Survival Canned Meats

Canned Meats For Survival Reviews

Unless you raise cattle for meat, you are at the mercy of the industrial meat complex in an SHTF situation. As I write this article, online retailers have run out of canned beef, pork, and chicken, limiting how much you can buy. Meat, protein, and fat are hard to come by in an SHTF situation, so stock up.

If you don’t mind buying in bulk, Survival Fresh jumbo cans are our canned meat of choice. It’s delicious, healthy, and has a shelf life of 25 years — much longer than the cans you find in the grocery store.

The only product that compares in terms of shelf life is freeze-dried meat, but freeze-dried is not as tasty and requires rehydration before eating.

So how do they do it?

The uncooked meat is sealed in cans and then slowly pressure-cooked. This means you get a longer shelf life without heavy processing and additives, making it a healthier option than other canned meats.

13 Reasons Canned Meat Is a Great Survival Food

1. Excellent source of protein
2. A source of fat, which is often hard to come by in survival situations.
3. No freezing, thawing or pre-cooking required.
4. Shelf stable
5. Longer shelf life: Most canned meats will last 5+ years past the “best before” date.
6. Unopened containers do not require refrigeration.
7. Pre-cooked so you can eat the meat right out of the box without reheating
8. Commercial canning sterilizes the meat.
9. Sealed cans are an excellent container for long-term storage.
10. It’s much more edible than the best-before date.
11. In a pinch, you can place cans directly over campfire coals to heat them up.
12. The perfect, 72-hour emergency kit for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
13. Perfect for rotation in a long-term survival pantry.
14. Canned meat loses very little of its nutritional value during the canning process.

Yoders fully cooked canned bacon

If you need some survival food and you like meat-based protein, Yoders Fully Cooked Canned Bacon may be the perfect option for you. Keep in mind that here you get a full case of canned and fully cooked bacon.

Review

Yoders Fully Cooked canned bacon is already fully cooked, so you don’t have to worry about being able to fry or cook it in any way. Just take it out of the box and it’s ready to eat. Of course, it will taste better warm, so it’s recommended that you find a way to heat it up. You can pan fry it, put it in a stew, or yes, you can even stick it in a sandwich.

Remember that here, when you buy Yoders Fully Cooked canned bacon, you get a full 12 cans of bacon, and each one contains 9 ounces. Either way, that’s a heck of a lot of bacon.

Also, what is important to note regarding shelf life is that it has a shelf life of 10 years when canned, which is no doubt quite a long time. It’s loaded with protein, calories, and fat that will keep you and others full for a long time to come.

Pros

• Packed with protein, fat, and calories.
• Lasts a very long time.
• Contains a lot of bacon.

Cons

• Doesn’t taste like fresh bacon at all

NutrStore Freeze Dried Chicken

If you’re looking to save some chicken for survival needs instead of beef or pork, this NutriStore Freeze Dried Chicken might be a good option for you. Many people love chicken, which makes it a pretty versatile survival food.

Review

NutrStore freeze-dried chicken, for one, is packed with tons of protein, fat and other essential nutrients to keep you going. Of course, it doesn’t have the same vitamins or minerals as preserved vegetables, but nutritionally, this Nutrient Freeze Dried Chicken definitely holds its own.

At the very least, it will keep you and others going for a few weeks thanks to the high calorie content that comes with it. Now, keep in mind that here you can buy a can, or you can buy a 4-pack of cans. Each one comes with 1.15 pounds of freeze-dried chicken, no doubt.

Now, each one is advertised as having over 20 servings, but we doubt it will last that long, since a little over 1 pound really isn’t that much. You can do the math yourself here. We love the fact that it’s freeze-dried, because drying foods, especially meat, is a great way to preserve them. For one, it kills all bacteria and microbes that can spoil food. Also, the freeze-drying process, combined with the canning process here, means that this NutrStore freeze-dried chicken has a shelf life of 25 years, which is a really long time.

Pros

• Lasts up to 25 years.
• Rich in protein, fat and other minerals
• The freeze drying process is very safe and effective.

