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Prepper list: food, quantities and shelf life

Power cut, flooding, empty shelves: what do you really need at home? The federal government recommends a ten-day supply and gives exact quantities. Here you'll find the list, a calculator for your household, shelf life and costs.

Vorratsregal in einer hellen Küche mit Gläsern, Konserven, Wasserflaschen, Kerze und Stirnlampe
A ten-day supply fits on one shelf: water, grains, pulses, tinned food, oil, plus a light and a radio.

The key points in 30 seconds

days of supplies recommended by the BBK
10

Households should ideally be able to look after themselves for ten days, though even three days helps. The EU names 72 hours as a minimum target, Austria 10 to 14 days, Switzerland about a week.

Litres of water per person per day
2

Ideally two litres, half a litre of which is for cooking. For ten days that's 20 litres per person, so just over two six-packs of 1.5-litre bottles, not counting water for hygiene and the toilet.

Kilograms of food per person
13.8

That's what the BLE's basic supply weighs for ten days and around 2,200 kcal a day: grains, vegetables, fruit, dairy, meat or fish, fat. Add 20 litres of drinks on top.

instead of stockpiled
Living

The best supply doesn't gather dust: you eat what you store and restock what you eat. That way nothing expires, and when an emergency hits, you have food you know and like.

01 Basics

Prepper list: what belongs in an emergency supply

An emergency supply isn't bunker romanticism, it's a recommendation from the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK): every household should ideally be able to look after itself for ten days, with two litres of drinks per person per day and food that works without a fridge and, ideally, without a hob. The quantities come from the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE), which calculates with around 2,200 kcal per person per day. That's exactly the list you'll find here.

What is a prepper?

A prepper (from the English "to prepare") builds up supplies to get through crises such as power cuts, flooding or empty shelves for a few days without outside help. The German federal government defines it the same way in a 2019 reply to the Bundestag, and adds: preparing for crises is not extremist. The spectrum runs from a household with ten days of supplies as recommended by the BBK to people who go far beyond that. This article sticks to the first part: food and drink for a household, bought in a normal supermarket.

Prepping: sensible or overkill?

What the BBK recommends is sensible, and overkill is whatever you never eat. The most common mistakes aren't extremes but gaps: forgetting water, even though it matters more than food; buying only tins nobody likes and throwing them away years later; having no way to cook without electricity, which according to the survey applies to two thirds of those who prepare; setting up a supply once and never rotating it. If you solve these four points, you're better prepared than most households, with no bunker and no camouflage paint.

02 Quantity

Federal government emergency supplies list: how much per person?

“What does the federal government recommend as an emergency supply?” is the most common question on the topic, and the answer comes from two sources. The BBK sets the duration and water, while the BLE provides the food quantities. The old table with 3.5 kg of grains that circulates on many blogs comes from an earlier brochure; the current figures are in the BLE's supply calculator and in the calculator below.

The federal government's prepper list: quantities for 10 days

For one person and ten days, the BLE supply table lists: 3.3 kg of grain products, bread and potatoes, 4.0 kg of vegetables and pulses (tinned, drained weight), 2.5 kg of fruit and nuts, 2.5 kg of milk and dairy products, 1.2 kg of eggs, meat, sausage and fish, 330 g of fats and oils, plus 20 litres of drinks. That comes to around 2,200 kcal a day, calculated with the nutrition societies' reference values. The BBK guide “Preparing for Crises and Disasters” (as of November 2025) no longer has a kilogram table and instead points to exactly this calculation.

Interactive

How much supply does your household need?

Set the number of adults, children and the time period. The calculator scales the BLE quantities per person and ten days; children count the same as adults for food, and need one litre less water per day.

Adults
2
Children up to 12
0
For how long
0kg of food
Drinks
Total energy
Calculated for
  • Grains, bread, potatoesPasta, rice, rolled oats, crispbread, rusks, flour
  • Vegetables and pulsesTinned, by drained weight: beans, peas, sweetcorn, sauerkraut, red cabbage, mushrooms
  • Fruit and nutsTinned fruit, dried fruit, raisins, hazelnuts
  • Milk and dairyUHT milk, hard cheese, milk powder
  • Eggs, meat, sausage, fishTuna, sardines, corned beef, liver sausage, eggs
  • Fats and oilsCooking oil, spread, ghee

Water: 2 litres per person per day

According to the BBK, drinking water matters more than food: ideally two litres per person per day, half a litre of which is for cooking. For ten days that's 20 litres per person, and 60 litres for three people. Water for washing and the toilet is not included. Buy bottled water with a best-before date: in a sealed glass bottle it keeps almost indefinitely, while PET bottles usually say one year. The BLE doesn't recommend bottling your own tap water as a supply, because nobody can guarantee how long it keeps.

Person putting water bottles, tinned food and storage jars into a kitchen cupboard
Two litres per person per day: water is the heaviest and most important item on every prepper list.

What do you need for a 14-day blackout?

The same as for ten days, times 1.4, plus everything that gives you light, warmth and information without power. For two adults, the calculator comes to around 39 kg of food and 56 litres of drinks. On top of that, the BBK checklist lists a wind-up or battery radio, torch, candles, power bank, gas stove with cartridges for outdoor use, cash and a list of important phone numbers on paper. For a longer winter outage, the BBK also names sleeping bags and a heat source that doesn't depend on the grid, and indoors only one approved for indoor use.

Food supply for 6 months or 1 year

On paper, that's around 250 or 500 kg of food and 360 or 730 litres of water for one person; the calculator shows the breakdown. In practice, a one-year supply is a very different job from ten days: it needs a cool, dry room, tightly sealed containers against moths and a plan for how you'll eat 500 kg in everyday life before it expires. The authorities don't recommend it, and the BLE calculator stops at 28 days. If you plan this far anyway, stick to two rules from chapters 5 and 7: only food with a shelf life of over a year, and a living stockpile.

