Augason Farms 30-Day Emergency Food Storage Supply 29 lb 4.37 oz 7 Gallon Pail
307 Servings
35 Food Pouches
54,670 Total Calories
1,822 Calories Per Day
Up to a 20 Year Shelf Life!
Size: 1 PailItem Display Weight: 29.00Verified Purchase
First off when reviewing this item before purchase I noticed that most people gave good reviews. However, most people had not opened the bucket, which is pointless to give a review. For all they know they got a bucket of sand… 5 stars!
The first thing I noticed after receiving my order was that both buckets ordered were upside down in their shipping boxs. Maybe not a big deal, but shows lack of quality control. The buckets were in good condition, no physical or water damage to the delivery box.
After opening the first bucket the top item, Cheese Powder, was broken open and all over the inside of the bucket. The second bucket was good on top but getting about half way through I found that Cheesy Broccoli Rice had a break in the bag. The bags that the food is packaged in are very chintzy.
I would like to note that even though two bags were broken open the buckets are air sealed and the food “should” still last. However, another side note, the bucket says “up to 20 years” but the best by date on the Cheese Powder was 26-April-2027. Not 20 years. There was no date on the Cheesy Broccoli Rice and other items.
I give this 3 stars for the following reasons.
1- When people buy food storage they buy it to be prepared and having a damage product just isn’t acceptable
2- Items that have a best by date should be noted on the outside of the bucket.
3- Bucket was upside down in package for shipping.
I would buy this product again but knowing that I will have to open the bucket make sure the product isn’t damaged. Also, remember to place oxygen absorbers in the bucket when you seal again.
Been using the water bottle, and it does that job pretty well. One fire starter will not get you through the month, but it will let you make that first fire and you can create char cloth from that if you really need to… it is more of a bonus than a key feature of the kit.
The bucket comes packed with food… Everything is packed in 6-15 serving sized vacuum packed bags. I cannot get everything to fit back in… even after eating 3 of the bags worth of food. The meals provided really are more of a side dish type items… so while it can serve as a month worth of food, I find the real value is as a base to build around.
It seems to be pretty easy to find this for around $100 including shipping… so the price for this much food would be pretty hard to beat.
Potato Soup: Very good. I added salt and pepper. The potatoes do separate from the rest of the soup mix in the bag, so you do have to mix it up before cooking if you are making less than the 6 servings that each bag contains. You get 5 bags.
Macaroni and Cheese: I also liked that. Also added salt and pepper… but I like salty food. Cheese powder and Macaroni come separated. You get 4 bags of macaroni. Each contain 7.5 servings. The cheese comes in 2 bags with 15 servings each. Bags are not resealable. Benefit of the separation on noodles and cheese is that you control how much cheese you want in the dish. Also, as both the pasta and the cheese can easily be used in other types of dishes, you are able to do so without being forced to make just Mac & Cheese.
Morning Moo: It is not milk powder… there are other ingredients… but it basically tastes like powdered milk. If you have the option, it tastes better cold rather than room temp. You get 4 bags of 20 servings.
I have not tried the other items, but I will list how many servings of everything that is included in the kit:
Cheese (30 servings)
Cheesy Broccoli Rice (30 servings)
Creamy Potato Soup (30 servings)
Creamy Chicken Rice (30 servings)
Hearty Vegetable Blend (30 servings)
Instant Potatoes (30 servings)
Macaroni (30 servings)
Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal (40 servings)
Morning Moo Milk Mix (80 servings)
Each bag also includes an oxygen absorber.
I plan on taking several of the packets that I have not used yet and put it in my emergency bag. Just keep in mind that if you do the same, almost everything needs to be cooked, so this is only good if you have a pan and fire/heat access.
The cooking instructions are printed on the back of each bag as well as on a flier included in the pack. The flier also includes a 30 and 45 day meal planner.
I was so impressed at the value and taste so far, I ordered 3 more of these for actual storage.
Size: 1 PailItem Display Weight: 29.00Verified Purchase
The oatmeal is pretty good. Close to what you’d expect if you were buying Quaker’s oatmeal packages. There’s only one flavor they offer, but honestly brown sugar is the best flavor, and I usually don’t buy the multi-flavor packs. You’d eat one every morning.
The milk is actually good. It’s better than canned milk that you might buy for long term storage. It’s great to add to the oatmeal when you want to have a bit of a change. You’ll be taking one to two servings per day. There’s only two bags, so be careful not to A) spill the bag or B) let moisture get inside it.
The meals are a lot of noodles and rice. That explains the calories and price. The food comes in multiple packages, and each package suggests opening and cooking the entire package at once. I didn’t do it, and I wouldn’t do it in a survival situation, throw some sandwich bags in the bucket. The creamy chicken is probably the best, I like to mix it with the potato soup. The hearty vegetable mix was the worst part and it’s acceptable for a bad day. I seasoned the first few hearty vegetable mixes because the flavor was clumped up in the bottom, and when I did eat the flavoring, it still didn’t overpower the dish. The meals vary per day, but do end up feeling bland about ten days in. Ten days is as long as I went without breaking the pattern and it was not fun, but I’ve managed to keep about three days on and one day off this food source without feeling suicidal. I’d suggest getting onion, garlic, something hot, salt, and pepper to add to this. Makes it significantly better in terms of breaking monotony.
If you’re not going to eat it, do not remove anything from the bucket. You will not get it back into the bucket. I took out one bag of each product and put the remaining back into the bucket. It was full again.
When you plan to actually use it in a dire situation, you wouldn’t want to rely solely on this bucket, but it would greatly increase your odds of survival. Hunt and forage, supplement with this. You should consider stocking up a vitamin of some sort, any decent multi would work. If you are going to have a lot of physical activity you’re going to want to eat more food. This contains a reasonable low calorie diet amount for an adult male of average size, but you would lose weight. Maybe pick up some protein powder, with fats in it too.