Food and food equipment

Food and Food Equipment

Earthquake SOLUTIONS

Everyone seems to want food.

But note this, however: You can live without food for some time. You canNOT live without adequate water. In fact, food is probably less important than a number of other things including, for instance, proper emergency lighting. If you are suddenly in the dark, surrounded by broken glass and debris, spark-free lighting may prevent an injury. All foods tend to be less appetizing when you're bleeding! So, if your budget is limited, or space is tight, you might want to delay buying emergency food.

Datrex Coast Guard Approved food bars

Coast Guard Approved (CGA) Emergency Food Rations:

CGA food rations are made from a cookie recipe, and there are no artificial ingredients. Yet the packaging technology is such that the food has a five-year shelf life! And rather than thinking it is something you could eat only if desperate, we find that the opportunity to taste samples in our showroom or at safety fairs pretty much dispels that myth for most people. Also, we actually have problems keeping the children from coming back for seconds....and thirds.......

Our Datrex brand is unique in the CGA food market, as unlike the others, each meal portion is separately wrapped inside the outer package. This allows you to avoid the potential loss or contamination of the food once the outer package is opened.

The food is very compact. It's primary use is for car kits and evacuation packs. Unlike a "normal" healthy diet, it is high in fats and sugars. The sugars give immediate hunger satisfaction, and the fats provide sustained comfort and energy. This concentration of fats and sugars also allows sufficient daily calories (1200 per day) to be concentrated in a bar that takes up minimal space and does not weigh too much in an evaucation pack.

There is also a less obvious advantage to the recipe composition. By being deliberately low on protein in the first few days after a major disaster, it will reduce the output of solid human waste and simplify difficult sanitation issues.

Datrex CGA food comes in two sizes:

3600-calorie, which is known as the "3-day" bar (supports one person for up to three days)
2400-calorie, which is known as the "2-day" bar (supports one person for up to two days)

Retail Pricing:

3600-calorie, 3-day bar, $6.00 each, or $120.00 for a case of 20.
2400-calorie, 2-day bar, $4.00 each, or $120.00 for a case of 30.

Bulk order prices for mulitple cases are significantly LESS expensive. Please contact us for a specific quotation.

Propane Camp Stove:

This two-burner propane camp stove from Texsport is less expensive than many Coleman models. Furthermore, it utilizes a brass connector system instead of rubber hoses. This is much safer, as rubber hoses deterioriate over time, and an unseen pinhole leak can cause a flash fire.

Just remember that it is not a good idea to do any cooking during the first three days after a major quake. Aftershocks can knock over the stove and fuel potentially causing serious burns and/or fires. Also, never cook or use such stoves indoors, which can cause carbon monoxide poisoning.

Propane Cylinders:

A regular one-pound cylinder is usually enough fuel for most families to cook meals for two to three days.

Retail price:

$2.25

Lexan Cutlery:

Lexan is a wonderful lightweight, heat-resistant and easy to clean cutlery popular with campers and backpackers. Strong and durable, and feels good in the hands. Do NOT plan on regular plasticware for your emergency kits, as it will break easily, and also you'll build up a lot of dirty trash, when regular trash service may be down, and there are already literally tons of debris from collapsed block walls etc. Lexan has a smooth finish without seams. It is easy to wash and wipe clean.

Retail Price:

Four-piece trail set: $3.00

Three-piece set with handy connector ring: $2.50

Stay tuned....more products will appear here soon!

Here's a short list of some of them that will appear in more detail soon:

Brain Garden foods

Long-term food storage pails and Gamma Lids

Perma-Guard

Waterproof matches

Folding cups

Enamel-ware cups

Can openers

Books such as Catastrophic Cooking, and God's Free Harvest

See also the link to Flashlights and Emergency Lighting (under Products Overview) and look for the UCO lantern.

Meals-Ready-To-Eat (MREs):

In contrast to Coast Guard Approved rations, each of these packages is one full meal, ranging from 700-950 calories. Most menu items contain a main dish, crackers and some kind of spread for an appetizer, a side dish and/or dessert, plus an instant beverage and sometimes condiments.

No water is required for preparation except for the instant beverage, and the foods are fully cooked. All you do is slit and dig in ...the utensil and napkin are included. No refrigeration is needed, and the recommended shelf-life is five-years for most applications.

MREs are really not a good idea for car kits and other portable kits because three days of food would be bulky, cumbersome and heavy. However, if the intent is to use the food at a single site, such as a home or evcuation center, these are good choices. Having more "normal" food selections can greatly reduce the boredom that can be generated using the CGA rations alone.

Menu selections and sales limited to stock on hand. A la carte applesauce is also an excellent choice to have on hand for infants and toddlers.

$15.00 per full meal package.

$2.75 each for a la carte applesauce.

Works Like A Sports Beverage!

This gum works like a sports beverage to restore electrolytes and can help with proper body hydration. Proper hydration, in turn, is one of the important factors in avoiding heat exhaustion. Perhaps we should have listed this under the water category!

This is not a sweet gum, but a good item for practically everyone from runners to roofers living in the hot climates of Southern California and elsewhere. If an emergency happens on a 100-plus-degree day, and there is no air conditioning, maintaining hydration will be one of your highest concerns.

Unfortunately, this item does not have a long shelf life. Keep some in your car, but use or rotate it about every six months.

Retail price: $0.89 per six-stick package. Available in "original" flavor (lemon-lime), fruit punch, and orange flavors.

Waterproof Matches:

Matches are often useful, and considered a standard emergency supply. Furthermore, waterproof matches actually function, but waterproof and windproof matches rarely function well.

The most important thing to remember, however, is that matches or any open-flamed device should be used only if there is due respect for the safety of situation. Do not use matches or candles or camping stoves, for instance, in the immediate aftermath of an earthquake, or in high wind storms. The risk of something getting knocked over in an aftershock or gust is way too high. You also need to be particularly careful around small children or pets that might knock over a candle, for instance.

Waterproof matches are especially useful for extended emergencies, after the immediate dangers of the heaviest and most frequent aftershocks, for instance, have passed. Used with care, they will allow you to economically provide light in simple but extended power outages or rolling blackouts, when candles or hurricane lights might be an enjoyable alternative to flashlights and batteries.

$2.50 for a package of four boxes

Keep your matches securely in this convenient match box.

Magnesium Fire Starter:

Consider this easy and reliable way to make a small cooking fire in a charcoal barbeque or other safe place. (Remember, don't use charcoal or propane cooking or lighting devices indoors!). Instructions are right on the package.

Bulk pricing is available with 10 units or more. Please ask for quotation.

Oxygen Absorbers:

These are used to protect grains and other foods which are prepared in food pails for long-term storage. Use about six to eight per pail. It is so much easier and simpler to drop these in throughout the pail as it is filled, than to try to work with nitrogen. 50 per package.

Retail price:

$25.00