03 Understand

What runs short first in an emergency

Three things fail at the same time in almost every crisis: tap water, refrigeration and the cooker. Your supply is built exactly for that.

1

Drink before you eat

According to the BBK, a person can sometimes go three weeks without food, but only four days without fluids. Waterworks need electricity; if it fails across a wide area, eventually nothing comes out of the tap. That's why water comes first on every list: 1.5 litres for drinking and 0.5 litres for cooking, per person per day. Juices and UHT milk count, but coffee and tea need water.

2

Refrigeration lasts hours, not days

According to the US food authority, a closed fridge keeps food cold for about four hours; the Lower Saxony consumer advice centre says four to six. A full freezer manages around 48 hours, a half-full one 24. After that, the rule is: eat chilled food first, and cook thawed raw meat all the way through. So the emergency supply itself consists of food that needs no refrigeration; the BLE deliberately doesn't count frozen food.

3

Cooking without electricity

According to a 2024 survey, only a third of people who prepare can cook food without electricity. A gas hob often keeps working, an electric one doesn't. For everything else, the BBK rule applies: camping stove with gas cartridge and barbecue only outdoors, indoors only appliances approved for it, plus a carbon monoxide detector. That's why every supply needs a share of food you can eat cold: tinned food, crispbread, nuts, dried fruit.

04 Shopping

Prepper shopping list: the food that belongs on it

The prepper shopping list is shorter than many people think, and it contains nothing you don't already know. The BBK names three criteria: keeps without refrigeration, ready without cooking or with a short cooking time, and suits the people in your household. You can tick off the list below; the calculator in chapter 2 gives you the quantities.

Prepper food: what belongs on the list

The core is six groups. Grains for energy: pasta, rice, oats, crispbread, rusks. Pulses and vegetables for protein and fibre: lentils, beans and chickpeas in tins or jars, plus sweetcorn, peas, sauerkraut, tomatoes. Fruit and nuts: tinned fruit, dried fruit, trail mix. Dairy: UHT milk, hard cheese, milk powder. Fish and meat: tuna, sardines, corned beef, liver sausage. Fats: oil and ghee. Add honey, jam, salt, sugar, instant stock, coffee, tea, chocolate as you like, and for each person whatever they really enjoy.

Interactive

Shopping list: what do you already have at home?

Nothing ticked off yet. Start with water, then grains and pulses; the rest can come with your next shops.

The best tinned food for emergencies

The best tins are the ones that make a meal without cooking and that you'd eat anyway: stews, chilli, ravioli, fish in oil or water, pulses, sweetcorn, fruit in juice. According to the US food authority, tinned meat, fish and most vegetables keep for two to five years, acidic ones like tomatoes and fruit for twelve to 18 months; the best-before date in the supermarket is usually 18 months, and undamaged tins often stay edible for years longer. Don't eat: bulging, leaking or badly dented tins. Watch the salt content and choose vegetables without added salt where you can.

How much energy is in 100 g of supplies?

  1. Hazelnuts: 628 kcal
  2. Whole milk powder: 496 kcal
  3. Rusks: 426 kcal
  4. Oats: 379 kcal
  5. Chickpeas, dry: 378 kcal
  6. Pasta, dry: 371 kcal
  7. Crispbread: 366 kcal
  8. Rice, white, raw: 365 kcal
  9. Lentils, raw: 352 kcal
  10. Raisins: 299 kcal

USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy per 100 g as purchased. Oils and fats are higher at 884 to 900 kcal, but they're not a meal.

Prepper list from the discounter: Aldi, Lidl and co.

Everything on this list is available in a normal supermarket or discounter, and own-brand products are fine: for shelf life, the type of food matters, not the brand. In August 2024, the Saxony consumer advice centre put together a complete 10-day supply for one person, including water, using own-brand products, and came to €64.55 excluding deposit. If you pick up two or three more things from the list on every shop, you'll have your supply together in four weeks without a single big shop. You don't need special packages from the internet.

05 Shelf life

Long-life foods: what keeps for months and years

“How long does it keep?” decides how often you need to rotate your stock. Four rules apply to everything: cool (the BLE gives 15 to 20 °C for the pantry), dry, dark and tightly sealed, because pantry moths eat their way through paper and plastic. Put new purchases at the back and older ones at the front. Below you'll find the shelf life of 130 foods to look up.

Which foods keep forever?

Legally, only table salt, sugar and vinegar don't need a best-before date; they don't spoil when stored dry. Honey keeps practically indefinitely in microbial terms, but according to LAVES Lower Saxony it loses quality after one and a half to three years at room temperature. Mineral water stays good almost indefinitely in a sealed glass bottle. According to the consumer advice centre, white rice and durum wheat pasta keep for a few years beyond the best-before date. Everything else ages: oil and nuts go rancid, wholegrain products and oats are high in fat, and tins eventually rust. “No food keeps forever,” writes the BLE.

The stock with the best shelf life is the one you eat regularly. If you only buy by the years printed on the label, you end up storing things nobody wants to eat and eventually throwing them away. If you buy what's already on your menu, you always have fresh food, and in an emergency you have food you know.

Joerg Hauke, Nutrition expert, expert review of this article

Which foods keep for 10 or 30 years?

The 30 years come from Brigham Young University studies: white rice, wheat and split peas were still acceptable after 30 to 34 years in large oxygen-sealed emergency tins, though with vitamin losses. That applies to those tins, not to the bag from the supermarket. Manufacturers promise ten years or more for emergency ration bars and specialist tins; those are the manufacturers' own claims. The Saxony consumer advice centre sees no added value in extra-long-life tins: they're pricier, saltier, and a normal tin lasts years anyway if stored well.

