Cheaper Freeze Dried sites?

Discussion in 'General Survival and Preparedness' started by Bandit99, Feb 16, 2016.


  1. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    I was replying to a thread here on the tree and scared myself so much that I sat down to order some more Mountain House freeze dried proteins (Chicken and Beef) and got looking and... I cannot find anyplace cheaper than Amazon (by quite a bit). But, before I ordered I thought I would touch base here and see where most others go and/or recommendations. I have used Amazon in past with any problems for Mountain House...good price and good dates.

    Question: Cheapest place to purchase Mountain House?

    Question: Alternative brand to Mountain House that lasts 25 years and equal in taste but better price?

    Question: I have picked up a #10 Augason Beef vegetarian meat substitute at Walmart for $10, contains 40 servings. I am wondering if anyone has ever tried it?

    Rick
     
    Motomom34 likes this.
  2. T. Riley

    T. Riley Monkey+++

    image.
    98 cases, all Augason Farms. I have found no cheaper place to buy freeze dried anything than either there or Emergency Essentials WHEN they are on sale, 30+ percent off. For beans, rice, wheat, milk, oats; it's the LDS Store. I cannot afford Mountain House for the number of people I prep to feed, but I wouldn't buy it if I could. I would rather have more rice and beans. I may have more mouths to feed. And yes, I cook regularly with AF meat substitutes and my kids never know it.
     
  3. AD1

    AD1 Monkey+++

  4. Jeff Brackett

    Jeff Brackett Monkey+++

  5. Airtime

    Airtime Monkey+++

  6. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    @T. Riley Isn't Augason #10 only good for 10 years? I mean, they're certainly priced right compared to Mountain House. I have a couple, Potato Soup and Whole Eggs but both are only good until 2025... Please educate me...if anybody knows about dried food on this forum it is definite you. I do know about LDS and the seem pretty reason.

    @Jeff Brackett
    "Did you already check at Emergency Essentials?" Nope, but I am now. Thanks!

    @AD1 , Thanks!

    Rick
     
  7. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    What about MRE? Who make a good MRE on the civilian market...I wouldn't mine getting a case or two of those to have around also while I am buying. I have eaten a lot of military ones but never a civilian one. - Rick
     
  8. Brokor

    Brokor Live Free or Cry Moderator Site Supporter+++ Founding Member

    @RickR --It depends on the quantity you are looking to buy. If you are in the market for bulk orders, a specialty vendor is the best way to go because you can take advantage of bulk rate discounts. That's the best price you can ever hope to get, especially when they hold sales/specials. We do have an authorized vendor here, if interested. We also have a partners listing as well, which may be found here. Alternatively, we also have a marketplace on the forum for various buying and selling which may be helpful for other needs.

    Along the path of smaller scale buying, some of the same bulk vendors still apply, but Amazon and your local corporate retailer chain outlet may hold bargains, too.

    I only suggest #10 cans, not pouches. Powdered eggs store well, and there are some really good ones out there and some bad. Honeyville is the only brand I can recommend outside Mountain House. I wouldn't use Alpine Aire or Wise foods unless you had to. They aren't terrible, but by far neither are superior to MH. Tip: you can buy Honeyville foods on Amazon, too.

    Nope, haven't tried it. My experience with substitute anything never turned out good.
     
    Garand69 likes this.
  9. T. Riley

    T. Riley Monkey+++

    @RickR Different canned products have different shelf lives regardless of who you buy them from. It is usually stated as 10, 25 or 30 years and usually depends on the fat content of the product or the degree of processing. Wheat berries have a shelf life of 25+ years, but flour less. Same with whole corn vs corn meal, oats and oatmeal. Anything with baking powder and flour is usually 10 years or less because the baking powder goes flat and fats go rancid in time. When you break down a grain the fats are exposed to air and the clock starts ticking. Store whole grains and get a grain mill.

    Meat substitutes are flavored soy, textured vegetable protein (TVP), think Bacon Bits on your salad. The soy absorbs the flavors it's processed with and the texture is malupulated. Does it taste like a big juicy steak, no. But it does work well in tacos, soups, salads, casseroles, pasta dishes and sausage gravy. It also works well as an extender by mixing it half and half with real meat. Soy has as much or more protein as meat, usually.

    A #10 can of freeze dried meat usually cost around $40 (or more) and has 10 servings. That's $120 for one meal for a group of 30. I can feed a person for less than $1.50 a day (2,200 calories) with my food storage mix. Better to eat for a week cheap than to eat fine one time a week. When it hits the fan, it won't be over in a couple months, maybe ever.