Cons

• Probably not as many servings as advertised.
• The taste is different from fresh chicken.

Mountain House Italian Style Pepper Steak

Unlike the first two options we looked at, this is actually a complete meal. Here you get a large box that comes with a full 7 servings of Italian-style pepperoni steak. If you want a complete meal ready to go, this is a good option for you and your family to take along.

Review

Just to make sure you know, Mountain House Italian Style Pepper Steak comes in 1 large can making it ideal for a group of people to eat together. A can holds a full 1 pound, which is enough to feed a few people for one meal, at least in terms of survival rations. Now, you have to add a few cups of boiling water to make it edible. You can’t eat it without boiling it in water, so be aware of that fact, because if you don’t have water, Mountain House Italian Style Pepper Steak won’t be much fun to eat.

You should also know that instead of 1 big can, you can get it in individual serving pouches, which can actually be great because you don’t have to make it all at once, and save some for later. can. Additionally, this Mountain House Italian Style Pepper Steak also comes with rice and tomato.

We do this because it makes a complete meal with grains, vegetables and meat proteins. It’s actually quite a balanced diet with plenty of nutrients that will keep you going for some time to come. What is also quite impressive about Mountain House Italian Style Paper Stack is that it has a shelf life of 30 years.

Pros

• Extremely long shelf life
• Good for many people.
• A nutritionally balanced diet

Cons

• Boiling water is required.
• The rice remains slightly grainy.

Survival Cave canned meat

If you want to make sure you have enough protein for a survival situation, this pack of Survival Q Canned Meat is a good option for you. The fact is that this case of canned meat actually comes with a few varieties that you can appreciate.

Review

Okay, so when you buy Survival Q canned meat, you get 12 cans, each containing 14.5 ounces of meat. Surprisingly, you actually get quite a bit of meat here, so all in all, it should feed a lot of people for quite a few days. As we said before, we like that you get plenty of meat here, with 3 cans of different types of meat, 3 cans of chicken, 2 cans of turkey, 2 cans of pork, and 2 cans of ground beef. are

Now, this isn’t a gourmet meal by any means, but the fact that it comes with so many different types of meat gives you some great meal prep options in terms of survival cue canned meat. What can be done together?

At least it’s not boring. Additionally, it is USDA inspected, fully cooked, and preserved with only a small amount of salt. It all adds up to a pretty decent 15 year shelf life. Survival cave canned meat does not contain many carbohydrates, but is high in fat and protein, both of which are important in survival scenarios.

Pros

• Lasts up to 15 years.
• Good selection of meats
• Lots of protein and fat for survival

Cons

• Very limited vitamins
• Fairly mild flavor all around

Red Feather Creamery Canned Butter

We honestly had no idea that butter could be canned, but here you have it, canned butter that’s actually real and lasts a long time once it’s canned.

Review

One of the things that stands out about Red Feather Creamery canned butter is the fact that it is not powdered or freeze-dried. It is actually real, tasty and creamy butter. Yes, it’s canned, and contains some preservatives. However, Red Feather Creamery canned butter lasts a total of 10 years once canned, which is pretty impressive no matter how you put it.

It comes straight from New Zealand, it’s canned fresh, and surprisingly enough, it tastes great too. Now, keep in mind that you won’t be able to sustain yourself on butter alone, plus bread doesn’t turn out that well for years, but hey, if you need butter for survival situations, this is it.

Pros

• Not freeze dried or powdered
• Real, tasty, and creamy butter

Cons

• Somewhat worthless in the grand scheme of things

Poultry is a great low-fat source of protein and one of your healthiest options for canned meat. The major downside is that it is very light to eat.

We recommend adding canned chicken or turkey to freeze-dried emergency meals as a protein boost or mixing it with other ingredients to enhance flavor.

Best Premium Chicken: Wild Planet Organic Roasted Chicken Breast

Wild Planet Organic Baked Chicken Breast

If you’re concerned about your health and where your meat comes from, Wild Planet’s canned chicken is organic and low sodium.