Airtight storage jars with rice, lentils and oats in a kitchen cupboard
Airtight, dark, cool: in screw-top jars, dry goods and pulses keep for longer, and moths stay out.

Past the best-before date: what you can still eat

The best-before date isn't a throw-away date: until then the manufacturer guarantees taste, smell and nutritional value, and after that, according to the Federal Office of Consumer Protection, the traffic light turns amber, so check first. Undamaged tins, pasta, rice, pulses and UHT milk are often fine for months or even years past the date, as long as the packaging, smell and taste are normal. The use-by date (“use by”) on highly perishable foods such as minced meat is different: don't eat it after that. Bin straight away: bloated tins, clumped dry goods with webbing, rancid smell.

Interactive

How long does it keep?

Type in a food or pick a category. The traffic light shows the typical shelf life unopened, stored somewhere cool, dry and dark.

  • Rice, white long grain, dry, long-grain rice, basmati, jasmine rice, white rice A few years, even beyond the best-before dateneeds cooking water; airtight to keep moths out
  • Brown rice wholegrain rice, dry, wholegrain rice, brown rice About 1 year per best-before datefatty germ goes rancid; needs cooking water
  • Pasta, durum wheat dry, pasta, spaghetti, penne, macaroni 2 years or more, often years beyond the best-before dateneeds cooking water, about 1 l per 100 g
  • Egg noodles dry, egg tagliatelle About 1 year per best-before dateneeds cooking water
  • Oats fine rolled oats, hearty rolled oats, porridge oats About 1 year per best-before datecan be soaked cold, goes rancid over time
  • Plain wheat flour Type 405 household flour, white flour Months beyond the best-before dateonly for baking and cooking
  • Wholemeal flour wheat, wholemeal wheat flour 4 to 6 months per best-before dategoes rancid, store somewhere cool
  • Rye flour dark, wholegrain rye flour 3 to 6 monthsgoes rancid, store somewhere cool
  • Wheat, whole grains grains, wheat berries, spelt, rye 1 to 2 years, store with good airflowmust be ground or boiled for a long time
  • Bulgur dry, pre-cooked wheat groats 6 to 12 monthshot water to soak
  • Semolina BLE group About 1 yearneeds cooking water
  • Quinoa dry, quinoa 2 to 3 years, store somewhere coolgoes rancid otherwise; needs cooking water
  • Maize flour polenta, maize semolina, cornmeal, polenta 6 to 12 monthsneeds cooking water
  • Instant mashed potato flakes dried potato products, instant mashed potato 1 to 2 yearshot water or milk
  • Crispbread crispbread, rye crispbread About 1 year, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Rusks rusks About 1 year, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Tinned bread wholegrain, standard supermarket, bread in a tin, canned bread, pumpernickel in a tin Best-before date on the tin, eat straight away once openedcan be eaten cold
  • Tinned bread emergency long-term storage, emergency bread, long-life bread Up to 10 years according to the retailercan be eaten cold, check the manufacturer's info
  • Salted crackers savoury biscuits, crackers, crackers About 8 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Cornflakes and breakfast cereals breakfast cereals, cereals 6 to 12 months, often months beyond the best-before datecan be eaten cold, protect from moths
  • Muesli and granola crunchy muesli, granola 6 to 9 monthscan be eaten cold, screw-top jar keeps moths out
  • Muesli bars supermarket 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Lentils, brown or green dry, mountain lentils, plate lentils, beluga lentils, Puy lentils 1 to 2 years per best-before date, often for yearsneeds cooking water, 20 to 30 minutes
  • Red lentils peeled, dry, red lentils, yellow lentils, dal lentils 1 to 2 years per best-before date, often for yearsneeds cooking water, 15 minutes
  • Kidney beans dry, red beans, dried beans 1 to 2 years, often for yearssoak and cook, never eat raw
  • White beans dry, cannellini, pearl beans, Great Northern 1 to 2 years, often for yearssoak and cook, never eat raw
  • Chickpeas dry, garbanzo, chickpeas 1 to 2 years, often for yearssoak and cook, never eat raw
  • Peas, dried split peas, dried peas, split peas, halved peas 1 year per best-before date, much longer in tinsneeds cooking water
  • Kidney beans, tinned beans in a tin 2 to 5 years, best-before date usually 18 monthscan be eaten cold, pre-cooked
  • White beans, tinned white beans in a tin 2 to 5 years, best-before date usually 18 monthscan be eaten cold, pre-cooked
  • Chickpeas, tinned drained, chickpeas in a jar 2 to 5 years, best-before date usually 18 monthscan be eaten cold, pre-cooked
  • Baked beans beans in tomato sauce, tin, white beans in tomato sauce 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Peas and carrots tin, mixed pea and carrot vegetables 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Green beans tin, cut green beans in a tin 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Sweetcorn tin, sweetcorn 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Mushrooms tin, mushrooms in a tin 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Carrots tin, carrots in a tin 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Spinach tin, leaf spinach in a tin 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Asparagus tin or jar, tinned asparagus 1 to 2 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Pumpkin tin, pumpkin purée in a tin 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Beetroot jar or tin, beetroot, beetroot 1 to 2 years, pickled 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Red cabbage jar or tin, red cabbage 1 to 2 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Sauerkraut tin or jar, sauerkraut 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Pickled gherkins jar, sour gherkins, gherkins About 1 yearcan be eaten cold
  • Tomatoes, chopped or chunky tin, tinned tomatoes 12 to 18 monthsacidic, eats away at the tin
  • Tomato purée tomato purée in a tube or tin About 2 yearsfor seasoning, cold
  • Passata tomato purée, tomato sauce, passata 12 to 18 monthsusually cooked
  • Olives tin or jar, black olives 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Coconut milk tin, coconut milk, coconut drink in a tin 2 to 5 yearsfor cooking
  • Tomato juice bottle or tin, vegetable juice About 18 monthscan be drunk cold
  • Peaches tin, in juice, tinned peaches, peach halves 1 year per best-before date, often 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Pineapple tinned, in juice, pineapple chunks 1 year per best-before date, often 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Pears tinned, in syrup, tinned pears 1 year per best-before date, often 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Mandarins tinned, mandarin segments 1 year per best-before date, often 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Fruit cocktail tinned, tinned fruit salad About 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Apple sauce jar, unsweetened, apple purée 12 to 18 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Raisins sultanas, currants 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold, store dry and dark
  • Apricots, dried dried apricots 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold, store dry and dark
  • Plums, dried prunes, dried plums 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold, store dry and dark
