These survival kits are designed to supply you with all the product you will need to make it through the first 72 hours following a natural disaster or terrorist attack. Although many items are included, there are some personal things that would be beneficial for you to add to your kit.

How Long Does Stored Food Last?

Canned Food

Canned food has a shelf life of at least two years from the date of processing. Canned food retains its safety and nutritional value well beyond two years, but it may have some variation in quality, such as a change of color and texture. Canning is a high-heat process that renders the food commercially sterile. Food safety is not an issue in products kept on the shelf or in the pantry for long periods of time. In fact, canned food has an almost indefinite shelf life at moderate temperatures (75° F and below). Canned food as old as 100 years has been found in sunken ships and it is still microbiologically safe! We don't recommend keeping canned food for 100 years, but if the can is intact, not dented or bulging, it is edible.

Dried Food Items - Shelf Life

• Baking powder/soda - 18 months
• Bread Crumbs - Six months
• Cereals - Six months
• Coffee creamer, dry - Six months
• Flour/cake mixes - One year
• Gelatin/pudding mixes - One year
• Herbs/spices - Six to 12 months
• Milk, nonfat dry - Six months
• Pancake/pie crust mixes - Six months
• Pasta/noodles - Two years
• Potatoes, instant - 18 months
• Rice, white - Two years
• Sugar, granulated - Two years
• Sugar, brown, confectioners'- Four months

Beans

Dried beans kept free from moisture can last for several years. This is an excellent way to stretch your money, plus beans are full of protein for healthy eating.

Drinks

Most juices that you buy, such as apple juice, can last 3-5 years un-opened. If you are unsure of how long your juice will last, contact the manufacturer consumer phone number.

Optional Items

• Chocolate - unsweetened 18 months
• Coffee, vacuum pack - One year
• Milk, canned - One year
• Molasses - Two years
• Nuts - Eight months
• Oils/salad dressings - Three months
• Peanut butter (unopened) - Six months
• Sauces, condiments, relishes (unopened) - One year
• Shortening - Eight months
• Syrups - One year
• Tea - 18 months

 Water

According to the International Bottled Water Association, the FDA has not established a shelf life for water, so you can store those bottles indefinitely. As long as the packaging is intact and unopened, you shouldn't need to worry about any type of bacteria or microorganisms growing in the water. If the bottle has been opened, however, it can grow bacteria and algae if it is not consumed within 2 weeks.

So while it doesn't appear that unopened bottles of water actually go "bad" in the sense that they would make you sick, they might not taste the greatest after several years of sitting on the shelf collecting dust. 

Survival Kit Products 

• Emergency Food and Water - 5 years (25 year shelf life food is available)
• Purification Tablets - 4-5 years
• First Aid Kits - 5 years
• Hygiene Kit - 5 years
• Body Warmer - 4 years
• Radio Batteries - 4-5 years
• Flashlight Batteries - 10 years (the flashlight can be recharged forever and has no shelf life)
• All other products do not have a manufacturer suggested shelf life and should not diminish in quality as years pass.