They are one of the most highly rated brands in taste and texture, and the small serving cans are perfect for solo preppers or couples.

Best Budget Chicken: Swanson Premium Chunk Chicken Breast

Swanson Premium White Chunk Chicken Breast

Swanson’s chicken cans contain some additives (thickeners and stabilizers), which contain ingredients derived from genetically modified crops.

If that doesn’t bother you, chicken has a good taste and texture and is relatively inexpensive.

Best Canned Turkey: Keystone Canned Turkey

Keystone Meats All Natural Canned Turkey

Keystone’s canned turkey provides more protein per serving than its canned chicken counterpart (12 grams versus 14 grams). It’s expensive for a ton of meat, but you get big chunks of meat with very little fat.

Canned beef

There’s a reason athletes and bodybuilders love their steak — it packs the most protein into a serving of any meat. It is also a great source of iron and B12. Unfortunately, beef is also one of the most expensive meats and can be high in fat.

Best Canned Beef: Keystone Meats All Natural Canned Beef

Keystone Meats All Natural Canned Beef, 28 oz

If you’re looking for pure, unadulterated canned beef, there aren’t many options on the market. Besides Survival Cave, Keystone is the other top brand.

All you’ll find in the can is beef, water, and salt, and although you may find the fat residue unpleasant when you open it, the meat inside is good if the meat is a little salty.

Best Corned Beef: Libby’s Corned Beef

Libby Corned Beef 12 oz. (3-pack)

Technically, you can eat corned beef cold — if you can get your mind around the fact that it looks and smells like dog food. A better option is to fry it on its own or with potatoes and eggs.

Corned beef is cheap and a good source of protein and calories, but it’s also high in sodium and fat.

The main criticism of Libby’s corned beef is that the key mechanism to get into the can is often broken, so make sure you have a can opener handy. Or check out these ways to open cans without a can opener.

Canned pork

Another good source of protein, pork offers the most variety among canned meats. From pulled pork to bacon, sausages and ham, there’s no excuse to be bored.

However, the more processed the meat, the less likely it is to be healthy—pork is the main ingredient in many of the “mystery meats” listed below.

Best Canned Bacon: CMMG Tactical

CMMG Tactical Cooked Bacon, 9-oz

It’s not the healthiest meat, but a slice of crispy bacon can give you a pleasant moment of routine between dehydrated meals and canned dinners.

It is filled with bacon bits that can be eaten cold or warm. It is expensive and contains sodium nitrate, but it occasionally finds its place as a remedy.

Healthiest Canned Pork: Keystone Meats Canned Pork

Keystone Meats All Natural Canned Pork, 28 oz

Like the rest of the Keystone range, what’s added to the meat in the tin is a dash of sea salt. Although this makes pulled pork taste saltier than you’re used to, this canned pulled pork has the lowest sodium content we’ve discovered (on par with Survival Q’s pulled pork).                                                                           

Best Pulled Pork: Vinnie Foods Deluxe Pulled Pork

Vinnie Foods Deluxe Pulled Pork, 48 oz — 6 per case.

This pork is slow-cooked until tender with a spicy, smoky flavor. It’s a little higher in salt than keystone pork, but it’s a delicious option if you’re eating it on its own or lacking in spices and flavors.

Best Ham: Dock Premium Ham

DAK Premium Ham, Fully Cooked, 16 oz.

Canned ham usually doesn’t live up to the real thing, and most lunch meats have more in common than pork leg. Dak is one of the better brands, and if you’re willing to glaze and bake it, it makes a passable meal.

If you’re looking for something you can fry up in an emergency or stick on a piece of bread, you’re probably better off sticking with Spam.

Canned fish

Canned fish is an excellent source of protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and essential minerals like zinc, B12, and iron that you won’t find in most longevity emergency foods.

Cans or packets of sardines, mackerel and tuna are small enough for your bug out bag and will be a welcome tasty relief from protein bars.