  • Dates Medjool dates 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold, store dry and dark
  • Figs, dried dried figs 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold, store dry and dark
  • Apple rings, dried dried apples 6 to 12 monthscan be eaten cold, store dry and dark
  • Almonds shelled almonds About 1 year, whole lasts longer than choppedcan be eaten cold, store cool and dark
  • Hazelnuts shelled hazelnuts About 1 year, whole lasts longer than choppedcan be eaten cold, store cool and dark
  • Walnuts A few weeks without the shell, longer with the shellcan be eaten cold, go rancid quickly
  • Cashew nuts cashews About 1 year in a jar or tincan be eaten cold
  • Peanuts, roasted jar or tin, shelled peanuts About 1 year in a jar or tincan be eaten cold
  • Mixed nuts trail mix, nut and kernel mix About 1 year in a jar or tincan be eaten cold
  • Peanut butter peanut spread, nut butter 6 to 24 months, 2 to 3 months once openedcan be eaten cold, very high in energy
  • Sunflower seeds raw sunflower seeds About 12 monthscan be eaten cold
  • Rapeseed oil cooking oil, vegetable oil 6 to 12 months, 4 to 8 weeks once openedstore in the dark
  • Olive oil extra virgin olive oil 6 to 12 monthsstore in the dark
  • Sunflower oil 6 to 12 monthsstore in the dark
  • Coconut oil coconut fat About 3 yearscool and dark
  • Clarified butter and ghee ghee, clarified butter 6 to 8 monthscool and dark
  • Butter chilled, sweet cream butter 4 to 6 weeks in the fridgenot an option in a power cut
  • UHT milk ultra-heat-treated, long-life milk Several months per best-before date, unopened and without refrigerationcan be drunk cold
  • Evaporated milk, unsweetened tin, tinned milk, evaporated milk About 12 monthscold
  • Condensed milk, sweetened tin, Milchmädchen, sweetened condensed milk About 12 monthscold
  • Whole milk powder milk powder, dried milk 3 to 5 years cool and dark, only months in the heatwater to mix
  • Skimmed milk powder fat-free milk powder, skimmed milk powder 3 to 5 years cool and dark, decades in tins with little oxygenwater to mix
  • Hard cheese Parmesan, mountain cheese, hard cheese, Grana Unrefrigerated only as a whole wheel, 8 to 10 days in the cool once cutcan be eaten cold
  • Egg powder whole egg, dried egg, egg powder 3 years or moremix with water, then cook or bake
  • Tuna in water tin, tuna in spring water, tuna About 3 years, often longercan be eaten cold
  • Tuna in oil tin, tuna in oil About 3 years, often longercan be eaten cold
  • Sardines in oil tin, oil sardines 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Mackerel tin, mackerel fillets, mackerel in tomato sauce 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Salmon tin, tinned salmon 2 to 5 years, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Anchovies tin, anchovy fillets About 5 yearscan be eaten cold, very salty
  • Corned beef tin, tinned beef 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold
  • Chicken tin, tinned chicken About 5 yearscan be eaten cold
  • Liver sausage tin or jar, tinned veal liver sausage 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold
  • Bockwurst sausages tin or jar, tinned Vienna sausages 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Luncheon meat tin, luncheon meat, long-life tinned ham 2 to 5 years, unrefrigerated only if labelled as suchcan be eaten cold
  • Dried meat jerky, beef jerky About 12 months if commercially made, 1 to 2 months if homemadecan be eaten cold
  • Salami and cured sausage dry sausage, salami Several weeks, cool and drycan be eaten cold, a whole stick lasts longer
  • Stew and goulash tin, tinned beef goulash, pea stew, lentil stew 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Chilli con carne tin, tinned chilli 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Ravioli and pasta dishes tin, ravioli in tomato sauce, tinned spaghetti 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Ready-made soup tin, tinned lentil soup, tinned vegetable soup 2 to 5 yearscan be eaten cold, better warm
  • Packet soup dry powder, instant soup, soup powder About 1 yearhot water
  • Instant stock and stock cubes vegetable stock powder, bouillon About 1 yearhot water
  • Honey bee honey, blossom honey Microbiologically almost unlimited, quality drops after 1.5 to 3 yearscold; never for children under 1 year
  • Sugar table sugar, granulated sugar, caster sugar Almost unlimited, no best-before date requiredstore dry and airtight
  • Salt table salt, iodised salt, cooking salt, iodised salt Unlimited, no best-before date requiredstore dry
  • Jam and preserves fruit spread, jelly Around 1 year, check the best-before datecan be eaten cold
  • Dark chocolate bitter chocolate, cooking chocolate 1 to 2 years, a white coating is usually just fat bloomcan be eaten cold
  • Cocoa powder baking cocoa, drinking cocoa Check the best-before date, around 1 year once openedmilk or water
  • Maple syrup syrup Around 4 years in glass, 2 years in plasticcold
  • Soy sauce shoyu, tamari Around 3 yearsfor seasoning
  • Vinegar apple cider vinegar, spirit vinegar, table vinegar Around 2 years, no best-before date requiredfor seasoning
  • Cornflour and starch cornflour, potato starch 18 to 24 monthsfor cooking
  • Pepper, ground black pepper Around 2 yearsfor seasoning
  • Paprika powder and spices, ground sweet paprika, ground spices 2 to 3 years ground, 3 to 4 years wholefor seasoning
  • Herbs, dried oregano, thyme, dried herbs 1 to 2 yearsfor seasoning
  • Garlic powder and onion powder garlic granules 3 to 4 yearsfor seasoning
  • Cinnamon, ground cinnamon 3 to 4 yearsfor seasoning
  • Instant coffee soluble coffee, instant coffee powder Around 1 year, 2 to 3 months once openedhot water
  • Tea, black dry, black tea, tea bags, herbal tea 2 years and more, practically unlimited when dryhot water
  • Apple juice bottle or carton, fruit juice, not-from-concentrate juice A few months according to the best-before datecan be drunk cold
  • Lemon juice bottle, lemon juice concentrate 12 to 18 monthsfor seasoning
  • Mineral water bottle, bottled drinking water, table water Practically unlimited in a sealed bottle, best-before date: glass 2 years, PET 1 yearstore in a cool, dark place
  • Potatoes raw, ware potatoes A few weeks, large quantities 6 to 8 months in a cool placeneeds cooking water, remove sprouts
  • Apples fresh, storage apples 1 to 5 months in a cool, dark placecan be eaten cold
  • Emergency food bar pressed wheat bar, daily ration, emergency ration, emergency food bar, compressed bar Up to 15 to 20 years according to the manufacturercan be eaten cold, drink plenty with it
  • Emergency biscuit emergency ration biscuits, emergency biscuits, emergency ration biscuits 15 years according to the retailercan be eaten cold
  • Freeze-dried meal trekking and emergency food, trekking food, outdoor meal, freeze-dried meal 3 to 5 years according to the manufacturer400 to 570 ml hot water per portion
  • Self-heating meal tin, self-heating ration, self-heating meal Around 2 years according to the manufacturerheats itself, no water or electricity needed
  • Drinkable meal, ready to drink 400 ml bottle, drinkable meal, meal replacement drink, ready-to-drink Up to 12 months unrefrigerated, best-before date on the bottlecan be drunk cold, no water needed
  • Powder meal meal powder for mixing, meal replacement powder, drinkable meal powder 12 months in the pouch, check the best-before date400 to 500 ml water, shaker
06 Without power