    I buy for a 32 person group so I can't afford freeze dried meat and few freeze dried vegetables. There are no walk in places to buy food packaged for long term storage where I live so I have to order on the Internet and pay shipping. I buy the basics (wheat, rice, rolled oats, beans and milk) each month from LDS, and sugars, fats, salt and spices from SAMs. I have a wish list for everything else and I watch for sales, 40%+ off at Augason Farms, ThriveLife, Honeyville and Emergency Essentials. Walmart sells Augason Farms at usually 30% off the online price.

    Three of us in our group are opening a walk in retail outlet (inside another store) to sell Auguson Farm products through a wholesale dealer arrangement so people in our area will have at least one place to walk in and buy, with cash if they don't want a paper trail. Our goal is not to make money but to drive down the cost of our own purchases by buying in bulk. The picture above is our initial inventory.

    One of my favorite things to do is check the online stores the first day of each month early when they change their sale items. Often a product will be mispriced at a huge bargin. I order quickly and have never had them fail to honor the displayed price which is corrected sometimes during the day.

    I am not an expert and others may have better strategies, but this is what I will do until I learn from someone else.
     
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  10. oldawg

    oldawg Monkey+++

    We use Augason Farms for #10 cans here. Yes we use them day to day. Probably 5-6 cans open at any given times. Eat what you store, store what you eat. We buy it mostly through Wallyworld for the price and free shipping over 50 bucks. What others have said about the different foods having different shelf lives is right. If you haven't rotated a can of food out in 15-25 years you probably haven't gained the experience needed to prepare it in ways to avoid appetite fatigue and determine what and in what amounts to store. Beans,grains including say, rice are better bought in bulk from places like Honeyville or Waltons and parsed out and packaged yourself. Look into the LDS offerings including their list of items and amounts needed per person. They have been at it a LONG time...............except for more than one wife. My luck I'd wind up with another redhead and I don't think two ginger wives would work out well for me. [gone] [peep].
     
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  11. Garand69

    Garand69 Monkey++

    I second Honeyville Grain. Great product and you cannot beat the cost of shipping
     
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  12. AD1

    AD1 Monkey+++

  13. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    Thanks all!

    And, no, I didn't see the 'survival marketplace' before. @Brokor Thanks for pointing it out! - Rick
     
    Brokor likes this.
  14. Airtime

    Airtime Monkey+++

    A Packs manufactured by Ameriqual located in Evansville, IN. decent shelf life up to 5 years is kept cool, include heaters and only about 5 bucks a meal if you buy from right source by the case.
    Ameriqual - A LEADER in Food Processing, Packaging and Assembly
     
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  15. Airtime

    Airtime Monkey+++

    My experience is consistent with the above comments. We have also discussed some of this before plus FD in pouches:
    Review- Valley Food Storage | Survival Monkey Forums
    Third-Party Lab Study Finds Oxygen Levels in Wise Co Foods 110 Times Higher than in Mountain House | Page 2 | Survival Monkey Forums

    And in this post regarding medications under the section on Storage:
    https://www.survivalmonkey.com/posts/326836/

    Have fun.
    AT
     
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  16. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    @Airtime Thanks! I see they are one of the few who provide MRE for military so that's a positive also. Thanks! - Rick
     
  17. stg58

    stg58 Monkey+++ Founding Member

  18. Brokor

    Brokor Live Free or Cry Moderator Site Supporter+++ Founding Member

    I almost forgot about LDS, glad you mentioned it. :)
    Storefront: http://store.lds.org/webapp/wcs/sto...Id=715839595&ddkey=http:SetCurrencyPreference

    I still have cases and cases of food I bought from LDS..might need to rotate in the next 5 years. This LDS food pricing does beat Mountain House or any freeze dried food hands down, but take into account the limited choices you do have.
     
    Yard Dart likes this.
  19. VHestin

    VHestin Farm Chick

    The places I know about have all been mentioned, except for Thrive Foods. I plan to look into possibly buying from LDS center sometime this year. There's also bulkfoods.com but I don't know how they compare with other places, but their cocoa powder is cheaper than even the bulk bin cocoa powder at our usual grocery store(which is a dollar cheaper per pound than the pre-packaged stuff). Someone in chat here also recommended SaltWorks to me for Himalayan pink salt(which you could use in curing your own meats).
     
  20. Kingfish

    Kingfish Self Reliant

    Look at Legacy as well. I am currently pricing for a spring purchase.
     
    HK_User likes this.
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