Note: It’s worth checking the shelf life of different fish products, especially if you’re tempted to get the flavored varieties, as they’re often more acidic and don’t keep as well. They are also likely to be high in sodium.

Best Canned Fish: Wild Planet Wild Sardines

Wild Planet Wild Sardines in Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Lightly Smoked, Keto and Paleo, 4.4 oz (Pack of 12)

Admittedly, sardines are a bit smelly and not for everyone, but as an emergency protein source, they’re fantastic.

They are packed with nutrients, low in pollution (being smaller and lower in the food chain), and cheap to store. Wild Planet’s sardines are sustainably sourced and come in extra virgin olive oil.

Try the season’s mackerel fillets.

Best Canned Salmon: Gold Seal Wild Alaskan Pink Salmon

Gold Seal Wild Alaskan Pink Salmon – Skinless Boneless – 6 oz (170 g) – 6 count – 700 mg Omega-3 per serving (EPA and DHA Omega-3) – 20 g protein per serving – One serving only Cooked – ready to serve

Salmon is probably not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about emergency food supplies. But a little luxury can do wonders for morale, and salmon is one of the healthiest fish you can buy.

Wild salmon is healthier than farmed fish (no antibiotics or toxins), and this gold seal salmon has the MSC seal of approval, indicating it is from sustainable fishing.

Best Canned Tuna: American Tuna

American tuna MSC certified

If tuna is your canned fish of choice, it’s worth looking carefully at what you’re buying. Although tuna is a good, inexpensive protein source, it can carry high levels of mercury.

American Tuna’s pole- and line-caught albacore tuna are MSC-certified and, unlike many brands, contain no added salt. To minimize the risk from mercury, it’s best not to make it a simple addition to your menu.

Mystery meat

Okay, so labeling regulations mean that what you’re eating has to be transparent, but we’ve used this category to cover more processed canned meats. These products are inexpensive, and you can usually find them at your local grocery store.

If you don’t normally eat these foods, we recommend checking them out beforehand. They’re not to everyone’s taste, and no matter how desperate you are at SHTF, you won’t be faced with shelves of cans you can’t face eating.

Best Processed Canned Meat: Spam

Spam Classic, 12 Ounce Can (Pack of 12)

Everyone’s favorite canned meat!

Despite sometimes getting a bad rep, spam doesn’t taste all that bad. In most taste tests, it outperforms almost every other processed lunch meat.

It is also cheap and does not need to be refrigerated after opening. On the downside, it’s not healthy. Spam is high in fat and sodium, including sodium nitrate.

Also see How long does spam last?

Best Vienna Sausages: Libby’s Vienna Sausage

Vienna canned sausage

Vienna sausages are about as low on the food health chain as you can go. But they’re so cheap and have a certain childhood nostalgia that’s hard to beat.

The two biggest brands are Libby’s and Armour, and there isn’t much to choose between them – both contain a mixture of meat (or meat parts) and provide most of their calories in the form of fat.

Libby’s gets our vote because it’s relatively low in sodium.

Best Potted Meat: Armor Potted Meat

Armor Potted Meats Made with Chicken and Pork 3 oz (Pack of 12)

It’s a good idea not to think too hard about what’s in potted meat and just keep eating it. Preferably blindfolded – the ingredient list is “interesting” and the meat isn’t much to look at either.

But it tastes surprisingly good. It’s very salty and definitely can’t be considered healthy, but it’s cheap, good with crackers, and will add some variety to your canned meat supply.

Why canned meat should be part of your emergency food supply.

Although many people choose not to eat meat for nutritional or ethical reasons, it is one of the best sources of protein. Animal products are classified as a complete proteins, containing nine essential amino acids that our bodies cannot produce on their own.

Most plant-based protein sources contain only a few amino acids, so if you’re vegan (more on vegan prepping), you need to plan your diet carefully to make sure you get Combine the right types of protein.

When the SHTF and food options become more limited, canned meat is a reliable source of protein, fat, and essential nutrients.

