District 10 August 2023 Newsletter

Hello Friends! We're back from Summer Vacation and rarrrin' to go! We hope you're doing well. Below and attached is our August letter with what we think are some good goals. In the "Back to Basics" section of this blog you will also find that newsletter from the Hurricane Area/Stake...it has some great tips about what you can do with peaches! (July's Back to Basics is also there.) We sincerely hope we are providing you with information and motivation that helps you prepare your family for possible economic downturns or disasters of one sort or another. Please feel free to comment if there is anything you would like us to research or if you have suggestions. You can see our facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/699066361344927. Otherwise, read on...

“I've always loved how food preserves a memory.”

- Piolo Pascual

Goals:

Practice:

Try a new way to preserve something that you harvest from your own garden, fruit trees, hunting, or something someone shares with you.

Short Term Preparedness:

Clean out a food storage area, pantry and/or freezer; throw out anything that’s gone bad, inventory what you have and decide what you need.

Long Term Storage:

Obtain something you are low on or something you’ve never stored much of but feel like your family may need.

Prep Equipment:

Anything you need to preserve food the new way you have chosen, such as vacuum packs or bottles with oxygen absorbers, a pressure canner, freezer bags, a fruit dryer, a freeze dryer (if you want to spend a lot of money), a smoker or whatever you use to make jerky (same), a meat grinder, etc. etc. etc.

Connect:

Talk to neighbors, friends, extended family members and others with experience about ways to preserve foods. It doesn’t always have to be complicated. For instance, if a neighbor brings you a box of peaches, you don’t have to bottle them. Instead, slice them up and dry them, or freeze them for morning smoothies. Shread zucchinis and freeze it to make bread or cake later. Be creative!

Whether you are learning about heating, freezing, canning, drying, pickling, or other ways to preserve food, there are lots of informational resources available. Google and YouTube are easy ways to answer questions…but neighbors and friends are always there. Here are some informative sites that may help as well:

USU Extension Services:

https://extension.usu.edu/preserve-the-harvest/

https://extension.usu.edu/preserve-the-harvest/research/index

(a link) https://nchfp.uga.edu/#gsc.tab=0

A Local Favorite:

https://roseredhomestead.com/

https://payhip.com/roseredhomestead

https://roseredhomestead.com/f/use-of-vacuum-sealing-oxygen-absorbers-and-desiccants

LDS Church Provident Living Sites:

https://providentliving.churchofjesuschrist.org/food-storage?lang=eng

https://providentliving.churchofjesuschrist.org/self-reliance/home-storage-centers?lang=eng

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/topics/food-storage/longer-term-food-supply?lang=eng