Do you cook from scratch?
DH and DD regularly look in the fridge and decide there's nothing to eat.....then are surprised when they get a mushroom stroganoff, a home made pizza and garlic bread, a curry etc

I do have a golden rule though. If it takes me longer to prep than it does to eat then I am not making it!!