Food preservation and disaster preparedness
People need to more resilient in the face of climate change. I’ve talked about reducing the chance of flooding and the damaged it can cause. I’ve also talked about ways to increase food production. Resiliency requires food preservation and storage.
If an island is hit by a major hurricane the food system will be disrupted between 6 months and a year. I think it is prudent for families under such threats to save up at least a 3 month supply of food. Water filtration or other water purification methods is also a good idea.
You don’t have to be a prepper or a Mormon to stockpile some food and water. And you don’t have to live on an island to benefit from stocking basic foods routinely used. I don’t recommend buying expensive long shelf life disaster food from some website. People can buy extra when things are on sale with the goal of an extra week, then extra month, then extra three months of food. Longer is better.
When I had a large garden we canned, made jelly, and pickled some of the produce. I dried apples from my trees in Missouri. As a test I kept them in the basement in paper bags stapled shut. They tasted fine after 18 and 24 months. After 30 months some tasted a bit old. However, I had no luck saving dried mango in the Upper West during the very humid rainy search even with plastic bags.
Home canning with great tasting vegetables and sauces is a good way to save the taste of summer into the winter and early spring for those in the states and other places with a long winter. I presume Peace Corps volunteers in Eastern Europe see canning during homestay.
I’ve not seen a pressure canner nor caning jars on the island. Jars are bulky and break and are therefore not the perfect solution in any event. I would not push the idea of home canning here, although if I was here for a long time I might practice it.
I don’t think canning is necessary because people already practice traditional food preservation techniques. I see salt fish drying in the sun by the fishing community on my bus trips to Grenville. People still know how to smoke and dry meat. Such skills are particularly important immediately after a disaster when electricity (freezers) are disrupted and livestock pens might be damaged beyond immediate repair.
Many foods can be preserved by drying. It would be interesting to use the geothermal heat to dry local produce. This should work on a large scale without using much electricity possibly as part of a co-op.
Plantains, bananas, pineapples and such can readily be dried. Dried yams, sweet potatoes, okra, tomatoes can be used in soups and other traditional foods. New recipes to include yam flour and others could also be perfected to local tastes and shared.
The goal would be to preserve bountiful harvest, provide upscale export products, and produce local disaster foods so a reasonably normal diet can be maintained after an unfortunate event. All this improves the economy and resiliency of the people.
There is enough food produced on the islands to build up a good stock for disaster supplies. I think that families are best to decide what foods they need to stockpile for a disaster. The government can supplement the safeguard presuming warehouses are properly constructed for food storage and located where the temperature is generally cooler. Building up the stockpile with a large scale drying and packaging operation during times of agricultural overproduction both for disaster food supplies and for the upscale export market seems to be an easy win for many islands.
Food stockpiles should be rotated so the oldest food is used first. Multiple five gallon buckets or plastic shipping barrels could be used. As dried and canned goods are moved from one container to the kitchen they are replaced into another container. The containers should be waterproof with tight fitting lids for protection in the event of a storm. The goal is to not have to rush out the day before a storm to try to buy a few things left on the shelves at the store.
Some dry items might not last three to six months on the shelf without additional protection in humid climates. Dried beans for example might harbor insect eggs. Freezing beans before air tight storage is one method to kill the eggs.
Oxygen absorbers can be used to extend the quality and shelf life of foods when combined with Mylar bags. Mylar bags are those shiny bags that are easily heat sealed. Oxygen absorbers are small packets of iron that bind the oxygen. They are placed in the bags, glass jars, and other containers after filled with dry food and then sealed. If enough of the oxygen is removed then bugs should not be a problem for beans, grains, and such.
Note: Oxygen absorbers are different from desiccants like food grade silica gel. Both have uses in food preservation.
Food protected from light, moisture, and oxygen and stored at moderate temperatures will last much longer than unprotected food. This approach could also be used extend the shelf life of disaster provisions to reduce the need to rotate stock. It is certainly possible to preserve many foods normally used on the islands for several years without much difficulty.
Oxygen absorbers are only needed for certain foods to be kept for a long time. Some dry food, like granulated sugar and salt don’t need them. Sugar tends to form a hard block when so stored. Dried food expected to be used within a few months don't benefit from the extra expense. There are many preparedness websites with more detailed information on techniques for long term storage of various foods.
It is certainly better for the islands to import empty bags, oxygen absorbers, vacuum sealers, and such to create disaster and relief supplies on island compared to importing expensive prepacked food. This is easily within the means of families, businesses, and island nations.
