You have more time than you think
A healthy adult can go weeks without food. Hunger is miserable and it clouds judgement, but it is not the emergency — which is why food comes after air, warmth and water in every serious plan.
Aim for 72 hours, no cooking
Plan meals that need no power and no water: tinned fish and beans, oatcakes, nut butter, long-life milk, dried fruit. A manual tin opener is the most commonly missed item in the whole kit.
Store what you actually eat
Buy an extra of what already goes in the trolley and rotate it through normal cooking. Ration bars are useful as a compact backstop in a grab bag or car, not as the main store.
Blood sugar and morale
Children, older relatives and anyone diabetic need earlier and steadier food than the three-week figure suggests. Keep something sweet and familiar in the box — morale is a real preparedness item.
