While emergency preparedness is important for everyone, it can be especially daunting for parents. Some parents wonder if peanut butter is a good option for long-term food storage. This question can be a lifesaver when creating a food supply that’s not only nutritious but also kid-approved. Let’s explore why peanut butter deserves a permanent spot on your long-term food storage shelf.
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When disaster strikes, the first thing on most people’s minds is survival. But survival isn’t just about having enough food in your food storage; it’s about having the right kind of food. Sure, stocking canned goods and beans is important, but peanut butter offers a little taste of normalcy during a chaotic time. It’s more than just a childhood favorite; peanut butter boasts an impressive resume that makes it a perfect candidate for your long-term food storage plan. Let’s delve into the reasons why this nutty spread should be a staple in your emergency pantry.
In this post
Why Peanut Butter Belongs in Your Emergency Food Storage Pantry
- Nutrient: Peanut butter is good for you. It’s loaded with protein, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. It provides essential fuel to keep your family going during a crisis. Just keep an eye on the sodium and sugar content.
- Long Shelf Life: Unopened jars of peanut butter boast a long shelf life, thanks to its low moisture content and high oil content. Even opened jars can last a decent amount of time, especially with proper storage .
- No-Prep Necessity: Peanut butter is a great addition to any bug-out bag or emergency kit. It requires no preparation – simply grab a spoon and eat! Or your finger. We won’t judge. No double-dipping if you’re sharing the jar, though!
- Recipe Ingredient: From sweet snacks to savory meals, it goes beyond just sandwiches. Peanut butter is a versatile ingredient for boosting flavor and nutrition in various recipes, and can really elevate your emergency baking. (Flourless peanut butter cookies are UH-mazing and gluten-free, of course!)
- Calories: Calorie intake becomes crucial during emergencies. Peanut butter is a calorie-dense food, providing plenty of much-needed energy. Read more about how to make sure you’re storing enough calories so your food storage pantry won’t starve you in an emergency.
- Filling and Satisfying: Packed with protein and fiber, peanut butter promotes satiety, keeping you feeling fuller for longer. It’s one of those stick-to-your-ribs foods.
- Mental Health: Because of its chemical composition, peanut butter can improve mental health. For more information, go here. That’s certainly reason enough for me to stock up on peanut butter for an emergency.
- Folate-rich: It’s rich in folate, which is a necessary nutrient for pregnant women. In emergencies, this makes peanut butter survival food for both mama and preborn baby. (Just how many more good things can we say about the nutrition in peanut butter?)
- Package Size: It comes in sizes ranging from individual packets to family-sized buckets. There’s even container with both peanut butter and jelly together. Each has its place in your food storage pantry.
Expert Tips for Storing Peanut Butter
- Store Wisely: Unopened jars of peanut butter should be kept in a cool, dry, and dark place. Opened jars can be stored in the cupboard. However, to maximize shelf life, especially for natural peanut butter with its shorter shelf life due to a lack of preservatives and stabilizers store opened peanut butter in the fridge.
- Consider Variety: Stock up on a variety of peanut butter types (creamy, crunchy, etc.) to cater to different preferences. Everyone in the family could have their favorite version.
- Portion Control: While peanut butter is a great source of nutrients, be mindful of portion sizes, especially for those watching calorie intake.
Creative Uses for Peanut Butter
- Boost Breakfast Nutrition: Combine peanut butter with honey or a dollop of yogurt and mix into oatmeal for a protein and flavor boost.
- A Versatile Spread: Peanut butter makes an ideal spread for crackers, bananas, apples, or even celery sticks. Combine it with jam, jam, or even fresh, local honey (super yummy!) for even more options.
- Animal Food: Spread a bit on a pine cone, and you can feed hungry birds during the winter. Also, dogs, at least the ones I know, love it enough to steal bread spread with peanut butter off plates. Consider including a jar in your pet evacuation kit.
- Trap Pests: Use it to bait rodent traps to protect your home and food from pest/rodent infestation.
FAQs
Yes! Use powdered peanut butter if you want to avoid the oils in peanut butter but want the flavor for recipes. If you want full control over your peanut butter, use peanut flour. No sodium or sweeteners are added. You add those if you want and in the quantities you wish. Both have longer shelf life than jarred peanut butter, however, both require additional preparation when needed.
