What’s the best canned food for emergencies? Learn about the best canned food for survival and get a canned emergency food list. Whether you’re prepping for a natural disaster or another emergency, having a stockpile of cheap foods with a long shelf life will help. If you don’t know the importance of canned foods in the emergency kit, you will after reading this!

When we’re talking about what makes canned goods nourishing, we want them to have a variety of nutrients to keep us healthy over the long haul. Your nonperishable foods list items should include all of the following:

• Enough calories for you and your family members to prevent unintentional weight loss
• Adequate protein
• Fat
• Carbohydrates (even low carb foods have some)
• All of the essential vitamins in adequate amounts
• All of the essential minerals in adequate amounts
• Fiber
• A supply of water

It’s also important that emergency canned food is easy to prepare. You may not have electricity for cooking in an emergency, so foods that are ready to eat are helpful. If there’s no water, having items in your food stockpile that aren’t dehydrated are needed.

Canned foods are great in areas prone to flooding, because they won’t get immediately damaged in water like foods in boxes. The long shelf life of canned foods allows you to stay in longer during a pandemic (or zombie apocalypse or whatever life throws at you). You may also want canned food for your earthquake kit or in preparation for winter storms.

🥫 Best Canned Food for Emergencies

Canned Vegetables

Low-acid canned foods, such as many canned veggies, last 2-5 years if left unopened in a cool, dry pantry. That said, many canned items are fine past the “use by” or “best by” date. Just make sure the can has no swelling, dents, or rust before eating.

• Canned Corn
• Peas
• Carrots
• Canned Green Beans
• Sweet Potatoes
• Canned Pumpkin

Dried Fruits

Freeze-dried fruit and regular dried fruit in cans are some of the best food to stockpile. They’re much lighter than regular canned fruits, perfect for camping or hiking. Regular dried fruit lasts in the pantry at least 6 months or longer without declining in quality.

• Canned Banana Chips
• Canned Dried Strawberries
• Raisins
• Canned Freeze Dried Blueberries
• Canned Freeze Dried Raspberries

Canned Meat

When thinking about the best foods to store for long term survival, don’t forget to include sources of high-quality protein. Beef, pork, seafood, and poultry are all readily available in cans at most major supermarkets in the US. Meats are considered low acid canned foods, and will last in the pantry 2-5 years.

• Canned Ground Beef
• Canned Freeze Dried Pulled Pork
• SPAM
• Canned Deviled Ham

Canned Chicken

A lot of folks don’t eat beef and pork, but no worries. You can still get plenty of high-quality protein from poultry, fish, and dairy foods. Like the meats, canned poultry is considered low-acid and will maintain quality in the pantry for 2-5 years.

• Canned chicken chunks
• Canned whole chicken
• Turkey in a can

Cereal and Granola

Having a supply of grains on hand is a smart move for a cheap source of energy during emergency situations. Many cereals in the US are heavily fortified with assorted essential vitamins and minerals. This can help you prevent deficiencies over the long haul.

• Canned Honey Nut O’s cereal
• Canned Cocoa Rice Crispies cereal
• Mountain House granola

Eggs

Eggs are another way to add high-quality protein to your emergency food stockpile, and they’re perfect for vegetarians. You can get egg powder for baking, or scrambled eggs that just need water and heat. Look for ready-to-eat canned eggs in stores that specialize in East Asian foods.

• Freeze dried scrambled eggs
• Canned egg white powder
• Canned quail eggs

Peanut Butter

Add peanut butter to your emergency foods list because it has a long shelf life and packs a lot of calories into a small portion. You can get canned peanut butter powder that lasts up to 5 years. Alternatively, if your family goes through a lot of nut butter, get a peanut butter bucket that lasts 6-24 months.

Canned Beans

Beans and certain other legumes are a great source of fiber and an important source of plant-based protein in vegan and vegetarian diets. Purchase beans with no added salt if you’re on a low sodium diet. Canned beans can be better than dried beans in an emergency, because they’re ready to eat.

• Canned black beans
• Canned chickpeas
• Lentils
• Ready Harvest pinto beans
• Gluten-free black bean burger mix

Nuts and Seeds

Nuts and seeds make the cut for best non perishable food for emergency because they are high calorie and take little storage space. They’re also rich in healthy fats and provide a little protein as well.

• Canned mixed nuts
• Boiled peanuts
• Cashews, almonds, and pecans

Pasta, Oats, Rice

The best emergency stockpile will contain some foods that are not in cans as well. This will help you achieve a well-rounded selection of foods to help prevent nutrient deficiencies. I like to store dried foods in five gallon food-safe buckets to keep bugs and dust out.

• Best high calorie bars for gaining weight
• Dried pasta
• Rice
• Oatmeal

Baby Formula

If you have an infant dependent on formula at home, you should add the baby’s formula to your emergency foods stockpile. If possible, get some ready to feed formula that does not require a source of water.

Medical Food

I never see medical foods make emergency food lists, but if you have a medical condition that requires them, they’re critical. Talk to your dietitian or physician about storing extra PKU formula or other medically necessary foods in case of emergency. Even if you’re highly dependent on something simple like Ensure, you’re going to want to make sure you have extra on hand.

If you want to cook food during a power outage, they recommend candle warmers, fondue pots, or using the fireplace indoors. Use camp stoves and charcoal grills outside only. We have this small and inexpensive propane camping stove to use in case of emergencies.

If in the midst of a food shortage or other crisis, consider indoor gardening for some easy to grow plants. Sprouting broccoli seeds, growing popcorn greens, scallions, and lettuce are all fast and easy. Another idea is to experiment with foraging (and maybe try this dandelion vinegar).

One final element to add to your plan is to use food waste as much as possible. For example, use all parts of the carrot by making carrot greens pesto. Turn beef bones or chicken carcasses into a nourishing bone broth.

What foods are best to stock in case of an emergency- canned or dry MRE types?

MREs aren’t really meant for civilians and are more expensive and harder to find than canned goods. That said, canned goods are heavier and may rust if left in damp conditions for too long. I recommend a mix of canned foods and inexpensive Humanitarian Daily Rations (HDRs), which are basically MREs for civilians.

⛺ What’s the best canned food for camping?

IMO, freeze dried canned foods are best for camping because they’re lightest to carry. If you have access to water and a heat source for cooking, preparing freeze dried camping meals is easy.

🥔 What 2 foods can you survive on?

There was an interesting article by the BBC a while back about how you could meet most of your nutrient needs with just milk and potatoes (especially if you include a little oatmeal too). That said, you’d have to eat A LOT of both foods daily, and it certainly wouldn’t be an ideal diet.

👨‍🍳 Survival Canned Food Recipes

Now that you know some foods to stock up on, here are some easy recipes for canned foods:

• Potatoes from a Can
• Asparagus in a Can
• Canned Tamales
• Baked Canned Sardines
• Canned Corned Beef Hash

Did I miss any of your favorite canned foods for food storage? Drop me a comment and tell me about it!