Love always,
John
If an island is hit by a major hurricane the food system will be disrupted between 6 months and a year. I think it is prudent for families under such threats to save up at least a 3 month supply of food. Water filtration or other water purification methods is also a good idea.
You don’t have to be a prepper or a Mormon to stockpile some food and water. And you don’t have to live on an island to benefit from stocking basic foods routinely used. I don’t recommend buying expensive long shelf life disaster food from some website. People can buy extra when things are on sale with the goal of an extra week, then extra month, then extra three months of food. Longer is better.
Food preservation
When I had a large garden we canned, made jelly, and pickled some of the produce. I dried apples from my trees in Missouri. As a test I kept them in the basement in paper bags stapled shut. They tasted fine after 18 and 24 months. After 30 months some tasted a bit old. However, I had no luck saving dried mango in the Upper West during the very humid rainy search even with plastic bags.
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| My solar drying worked well in the dry season in Ghana |
 |
| Mangoes arrived near the end of the dry season - perfect time for drying |
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| Dried mangoes at the start of the rainy season. Worse time ever |
Home canning with great tasting vegetables and sauces is a good way to save the taste of summer into the winter and early spring for those in the states and other places with a long winter. I presume Peace Corps volunteers in Eastern Europe see canning during homestay.
I’ve not seen a pressure canner nor caning jars on the island. Jars are bulky and break and are therefore not the perfect solution in any event. I would not push the idea of home canning here, although if I was here for a long time I might practice it.
I don’t think canning is necessary because people already practice traditional food preservation techniques. I see salt fish drying in the sun by the fishing community on my bus trips to Grenville. People still know how to smoke and dry meat. Such skills are particularly important immediately after a disaster when electricity (freezers) are disrupted and livestock pens might be damaged beyond immediate repair.
Many foods can be preserved by drying. It would be interesting to use the geothermal heat to dry local produce. This should work on a large scale without using much electricity possibly as part of a co-op.
Plantains, bananas, pineapples and such can readily be dried. Dried yams, sweet potatoes, okra, tomatoes can be used in soups and other traditional foods. New recipes to include yam flour and others could also be perfected to local tastes and shared.
The goal would be to preserve bountiful harvest, provide upscale export products, and produce local disaster foods so a reasonably normal diet can be maintained after an unfortunate event. All this improves the economy and resiliency of the people.
 |
| Many things can be dried |
 |
| This is the type of dehydrator I used in the states. The high price of electricity on the island may warrant other methods. |
Food stockpiles should be rotated so the oldest food is used first. Multiple five gallon buckets or plastic shipping barrels could be used. As dried and canned goods are moved from one container to the kitchen they are replaced into another container. The containers should be waterproof with tight fitting lids for protection in the event of a storm. The goal is to not have to rush out the day before a storm to try to buy a few things left on the shelves at the store.
Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers
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| Mylar bags and optionally oxygen absorbers, are a way in significantly increase the shelf life of food |
Some dry items might not last three to six months on the shelf without additional protection in humid climates. Dried beans for example might harbor insect eggs. Freezing beans before air tight storage is one method to kill the eggs.
Oxygen absorbers can be used to extend the quality and shelf life of foods when combined with Mylar bags. Mylar bags are those shiny bags that are easily heat sealed. Oxygen absorbers are small packets of iron that bind the oxygen. They are placed in the bags, glass jars, and other containers after filled with dry food and then sealed. If enough of the oxygen is removed then bugs should not be a problem for beans, grains, and such.
Note: Oxygen absorbers are different from desiccants like food grade silica gel. Both have uses in food preservation.
Food protected from light, moisture, and oxygen and stored at moderate temperatures will last much longer than unprotected food. This approach could also be used extend the shelf life of disaster provisions to reduce the need to rotate stock. It is certainly possible to preserve many foods normally used on the islands for several years without much difficulty.
Oxygen absorbers are only needed for certain foods to be kept for a long time. Some dry food, like granulated sugar and salt don’t need them. Sugar tends to form a hard block when so stored. Dried food expected to be used within a few months don't benefit from the extra expense. There are many preparedness websites with more detailed information on techniques for long term storage of various foods.
It is certainly better for the islands to import empty bags, oxygen absorbers, vacuum sealers, and such to create disaster and relief supplies on island compared to importing expensive prepacked food. This is easily within the means of families, businesses, and island nations.
Love always,
John
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