Go to the source: Survive the Worst
I was recently listening to a presentation by one of those bureaucratic experts from the USDA. He was talking about a simple technique that could save the food in your freezer should there be a loss of power. As we all know a three or four day blackout could result in the complete loss of hundreds of dollars worth of meat.
According to this G-man (Sorry I didn’t write his name down) the single most important thing you could do if you know a storm is approaching is to acquire enough bags of ice to completely fill your freezer up. The goal is to fill every nook and cranny possible with bagged ice. The more frozen mass you have in your freezer the longer your food will keep.
In the moments after a major storm ice becomes a hot commodity. People line up at distribution centers and wait in long lines hoping to get just one bag of ice. Absolutely no one is looking for ice before the storm hits. When the sheep go left, you go right. While they are sitting in long lines waiting for relief trucks to show up, you’ll be sitting home, chilling, (pun intended) with the knowledge that the food in your freezer is safe.
Three other helpful pointers were to cover your freezer, after its been stuffed to the gills with ice with a large sleeping bag. The bag acts as an insulator and helps keep the cool in. He recommended limiting the time you hold the freezer door open by planning ahead and packing the freezer in a way that you know exactly where everything is inside the freezer. That way you can quickly grab what you need and close the door as quickly as possible. Lastly, he recommended placing a thermometer inside the freezer. Meat that stays below 40 degrees or has chunks of ice still in the meat is probably safe and can be refrozen. Above 40 degrees and it is suspect and should be used or discarded.
Sat, Aug 7, 2010
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