If peanut allergies are a concern in your family, consider alternative nut butters like almond butter or sunflower seed butter, which offer similar benefits.
Related Nutrition & Kid-Approved Foods Content
- Why You Need Comfort Foods in Your Food Storage Pantry
- Why You Should Add Protein Powder to Your Food Storage Pantry
- Superfoods: An Effective Way to Boost Emergency Food Storage Nutrition
- How to Sprout Seeds: A Simple Guide for Beginners (and Everyone Else)
Next Steps
Would you like more help putting together your emergency food storage? I created a FREE ebook to help you build a balanced pantry to help you do that! In it I share more simple tips and explanations to help you create an emergency food supply that will provide nutritious and simple meals in an emergency. Get that free build a balanced pantry ebook here.
Final Thoughts
So next time you’re at the store, consider grabbing a jar (or two!) of this shelf-stable nutritional powerhouse. From emergency preparedness to everyday snacking, peanut butter is a versatile, delicious, and disaster-ready addition to your pantry.
This article was originally published on January 13, 2015.
All natural peanut butter which has to be stirred does get harder and more consolidated as it ages. Much harder to stir.
The price of PB is about to skyrocket. Get it now which it's (relatively) cheap!
I LOL when Kroger sent me a bundle of store coupons….one of them was for a FREE 18 oz. jar of their peanut butter. It was like hitting a small lottery! HA!
11. All you really need to enjoy peanut butter is a finger <del>spoon.</del>
Fixed It For You
I volunteer at a food pantry and peanut butter goes in every box each month I hope this will still continue to happen as the price sores. I know that some of the recipants are elderly and the peanut butter makes a great lunch for them, no cooking. I see on the board at the pantry December pantry is going to give almond butter wonder how that compares in nutrituation???
Your site has helped me a lot in getting ready for whatever their is to come, thanks a lot for your help.
Mallardhen
I would not put natural peanut butter in your long-term food storage. I tried it, and it gets hard and difficult to stir the oils back into the paste. Even though we eat natural peanut butter regularly, I would buy some commercial brand (Skippy, Jif, etc.) to put in long-term food storage. Since it won't get rotated like other foods, I would just donate it to the food bank every so often.
I just bought 6 of the larger size peanut butter jars for almost the same price as the smaller ones. Probably fewer people buy those big ones as they are harder to stir and were left from before the price increase.
in a bugout or no power situation it is wonderful spread on a granolla bar or a poptart~ very filling!
I was at the market today and WOW have the prices on pb gone up!!!! The 16 ounce jar of Skippy that was $2.99 in Sept is now $4.99. I do live in a rural area with only a few stores, so our prices are higher then other places. Glad I stocked up, now I need to look for coupons.
We have a good supply of peanut butter. My husband loves the stuff. We've also invested in peanut butter powder.
Great source of protein.
Would you consider Nutella a good alternative to PB as a long term storage item?
I would consider Nutella a good alternative to AIR, if I could breathe it!!! It has a fairly decent shelf life but won't be as versatile as peanut butter. I haven't stocked up on it, but only because it's too hard to resist!
A wholesale Cash and Carry in my area (NorCal) has it in a 35# pail for about $57. Going up to over $80 soon though.
Peanut butter=good
Chocolate=good
Peanut butter and chocolate=manna from heaven
Sams still has "reasonable" prices on their 2 packs of Jif…we stock up 2 or 3 at a time when we go…..
Skippy Natural has good ingredients, but doesn't need to be stirred like the other natural peanut butters.
How long does peanut butter last past its expiration if its kept in a cool, dry space, out of light and unopened?
All natural peanut butter has a lower shelf life than the stuff with hydrogenated oil, but I've not actual seen expiration dates on a jar only sell by dates. typically it looks like natural PB has about a 1yo sell by date and the other stuff has around a 2yo sell date. So for prep purposes you could probably double that or more as sell by dates are usually pretty conservative.
Also if you want to store the natural and keep it from getting hard I recommend flipping it. if it is stored top up for months all the oil rises to the top, but if you flip it over every few weeks the oil will stay mixed better as it seeks the top of the butter again. storing it in the fridge after it is opened and mixed up will also keep it from separating.
