MIDWEST CITY, Okla. -- According to the most recent government data, food inflation costs for the average American family are about 4.5 percent per year. That staggering figure, coupled with growing fear about the global food trade and availability of fuel, is prompting a growing number of Oklahoma families to stock up.
This notion of "surivivalism" has been circling the American psyche for a few months now.
Glenn Beck is talking about it on his show and there are others.
The official guidelines from FEMA recommend two weeks of food immediately available for a family in case of emergency.
At Red Dawn: Hunting, Survival, Recreation, they specialize in homesteading, emergency preparedness and first-aid.
Owner Gaylon Cornsilk first dreamed up this concept about a year ago.
The doors have been open just six months and business has exploded.
Cornsilk says, "This was kinda born out of a passion to see people prepared for any kind of emergency, natural or man-made. We are growing exponentially everyday. Obviously there's an air of people starting to notice and want to prepare for what's going on around them."
Donna Harper manages the store's long-term storage food section.
Some of the pre-packaged emergency food rations last five to 25 years; the rations sell out so quickly they cannot keep enough on premises.
The average customer spends hundreds of dollars.
Harper says, "They're buying a variety of this stuff. They don't just want the survival tabs. They don't just want the emergency rations. They want the dried fruit and soups and milk and eggs. We're amazed. For the longest time we thought, 'Oh it's just us. There aren't that many of us.' But we're finding out there are a lot of us. I don't ever want to be sitting across the table from someone I love and thinking, 'Why didn't I prepare? I wish I had done more.' I don't ever want to do that."
The Behringer family from Yukon is part of a new breed of survivalists.
Their garden supplies most of the family's veggies in the summer; they freeze the rest.
They equipped their house with a built-in generator hook-up so they can keep the lights on when power fails.
Fred Behringer says, "I keep the generator full of gas and two gas cans right there with it because it's no fun to get up at 2 a.m. because your generator went off and you need to go find some more gas."
The Behringers' secret is buying staples and buying bulk.
Andrea Behringer says, "I never thought of us as survivalists. It never even crossed my mind because it just seemed practical. We don't have a lot of pre-made foods. It's mostly staples. It's your basics; beans, rice, pasta, potatoes, cans of vegetables. So if I can get a good deal on it, I will buy a whole bunch."
The Behringers say they could live comfortably for two weeks off what's in the pantry.
Whether you are stockpiling because you believe global economic meltdown is imminent or just because it is wise to buy a few extra when things are on sale, there are more and more Oklahomans choosing to load up on necessities, just in case.
No comments:
Post a Comment