Eating without power: what works in a blackout

A blackout is exactly what a stockpile is built for: no hob, no fridge, and after a while no tap water. What works then comes down to three questions: what do you cook with, what do you eat cold, and which emergency food is actually worth it?

Cooking without power: gas stoves, but safely

A gas hob usually keeps working in a power cut, an electric hob doesn't. For indoors, the BBK mentions a tea-light warmer for heating things up, a fondue set with gel fuel, and a gas stove if it's approved for indoor use. Camping stoves with gas cartridges and barbecues are for outdoors only. Plan fuel for several days and cook economically: lid on, little water, pasta and rice that cook in a few minutes. The Verbraucherzentrale Sachsen considers classic gas stoves the best choice for emergencies.

Carbon monoxide

Never use barbecues, camping stoves or outdoor heaters inside your home: with too little oxygen they produce carbon monoxide, which is odourless and life-threatening. The BBK recommends a tested carbon monoxide detector. In a power cut, switch off the hob and oven, otherwise they start up as soon as the power comes back.

Eat it cold: the blackout list

Without a stove, you're left with what comes ready to eat from the packet: tinned fish, meat, pulses, vegetables and fruit, crispbread, rusks, canned bread, nuts, dried fruit, muesli bars, dry sausage, hard cheese, honey, chocolate, UHT milk and ready-to-drink meals. Oats also soften in cold milk. Dried pulses, pasta and rice, on the other hand, need heat and water, so in a blackout they're only useful with a stove. A good stockpile mixes both: cold food for the first few days, then the stove.

Emergency food: bars, ready meals or a drinkable meal?

Emergency food is a product category, not a must: the Verbraucherzentrale Sachsen considers specialist products unnecessary for a private stockpile. Pressed emergency ration bars (such as NRG-5 or BP-5) keep for a very long time and are high in calories, but according to the market check they're too sweet and too fatty for more than a last-resort reserve. Freeze-dried meals need 400 to 570 ml of hot water per portion, so a stove and a bigger water supply. A ready-to-drink meal fills the gap in between: eat it straight away, no water needed, but with a shorter shelf life, which makes it a building block to rotate.

At a glance

Emergency food compared

Five types that can sit side by side in your stockpile, and what they need in a real emergency.

Cooking neededWater neededTypical shelf lifeEnergy
Tinned food (stew, fish, vegetables)no, can be eaten coldnobest-before date usually 18 months, often years longer100 to 250 kcal per 100 g
Dry goods (pasta, rice, lentils)yes0.25 to 1 litre per 100 g1 to 2 years, white rice longer350 to 380 kcal per 100 g dry
Emergency ration bars and biscuitsnono, drink plenty alongside15 to 20 years (manufacturer information)445 to 460 kcal per 100 g
Freeze-dried mealyes, hot water400 to 570 ml per portion3 to 5 years (manufacturer information)470 to 1,000 kcal per pouch
Drinkable meal, ready to drinknonoup to 12 months unrefrigerated400 kcal per 400 ml bottle
Powder mealno, shaker400 to 500 ml per portion12 months in the pouch400 kcal per portion

Manufacturer information and market check by the Verbraucherzentrale Sachsen (2024 survey), Saturo per Shopify data, as of September 2026. Bar brands are mentioned in the text for explanation only, not as a rating of individual products.

For the first days of an outage, when cooking is awkward and water is scarce, a ready-to-drink meal is the simplest solution in your stockpile: unscrew, drink, done. Because it keeps for up to twelve months, it belongs in the living part of your stockpile, the part you drink day to day and restock.