I’ve only had pb go bad once. It smells rancid when it’s bad… It was a bulk box of pb that I got from my local salvage grocery so who knows how old it was when I bought it. The portion I didn’t get transfered to jars took about three years – with the inner bag unsealed but tucked in – to go bad in my house. This stuff has an incredible shelf life. For storage purposes I’d prefer whole in the shell raw peanuts. better storage in Ma’s own wrappers And I live in a long enough growing season area to grow my own and perpetuate my supply. Think fifty pounds per person would do?
i get PB for 10/$20 at smiths. they are normally $2.50/jar but go on sale sometimes – buy 10 get 50 cents off per jar.
it’s the good stuff too. peanuts and salt. no sugar or fake oils.
i’ve never had any go bad.
Natural peanut butter does have a lot of oil and is hard to stir at first—-just stir up one time until it is mixed up and then store it in the frig. It does have oil and can go bad if heat is an issue. It will stay stirred up and easy to use has long as is cold.
Hearing some of those prices now I am glad I stocked up when the base Commissary had their case lot sale. I got the large jars of Jif smooth and crunchy for just under $3 each and had coupons for $1 off 2 so for $2.50 a jar I bought lots of it. We use a lot of it when we get a hankering. I even eat it by the spoonful out of the jar. I know the lead food person at my local Big Lots and when they had a bunch of Planters PB Chocolate Cherry go out of date I went and nabbed it for free. IAW the FDA website it should be good for up to 5 years past the sell by date.
Only one problem. Peanut allergies. A member of my fam has them. So I buy almond butter for him. It’s more expensive, though. But I am glad it is becoming more readily available.
We all love Nutella, but surely it doesn’t have the same high protein as peanut butter, does it?
Everything I recommend has to be customized to each individual’s and family’s needs.
I just wish one of the food storage companies would make almond butter powder for those of us with peanut allergies!!!
Jan, that is an excellent suggestion! I’ll pass it on to my contacts at a couple of food storage companies.
I love this article about storing peanut butter. Who doesn’t love homemade whole wheat bread with peanut butter and jelly on it? Yummy!
I have to stock up because my hubby is a peanut butter holic! Haha I Love the pb powder for smoothies.
I’ll have to lay in a Stock with my other supplies… I have some close associates who love it…
Years ago PB came in glass jars. Now in plastic jars. Will the plastic unopened jars have the same shelf life ? Is the plastic safe ?
I’m already doing a lot of the things you teach but would love to learn more. You seem to good knowledge. I have only been following you for a little while, so please excuse my ignorance. Do you know a lot about wild edible plants, their food value and medicinal use? I would love to learn about that also. Thank you. Maria
We love peanut butter and always have lots of jars. In fact, getting down to just six or eight jars makes us nervous, and it’s time to start watching for a sale so we can stock up again. It’s a cheap, simple, nutritious food.
I know this will sound dumb but can you freeze peanut butter?
I refrigerate mine after opening to lengthen the time before it goes rancid. I would just buy a small cheap jar and try freezing for a month or so, then open it.
Yes. I use it for candy making and baking. Never used it for sandwiches, I have fresh jars in my pantry. I bought a 5 pound can for baking one year, froze the surplus.
Sara
Grandma prepper
I just now (5/18) opened a clear glass jar of Natural Creamy Peanut Butter- composed of ONLY peanuts and salt (26 Oz Smuckers) purchased (7/14), dated best if used by( 6/15), and having been stored inside a totally dark 8×18 utility trailer with air conditioner controlled so as no to exceed 70 deg F in the summer ,but dropping well below freezing in the winter (I live in PA). I poured off the top layer of oil and found it not to be rancid as expected- and in fact it tasted fine. After mixing the remaining pb I found it to be indistinguishable from any newly purchased jar. I was unexpectedly very happy with the results since I have been harboring reservations from more negative projections I have seen on numerous web sites.
Love to know much about this , already peanut butter lover, thanks for sharing this with us.
Thanks for sharing this content about peanut butter, loves peanut butter.
Love peanut butter , m all time FAV.
Thanks for sharing about 15 Reasons to Stock Up on Peanut Butter, love to know about this