If you have lived in eastern North Carolina for more than a year, you know that we are no stranger to weather that can lead to long-term power outages. In addition to staying physically safe during weather events, it’s important to also consider keeping your food safe too.

Before the outage: In the weeks leading up to a hurricane or winter storm, set aside part of your grocery budget for shelf stable food items such as canned beans, peanut butter, crackers, and dried milk. Also include cleaning wipes, plastic utensils, disposable plates and cups. Buying just a few items each week adds up after a few months and then your emergency food is there when you need it. Keep a manual can opener and battery powered food thermometer in your emergency food kit. 

During the outage: Keep cold foods cold by keeping refrigerator and freezer doors closed. You’ll need a thermometer in both the refrigerator and freezer to know if food is within the safe range: 40°F or below for the refrigerator, and 0°F for the freezer. You can also add freezer packs to the refrigerator to keep food cold longer. The more packed your freezer is, the longer it will stay cold. Use perishable foods first before they spoil. If you’re able to heat food on a gas grill, use a food thermometer to be sure to cook to the proper temperature to kill harmful bacteria. 

After the power is restored: If any food items have been above 40°F for more than 2 hours, you will unfortunately have to throw it out due to the possibility of foodborne illness. Items like meat, milk, and leftovers are unsafe to eat after this amount of time because bacteria doubles every twenty minutes. Never taste test food to see if it is safe to eat. The last thing you want is to get through the storm and then fall ill to spoiled food. 

Don’t get caught unprepared for the next power outage. With a little bit of planning, you can be sure to keep you and your family nourished with healthy food while overcoming the storm.