22 Of The Best Types Of Canned Meat For Prepping, Survival, and Storage

Type of Meat	Fat	Protein	Serving Size	Calories
Tuna in Water	.5 g	22g	3oz	100
Turkey (Hormel)	2.5g	11g	2oz	70
Salmon (Pink Starkist)	1.5g	22g	5oz	100
Sardines (King Oscar)	4g	14g	3oz	240
Shrimp (Bumble Bee)	1g	21g	4oz	100
Oysters (Crown Prince)	8g	11g	2.4oz	150
Anchovies (King Oscar)	1.5g	4g	.5oz	30
Crab Meat (Bumble Bee)	.5g	16g	4.23oz	80
Mackerel (King Oscar)	19g	15g	2.82oz	230
Kippered Herring (Crown Prince)	13g	19g	3.24oz	190
Chicken (Kirkland)	1g	13g	2oz	60
Roast Beef (Keystone)	3.5g	11g	2oz	70
Spam	16g	7g	2oz	180
Ham (Plumrose)	7g	7g	2oz	100
Canned Bacon (Yoder’s)	5g	5g	3 slices	60
Canned Hamburger (Yoder’s)	9g	16g	2oz	80
Pulled Pork (Chata in Retort)	17g	8g	1.9oz	185
Deviled Ham Spread (Underwood)	16g	9g	2.25oz	190
Pate Flower Pork Liver	17g	7g	2.64oz	200
Vienna Sausage (Armour)	10g	7g	2.11oz	120
Potted Meat (Armour)	16g	8g	2.18oz	170
Corned Beef (Libby’s)	7g	15g	2oz	120

Nutritional Information Provided by the USDA or the Manufacture

The Popular Canned Meat Brands for Preppers and Survivalists

Keystone

Packaged in Lima, Ohio with two ingredients: salt and meat

• Keystone canned meats
• Beef
• The chicken
• Pork
• Turkey
• Ground beef
• Meat broth
• Chicken broth
• Turkey Broth

Visit Keystone.com and check out their recipes

Werling and Sons, Inc. Canned meat

• Beef
• Canned hamburger meat
• Pork
• Pork Sausage Stuffing
• The chicken
• Turkey

Recipes by Worling & Sons.

Spam

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you recognize Spam as the mysterious meat in a can. It contains only 6 ingredients: ham, salt, water, potato starch, sugar, and pork with sodium nitrate.

Spam has saved more lives than any other canned meat on the planet. It first became popular during WWII. In places like the Hawaiian Islands, it’s part of the culture; You can find it in McDonald’s and Burger King sandwiches.

Spam canned meat

• Some of these flavors are hard to find, depending on where you live.
• Spam Classic
• Spam Lite
• Spam with low sodium
• Spam with Hormel Bacon
• Spam hickory smoke
• Hot and Spicy Spam
• Jalapeno spam
• Teriyaki Spam
• Pepper Spam
• Spam with Portuguese sausage
• Spam (Filipino-style sweet pork) with tocino seasoning
• Spreading spam

Interesting facts about spam:

1. 12.8 cans of Spam are consumed every second.
2. Spam is sold in 44 countries.
3. 100 million pounds of Spam were sent to feed the troops during WWII.
4. In Southeast Asia, Spam is given as a luxury gift.
5. Hawaii consumes 7 million cans of Spam every year.
6. Residents of the island of Guam consume an average of 16 cans of Spam per person per year.
7. 8 billion cans of Spam have been sold.

Visit Spam’s website to check out the recipes.

Lehman’s

Lehman’s is a retail and online store that provides tools and food for people living simply. Some canned meat products are labeled “Lehman’s,” and some are not. In business since 1955 and located in Ohio.

Meat Ingredients: Meat and salt with no added preservatives or water.