Ready-to-Drink 6 x 400 ml
From the Saturo range

Drinkable meal: a complete meal, no cooking and no water

400 kcal, 36 g plant-based protein and 26 vitamins and minerals in a 400 ml bottle, vegan. Unopened, it keeps for up to twelve months unrefrigerated; the best-before date is on the bottle. Unscrew and drink: no hob, no water, no fridge. A building block for an emergency stockpile that rotates: drink it day to day, restock, and in an emergency it's your first meal of the day.

400kcal
36 gProtein
26Vitamins & minerals
Ready to drinkIn a power cutNo cooking, no water, keeps unrefrigerated
Choose a flavour
$5.17per meal
View all flavours
Drinkable meal · Cocoa$5.17 per meal ·

At 400 kcal, one bottle delivers just under a fifth of the 2,200 kcal the BLE calculates with, so six bottles cover roughly one day. For the rest, a basic supermarket stockpile remains the foundation; the drinkable meal is the reserve for days without a kitchen.

Man drinking a Saturo drinkable meal by candlelight during a power cut
When the hob is off, what counts is what's ready to go: a ready-to-drink meal needs neither water nor a stove.
07 Build up

Building an emergency stockpile: step by step, no panic buying

An emergency stockpile isn't built in one big shop, and it shouldn't be: the federal government expressly recommends building it up step by step, and the BLE says the extra cost only applies the first time. Four weeks is enough if you pick up a few extra things on every shop.

Living stockpile: store what you eat

The BBK distinguishes two approaches. The one-off stockpile is bought, checked once a year and replaced. The living stockpile is the better option: on every shop you pick up one or two more packs than you need right now, use the oldest first in everyday life, and restock. That way nothing expires, you always have food you like, and the stockpile costs nothing extra in the long run. Note the purchase date on packs without a best-before date and put new items at the back.

To a 10-day stockpile in four weeks

  1. Week 1 Water and the basic stock for three days

    Water first: two six-packs per person. Add pasta or rice, a few tins of fish, pulses and fruit, crispbread and nuts. That gets you to the BBK's entry level.

  2. Week 2 Grains, pulses, oil

    Top up the big categories: oats, flour, rusks, lentils and beans in tins or jars, oil and ghee. Use the quantities from the calculator, and buy airtight containers for dry goods while you're at it.

  3. Week 3 Tins, fruit, milk, treats

    Tinned vegetables and fruit, dried fruit, UHT milk, hard cheese, milk powder, plus honey, jam, coffee, tea, chocolate and the kids' favourites. Now ten days are fully covered.

  4. Week 4 Stove, light, radio, first-aid kit

    Gas stove with cartridges, tin opener, torch, wind-up radio, power bank, candles, first-aid kit following the BBK list, cash. From now on, rotate: check the dates every three to six months.

What does an emergency stockpile cost?

Less than a ready-made emergency pack, and with more energy. In 2024, the Verbraucherzentrale Sachsen (Saxony consumer advice centre) tested eight pre-packed packs from the internet: not a single one reached 2,200 kcal per day, on average they cost around twice as much per day as a supermarket stockpile, and the only vegan pack delivered just 962 kcal. Stiftung Warentest puts a 15-day pack from one provider at around €300. According to both, buying items individually saves money, and you eat what suits your own table. The figures come from 2022 to 2025 and different shopping baskets, but the direction is clear.

What's it all for? The BBK justifies preparedness with everyday life: power cuts, extreme weather, an illness that keeps you at home, empty shelves after supply chain disruptions. It also writes that “even a war no longer seems as unlikely as it did a few years ago”. The stockpile is the same for every scenario; once you have it, you don't need to think about each one separately.

08 Special cases

Supplies for family, medication and pets

The BLE calculates 2,200 kcal for every person, and the BBK asks in return: who is the stockpile for? Are there allergies, children, pets, people on medication? Three groups need their own lines on the list.

Prepper list for the family: children and babies

In the calculator, children count like adults but need less: according to the BLE, a child up to twelve needs one litre of drinks a day, and according to the DGE, a toddler needs around 1,100 to 1,300 kcal. The reserve is intentional. More important than calories is what children actually eat: pasta, tinned fruit, muesli, a few sweets. For babies, the stockpile should include infant formula, jars of baby food, nappies and boiled water. The BfR advises mixing powdered formula only shortly before feeding and throwing away leftovers after two hours. According to the Verbraucherzentrale, emergency ration bars are unsuitable for babies and toddlers because of the sugar, and honey is never suitable under one year.

Mother and child checking the pantry together, with tins and water
In an emergency, children eat what they know: familiar foods belong on the family list, not special bars.

Medication and first-aid kit

According to the BBK guide, anyone who regularly needs medication should have a supply for at least ten days. Talk to your doctor's surgery or pharmacy about how much and how to store it, as shelf life and cooling differ from one medicine to another. The BBK first-aid kit also includes painkillers, anti-diarrhoea remedies, electrolytes to replace lost fluids, a fever thermometer, bandaging material and personal medication such as an asthma inhaler. Where to keep it: cool, dry, lockable, not in the bathroom. Restock before anything runs out, and include expiry dates in your rotation.

Don't forget your pets

According to the BBK and BLE, food and water for your animals belong in the stockpile too, as tins or dry food for the same ten days, plus medication, litter and a carrier with their papers. There's no official quantity per animal. Work out what your pet eats in ten days, and check the shelf life of the food as you would for your own supplies. According to the Umweltbundesamt (Federal Environment Agency), freezing dry food for 24 hours after buying it protects against pantry moths.

Not edible, but on the list

The BBK adds things you can't eat to the stockpile: a wind-up or battery radio for warning alerts, a torch and candles, a power bank, cash (with no amount given), hygiene items including bin bags for the toilet, and a folder of important documents, packed waterproof and also kept as a digital copy.

