It doesn't take a lot of money to get prepared. It might seem overwhelming at first but once you learn what is important and how to go about doing it then it becomes quite easy.
For instance. A 5 gallon bucket with lid from Lowes is $4.00 to $5.00. Six gallon Mylar bags are cheap when you buy 50 at a time. Oxygen absorber packs (they are a must) are also very cheap in bulk. Twenty five pounds of rice at Sams club is $12.00 or so. Macaroni, spaghetti, other pasta, pinto beans, oatmeal, cornmeal, sauce mixes, etc... are readily available at the local grocery store.
I put most dried foods in ziploc bags and poke holes in them with a toothpick.
Put the Mylar bag in the 5 gallon bucket. Put rice in the bottom. Put Spaghetti in the middle. Put bags of other food stuffs around the spaghetti. Add rice as packing material into the voids. Continue until full and use rice to even things out. Add oxygen absorber packs as directed (different sizes for different volumes). I use a long flexible plastic to suck a lot of the air out of the bag prior to sealing. Fold the Mylar bag over and iron shut with an iron on the highest setting. In a couple of days the oxygen absorber will take out the rest of the oxygen leaving the dried goods in an environment free from oxygen. You will now have 20 to 30 pounds of dried goods in a durable container with a shelf life of decades. Used sparingly this will last a family of 4 at least a week.
Remember. If it gets bad it won't be burgers on the grill anymore. It will be boring foods but boring foods are much preferred to hunger.