Lehman’s canned meats

• Canned Beef-Keystone
• Canned Chicken-Keystone
• Canned Turkey-Keystone
• Canned Pork – Keystone
• Canned Ground Beef-Keystone
• Canned Bacon Lehmans
• Turkey Broth – The Keystone
• Chicken Broth-Keystone
• Beef Birth-Keystone

If you’re a survival type, prepper, off-grid, or homesteader, Lehman’s makes for an interesting browse. Head on over and check them out. Lehmans.com

Wirtz

Wertz’s is veteran owned and located in Tiffin, Ohio. Their canned meat is farm-raised without the use of antibiotics or hormones, and is GMO-free.

Hello, I’m Don Wertz, and I’m the proud owner of Don Wertz Family Farms and Wertz Farm Market. My Wurtz family has been raising beef in Northwest Ohio since 1852. I am the seventh generation of my family and carry on the family tradition.

Wurtz’s canned meat

• Home grown beef
• Home grown pork

Hormel

Hormel Foods owns Spam, so it will cover Hormel Meats in addition to Spam.

Hormel is processed and packaged in Minnesota.

Hormel canned meats

• Smoked ham
• Chicken breast
• White and Black Turkey
• Roast beef and gravy
• Ham patties
• Corned beef
• Canned whole ham
• Pig’s feet
• Pork hawks

Armor Couche

Armor is owned by Congra Corporation out of Chicago.

Armor canned meat

• Potted meat
• Satanic ham
• Vienna Sausage
• Roast beef with gravy.
• Corned beef
• Tree Lunch Bread

Libby’s

Owned by Libby’s Brand Holding based in Geneva, Switzerland

Libby’s Canned Meat

• Corned beef
• Vienna Sausage
• roast meat

Bumble Bee

Bumble Bee is owned by Thai Union Group out of Thailand.

Bumblebee canned meat

• Chub mackerel
• Solid white albacore
• Red salmon
• The oyster
• Crab meat
• Shrimp
• Sardines

How do you use canned meat?

You can make almost anything with canned meat that you can make with fresh meat.

Think of it as an ingredient in your meal but with one less step.

There are many ways to use canned meat. It is impossible to give a comprehensive list. The following are some ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

32 Uses for Canned Meat

The most flexible meats would be beef, chicken and pork but don’t discount fish and seafood; They provide nutrients that other meats do not.

• Eat pre-cooked meat cold from the can.
• Eat warm
• Mix with rice and/or beans.
• Mix in cooked pasta.
• Eat on crackers or bread.
• Pair with a foraged salad or garden-grown produce
• Pork, beef and chicken can be used in the same recipes as you would for fresh meat.
• Canned corned beef is a staple in the Bahamas, cooked as a hash over rice, known as a “fire engine”.
• Beef and egg noodles
• Chicken and noodles
• Mix in top ramen.
• Salmon patties
• Chicken and Beef Stroganoff
• Tacos
• Enchiladas
• Burritos
• Cabbage Rolls
• Chicken Pot Pie
• Orange Chicken Stir Fry
• Beef, chicken, pork sandwich
• Stir-fry with any available fresh vegetables and eat over white rice.

Sardines or capers on toasted bread

• Beef, chicken, or pork with baked beans
• Spaghetti
• Chili
• Fajitas
• Heat the meat and barbecue sauce and eat on bread or rice.
• Chicken salad
• Make a gravy with the meat and canned mushrooms and pour it over the rice.
• Salmon spread on crackers
• Meat sheet
• Casseroles, soups, and stews
• Goulash
• Sloppy Jose.

5 Reasons to Avoid Canned Meat

• High sodium content: Avoid canned meats if you are sensitive to salt.
• Nitrates are often used as a preservative (check your label).
• Weight of can includes gravy, juice or additives. You’re not getting as much meat as you think.
• In some cases the use of antibiotics, poor living conditions, and animal feeding are suspected.
• Not good for bugging out unless you use a cash system. (Hiding food and supplies in a predetermined location.) Cans are heavy enough to be carried on foot.

Tip: If you’re willing to pay the price, you can get canned meat that’s considered “healthy.” Brands that are organic, free-range, grass-fed, antibiotic-free, and sodium-free are available.

How should I store canned meat?