09 Look it up

Common questions about prepper food

What should a prepper have at home?

According to the BBK checklist: water for ten days, long-life food, a way to cook with fuel, first-aid kit, wind-up radio, torch, candles, power bank, hygiene items, cash and important documents. Families also need baby food, nappies and pet food. Any equipment beyond that is a matter of taste, not official advice.

Which 6 foods never expire?

Counted honestly, there are three: table salt, sugar and vinegar don't need a best-before date under the Food Information Regulation. Then there's honey (practically unlimited microbially, though quality drops after one to three years), mineral water in a sealed glass bottle, and white rice, which lasts a few years beyond its best-before date.

Which foods should you always have at home?

Water, pasta or rice, oats, crispbread, tinned pulses and vegetables, tinned fruit, nuts, UHT milk, tinned fish or meat, oil, salt, sugar, honey and instant stock. That's the basis of the BLE stockpile table. The calculator in chapter 2 shows the quantities for your household.

How can I make emergency food myself?

Drying is the safest way: dried fruit, dried meat or toasted oat bars keep for weeks to months. Even home preserving is risky, because at home you reach 100 °C at most and spores survive. According to the BfR, most botulism cases are traced back to home-preserved jars and tins. For a stockpile, commercially produced tins are the safe choice.

Should you keep cash at home?

Yes, the BBK recommends cash, because cash machines and card payments stop working in a power cut, but it doesn't name an amount. Switzerland advises keeping enough small change to pay for a week's shopping and a tank of fuel in cash, and the Austrian National Bank advises €100 per family member in small notes.

How many preppers are there in Germany?

Nobody knows: in 2019, the federal government replied to an enquiry that it had no information on this. All we have is how many households prepare: in 2024, 61% had long-life food at home beyond a week's needs, 57% had a water supply, and around 45% considered their stockpile sufficient for ten days.

Is the prepper list available as a PDF?

Yes, the BBK provides its checklists as PDFs you can tick off (link in the sources). You can tick off the shopping list in chapter 4 right here and print the page. The stockpile calculator in chapter 2 works out the quantities for your household, and you won't find that in any PDF.

What do I need if war breaks out?

The same as for any other crisis, says the BBK: a ten-day stockpile, water, radio and the NINA warning app, documents, cash, first-aid kit. On top of that, there's the “Seeking shelter” chapter of the BBK guide, with the rule to put two walls between you and the outside in case of explosions.

