Buying food in bulk saves money, gives security and has given me great joy and peace. Storing the food can be tough. How much do I need? How much can I store? What do I have space for? How to keep the food from going bad? All good questions when you’re buying in bulk and I can’t answer all of them for you. Each family’s needs and capabilities are different. What I can do is give examples for you to work off of.
Where To Buy Bulk Food
Azure Standard is my number 1 place to shop. I love the clean, Non-GMO, organic food they offer. Azure Standard is an online whole food distributor. They skip the middle man and deliver your order to drop off location near you. You pick up on the day and time they deliver. For example, for me they deliver on the 1st Tuesday of every month around 6:00pm. Knowing this allows me to plan out my orders knowing my food needs to last at least a month long. Although most of what I order lasts us 2-3 months, some items, like dry beans, last us 6+ months.
There are other places to shop in bulk like Costco, AllBulkFoods.com, and many more… Each place differs a little on what they carries so you will need to shop according to your needs. I shop Azure for their Non-GMO organic whole foods.
Foods You Can Store In Buckets
- Dry Beans/lentils
- Rice
- Flour
- Oats
- Popcorn
- Sugar/brown/powdered
- Seeds (flax, chia, sunflower, etc)
- Salts and spices
- Pastas
- Even cereals
This list is not exhaustive but the more common items that are stored in buckets. You can store pretty much any pantry food in a food bucket. But just because they are in food grade buckets doesn’t mean they will last longer. Although most items that can be stored in a food bucket can last a good long time. Do you research the shelf life of the foods you want to store and don’t simply believe that because it’s in a food bucket that it will automatically stay good for 30 years.
Food Grade Buckets
Which buckets are safe for storing food? Can I just pick up some $5 buckets from Home Depot or Walmart? Regular $5 buckets are made with releasing agents that can be toxic. They are not ideal for storing food and the FDA advises against it. Luckily food grade buckets are not hard to find and are typically only a few dollars more. To know if your bucket is FDA approved look for the recycle number “1”, “2”, “4” or “5” on the bottom of the bucket.
Where To Buy Food Grade Buckets
You can buy Food Grade Buckets online easily, I like buying them from Azure Standard but you can also find them on Amazon, Home Depot, Tractor Supply, even some Walmart’s. The prices for Food Grade Buckets is typically only a few extra dollars around $6-8 per bucket but it’s the lid that often comes separate and is another $5-7.
I’ve actually bought most of my buckets from our local donut shop. When we first started buying in bulk it was because we were trying to save money and spend wisely. So buying new 10 buckets with lids at $12 was money I just didn’t have at the time. So I went to my local donut shop and found they sold their used buckets for $2.50 with the lid. Most of their buckets were only 4 gallons and didn’t always fit 25lbs of flour or sugar in one but I worked with it. The goal was to save money while providing my family’s needs and it worked.
TIP: I will advise, when buying from a local restaurant or bakery make sure to avoid putting your flour or sugar in a bucket that had jalapenos, vinegar or something strong smelling in it previously.
Where to Store Your Food Buckets
Keep your buckets in a cool, dry location. You want to keep food buckets out of extreme temperatures. A pantry or closet inside the house is always the ideal temperature but they are often not big enough for your needs. Some Basements and garages are typically perfectly fine. Sheds and carports are not ideal due to their lack of insulation.
Along with temperature you always need to consider moisture or humidity levels. You want to store your pantry foods in a dry location. Too much moisture can lead to rot, fungus and molds. Often people who store in a cool room or basement will invest in a dehumidifier to insure a safe room for all their goods. If the room you are planning to store in has trouble with moisture this may be something you will want to look into.
I store my bulk foods in my kitchen under my worktable.
Remember there is not one right way to store food for your family while providing for them. But there are multiple wrong ways that might lead to contamination and food waste. Avoid the wrong and be creative with the right ways to fit your family’s needs and enjoy the fruit of your labor.
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