• Store canned meat on a shelf above the floor
• Keep your storage area clean, dry and cool
• Store 18 inches from the wall to allow for air circulation.
• Store at 75° F or below and frozen.
• Rotate your canned meats with FIFO, first-in, first-out, the method used by restaurants. Use old boxes first.

10 Cans of Meat You Should Never Eat

If you’re shooting for shelf life beyond the “Best Buy” date, you’ll want to inspect your cans before using them to make sure your meat hasn’t gone south.

Avoid using cans of meat that show any of the following symptoms:

• Leaky or stained
• swelling
• rust
• Badly toothed
• burst
• foul smell
• Missing or loose lids
• Canned meat changes color or odor.
• When in doubt, throw it out.

Don’t test meat you’re not sure about.

Is canned meat healthy?

Although meat has many health benefits, highly processed meats are generally higher in fat, sodium and chemical levels. Some types of canned meat are so processed that it’s hard to believe it’s meat at all — hence our “mystery meat” category above!

Some consider two additives of particular concern: sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite.

Although sodium nitrite itself is not carcinogenic, the acids in your stomach can form a carcinogenic compound. Ascorbic acid (which can also be added to preserved meats) helps prevent this chemical reaction.

Sodium nitrate is also found in vegetables and some drinking water, and is found in very small amounts in cured meats, so unless you eat large amounts of it regularly, it’s likely to pose a serious health risk. do not have.

If you eat a lot of fish, you should be aware of the risk of mercury contamination. Mercury is concentrated higher up the food chain in fish (for example, tuna), but careful shopping can help reduce this risk.

Things to consider when buying canned meat

Expiration date

If you’re buying canned meat or fish at the grocery store, most cans have an expiration date of 2-5 years. However, these dates are quite arbitrary. Just because the can has passed its expiration date doesn’t mean the contents aren’t safe to eat. See our guide to canned food shelf life for more information on expiration dates and food safety.

If you want to play it safe and get something with a longer shelf life, you have two options: meat cooked in Survival Kew or bulk tins of freeze-dried meat. Both have a shelf life of at least 25 years. Freeze-dried meat is lighter but more expensive and requires rehydration.

Method of packaging

Most canned meats in the grocery store come in either small, single-serving cans or standard cans that hold 2-4 servings. If you’re counting calories, it’s worth checking serving sizes carefully – they may be smaller than you think.

Bulk cans can often work out at a better price and are a good way to store “real” meat. The downside is that once opened, any meat you don’t eat will soon be refrigerated and eaten. This may not be a problem if you’re feeding a hungry family, but if you’re a solo prepper, larger bins may be less practical.

preparation

Although canned meat is usually precooked and can be eaten cold from the tin, the palatability of meat products varies considerably. Some products may require heating. Others, like corned beef and Spam, are better fried.

If you’re looking at freeze-dried meats, keep in mind that they require additional water and cooking time to hydrate.

How long will canned meat last?

Canned meat has a “best before date” of 3 to 15 years, but can last much longer. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, “The best if used by (or before) date is not the purchase or safety date of canned meat. It indicates peak quality, not that the meat is spoiled.

What affects the shelf life of canned meat?

• The process of canning
• Type of canned meat
• How cans are stored?
• How cans are handled?
• Condition of box when opened

According to the United States Department of Agriculture: Food Safety and Inspection Service, food products can have three dates:

1. The “sell by” date tells the store how long to display the product for sale. You must purchase the product before the expiration date.
2. A “best if used by (or before)” date is recommended for best taste or quality. It is not a purchase or security date and is not required by law.
3. A “use by” date is the last date that the product is recommended to be used at high quality. The date is determined by the product manufacturer.

Result

When it comes down to it, all canned leftovers have their merits. All meats are great for protein needs and general survival and butter is fine as a condiment or flavor enhancer. Personally, we think the best option here is really the Mountain House Italian Style Pepper Steak, because it’s the only option here that makes for a balanced meal and actually has some vegetables and grains in it.