Sources · 54 sources anzeigen
  1. Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK): Preparing for crises and disasters (Vorsorgen für Krisen und Katastrophen). Guide, as of 11/2025, 2nd edition: 10 days of supplies, 2 litres of water, cooking without electricity, first aid kit, cash, documents, finding shelter.
  2. BBK: Checklists for preparing for crises and disasters (Checklisten zur Vorsorge Krisen und Katastrophen), PDF, December 2025 (drinking water for 3/5/7/10 days, long-life food, cooking options, food supplies for pets).
  3. BBK: Stocking up on food and drink: ideally ten days' worth, three weeks without food, four days without fluids, one-off and rotating supplies.
  4. BBK: Home first aid kit: top up your supplies, keep it cool, dry and lockable, and not in the bathroom.
  5. Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE), Ernährungsvorsorge (food preparedness): Supplies calculator, 1 to 10 people, 1 to 28 days, 2,200 kcal per person per day, 1 litre of drinks for children up to 12 years.
  6. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: Supplies table, basic food supplies for one person for 10 days (3.3 kg cereals, 4.0 kg vegetables, 2.5 kg fruit, 2.5 kg dairy products, 1.2 kg meat/fish/eggs, 330 g fat, 20 l drinks).
  7. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: Emergency supplies, your personal emergency supplies: 10 days, around 2,200 kcal, without frozen food.
  8. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: Recommendations and tips: no food keeps forever; extra costs only arise when you first build up your supplies.
  9. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: How to store food (storage table: tinned goods, dry products, oils, sugar, salt, tea).
  10. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: How to look after your food supplies (new items to the back, don't eat from bulging tins, note the purchase date).
  11. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: How to store mineral water (keeps almost indefinitely, best-before date: glass 2 years, PET 1 year).
  12. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: Frequently asked questions about state food emergency reserves (no filling your own bottles with tap water, no legal obligation).
  13. BLE, Ernährungsvorsorge: Pests, 10 tips for prevention (tightly sealed containers, cool, dry, check for infestation).
  14. German Bundestag: Federal Government response, printed paper 20/3009 of August 2022 (cost of 10 days' supplies up to 130 euros, building up gradually, private stockpiling at your own discretion).
  15. German Bundestag: Federal Government response, printed paper 19/6941 of 10 January 2019 (definition of preppers, no data on numbers, crisis preparedness is not extremist).
  16. BBK, Civil Protection Magazine (Bevölkerungsschutz-Magazin) 1/2025: Knowledge, supplies, skills. PREP project, 1,084 interviews, June 2024 (45% have supplies for ten days, one in three can prepare food without electricity, 42% are engaged with preparedness).
  17. Rohs M., Lacher L., Großmann C.: Emergency and disaster preparedness in Germany. Results of a representative population survey. RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau (61% keep long-life food, 57% keep more than a week's worth of water).
  18. European Commission and High Representative: Preparedness Union Strategy, JOIN(2025) 130 final, 26 March 2025, Action 14: self-sufficiency of the population for at least 72 hours.
  19. Federal Office for National Economic Supply (BWL, Switzerland): Kluger Rat, Notvorrat. Brochure, 17 February 2025 (supplies for around one week, cash for a weekly shop and a tank of fuel).
  20. Austrian Civil Protection Association with AGES: Provisions, recommended supplies for 10 to 14 days.
  21. Oesterreichische Nationalbank: Bargeld für alle Fälle, press release, 27 February 2023 (100 euros per family member in small denominations).
  22. Bundesnetzagentur (Federal Network Agency): press release, 9 October 2025, electricity supply interruptions in 2024 (SAIDI 11.7 minutes per end consumer).
  23. Stromnetz Berlin: power cut in Steglitz-Zehlendorf, January 2026 (around 45,400 households, power restored within 100 hours).
  24. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service: Keep Your Food Safe During Emergencies (fridge up to 4 hours, full freezer about 48 hours, half-full freezer 24 hours).
  25. Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR): Correct cooling of food in the home, FAQ, 13 February 2023 (frozen food during a power cut, refreezing, heating raw animal-based foods).
  26. Consumer Advice Centre of Lower Saxony: Food during a power cut, as of 4 August 2026 (fridge four to six hours, freezer up to 48 hours, cook outdoors, switch off the cooker).
  27. Consumer Advice Centre of Saxony: Market check on emergency equipment: food supplies, good and practical? 6 February 2025, survey from 2024 (emergency packs, bars, tinned food, cooking stoves, sample stockpile 64.55 euros).
  28. Stiftung Warentest: Supplies for disasters and pandemics, which ones and how much? test.de, 20 January 2025 (15-day pack around 300 euros, buying items separately saves money).
  29. Consumer Advice Centre: Best-before date (MHD) is not the same as use-by date (no best-before date on sugar, table salt, vinegar).
  30. Consumer Advice Centre: Tinned food, everything on shelf life and storage (often many years past the best-before date, throw away bulging tins, store below 19 °C).
  31. Consumer Advice Centre: Pasta, rice, flour: shelf life and storage of dry foods (white rice and pasta a few years past the best-before date, wholemeal flour 4 to 6 months, pulses 1 to 2 years).
  32. Consumer Advice Centre: Milk, everything you need to know about shelf life and storage (UHT milk, unopened and unrefrigerated, keeps for several months).
  33. Consumer Advice Centre: Nuts, keeping them longer through correct storage (whole and unshelled, several months).
  34. Consumer Advice Centre: Pantry pests, how can I prevent moths and beetles in food?
  35. Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL): FAQ on best-before date and use-by date (traffic light turns amber after the best-before date, red after the use-by date).
  36. Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 (Food Information Regulation), Article 24 and Annex X: best-before date, use-by date, exemptions for vinegar, table salt and sugar.
  37. Lower Saxony State Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety (LAVES): Honey, a valuable natural product: how to store it properly (keeps for years, HMF limit reached after 1.5 to 3 years at 18 to 25 °C).
  38. BfR: Rare but preventable: questions and answers on botulism (no honey for babies under one year, throw away bulging cans, home-preserved foods as a common source).
  39. USDA FSIS: FoodKeeper data (pantry, unopened: low-acid cans 2 to 5 years, high-acid 12 to 18 months, rice, pasta, milk powder, oils, spices), archived copy from 2 July 2025.
  40. USDA FSIS: Shelf-Stable Food Safety (cans are safe long after the date as long as they aren't dented, rusty or bulging; storage temperature).
  41. Brigham Young University, Dept. of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science: An Approach to Longer-Term Food Storage, September 2019 (rice, wheat and pulses in low-oxygen cans for at least 30 years, skimmed milk powder 15 years).
  42. Lloyd M. A. et al.: Sensory and nutritional quality of white rice after residential storage for up to 30 years. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition 2014; 65(3): 320–326.
  43. Rose D. J. et al.: Quality and sensory characteristics of hard red wheat after residential storage for up to 32 y. Journal of Food Science 2011; 76(1): S8–S13.
  44. Chapman J. S., Jefferies L. K., Pike O. A.: Sensory and nutritional quality of split peas stored up to 34 y in residential storage. Journal of Food Science 2010; 75(3): S162–S166.
  45. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service: FoodData Central, SR Legacy Release (April 2018), energy per 100 g for the bar chart and table.
  46. German Nutrition Society (DGE): Reference values for nutrient intake, energy (guideline values by age, sex and activity; children aged 1 to under 4 years: 1,100 to 1,300 kcal).
  47. BfR: Recommendations for the hygienic preparation of powdered infant formula, Opinion No. 009/2022 of 29 March 2022.
  48. BfR: Hygienic handling of mineral, spring, table and tap water in the home, FAQ of 11 September 2024 (boil water for babies, store opened bottles in a cool place).
  49. German Environment Agency: Pantry moths (larvae chew holes in packaging, use airtight containers, freeze dry pet food for 24 hours at -18 °C).
  50. Vier Pfoten: How to protect your pet in disasters and emergencies, 6 May 2026 (check food and medication for shelf life, emergency box).
  51. rbb SUPER.MARKT / ARD consumer editorial team: Survival bars, emergency food tested, August 2026 (manufacturers claim 20 to 30 years, BBK recommends a rotating stock instead of special bars).
  52. notvorsorge.com: NRG-5 emergency food 500 g, manufacturer's details on nutritional values and shelf life, accessed 30 September 2026 (for explanation only).
  53. Trek'n Eat (Katadyn) via ausdauerleistung.de: Hearty travel stew with beef, 240 g, 570 ml boiling water, manufacturer's details, accessed 30 September 2026.
  54. Saturo: Drinkable meal 400 ml, nutritional values and shelf life (unopened, keeps for twelve months without refrigeration), as of September 2026.
Gregor Aßlaber
Gregor AßlaberAuthor · Editor, Saturo

Has been writing for Saturo since 2019 about nutrition, nutrients and how good nourishment works in practice in everyday life.

Joerg Hauke
Joerg HaukeFachliche Prüfung · Nutrition expert

Hat diesen Artikel am 30. September 2026 auf fachliche Richtigkeit geprüft. This content is not a substitute for medical advice.