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When I was a kid, there was a lot of emphasis on Mormon families acquiring a “one year’s supply”. We had big barrels of wheat that eventually went bad. It seems that the church has really backed off on this as a core value. The church’s website now talks about gradually building up a “three-month supply”, and says, “We encourage members worldwide to prepare for adversity in life by having a basic supply of food and water and some money in savings.” I’m glad to see this become more practical. Of course it’s a good idea to have a reserve of food, water, and money… and we are now “encouraged” rather than “commanded”.
Still, there are those who go way overboard.
A while back, I looked into how this all started and came to realize that the food storage concept was a great example of how ideas can expand into de facto doctrines. It turns out that J Ruben Clark first broached the subject, not as doctrine, nor as commandment, not even as specifically preparing for the Second Coming” but just as good advise to stay financially independent.
Quote:Let us avoid debt as we would avoid a plague; where we are now in debt, let us get out of debt; if not today, then tomorrow. Let us straitly and strictly live within our incomes, and save a little. Let every head of every household see to it that he has on hand enough food and clothing, and, where possible, fuel also, for at least a year ahead. You of small means put your money in foodstuffs and wearing apparel, not in stocks and bonds; you of large means will think you know how to care for yourselves, but I may venture to suggest that you do not speculate. Let every head of every household aim to own his own home, free from mortgage. Let every man who has a garden spot, garden it; every man who owns a farm, farm it. — J Reuben Clark, 1937
I find it especially interesting that this came at the back-end of the Great Depression… Might have been good for this to come 10 years earlier. But it was fairly obvious in its context. It’s like saying after going bankrupt that next time you should be more careful.
Yet, this was then quoted, and requoted, and perpetuated, until it became a commandment… something that our “Prophets, Seers and Revelators” have been telling us for years and that it was to “Prepare for the Days of Tribulation” (Ezra Taft Benson, 1980).
I’m interested in how the StayLDS community views food storage.
Quote:—Heber C. Kimball: “Brethren, go and build your storehouses before your grain is harvested, and lay it up, and let us never cease until we have got a seven year’s supply…we will lay up the grain for seven years.” (JD 4:336-339. June 7, 1857:)
Quote:—George A. Smith: “I wish to call the attention of the Conference to the text of President Brigham Young in relation to storing our wheat. This is a question of vast importance. A few years ago President Young gave counsel to the people of the Territory–most of whom agreed to it–to lay by seven years provisions.” (JD 12:106. November 3, 1867)
It is my understanding that the push to store enough supplies for 7 years comes from at least the early Utah period.I found an old Mormon Trivia game that asked how many years of supplies we should store and I felt smug in my one year supply answer… the correct answer was 3 years!?!?!
:thumbdown: So it must have been changed to 3 years at least for a brief time.My growing up experience had always been 1 year but I believe the current counsel was set forth by GBH:
Quote:“We have a great welfare program with facilities for such things as grain storage in various areas. It is important that we do this. But the best place to have some food set aside is within our homes, together with a little money in savings. The best welfare program is our own welfare program. Five or six cans of wheat in the home are better than a bushel in the welfare granary….
“We can begin ever so modestly. We can begin with a one week’s food supply and gradually build it to a month, and then to three months. I am speaking now of food to cover basic needs. As all of you recognize, this counsel is not new. But I fear that so many feel that a long-term food supply is so far beyond their reach that they make no effort at all.
“Begin in a small way, my brethren, and gradually build toward a reasonable objective. Save a little money regularly, and you will be surprised how it accumulates.” (Ensign, Nov. 2002, p 57)
I personally believe in having an emergency fund/plan in whatever form makes the most sense for your individual circumstances.
Somewhat as an aside. Some have emphasized a more personal disaster side for the year supply such as job loss. I was unemployed for a period of a little over a month and food stamps kicked in almost imeadiately with more than enough for food. I can’t help but think that a cash reserve would be more versatile – especially when the government and the church seem least stingy about helping to procure food-stuffs.
A well stocked 72 hour kit is another discussion entirely IMO.
I think the sentiment is correct, but one year? Some of us live in small houses. Also, you’ve really got to think what to store. Eggs are not going to keep that long unless they’re pickled. I really like the change to three-month supply, for all the reasons mentioned already. Moderation is a great principle, generally, and three months is good moderation, imo. I also think it’s a great example of very good (and perhaps even inspired) advice morphing into immutable LAW over time.
Roy wrote:Somewhat as an aside. Some have emphasized a more personal disaster side for the year supply such as job loss. I was unemployed for a period of a little over a month and food stamps kicked in almost imeadiately with more than enough for food. I can’t help but think that a cash reserve would be more versatile – especially when the government and the church seem least stingy about helping to procure food-stuffs.
Just read the following from the Prepare for Tribulation talk:
Quote:Members of the Church are feeling the economic pinch of higher taxes and inflation coupled with conditions of continuing recession. Some have come to their bishops seeking assistance to pay for house payments, car loans, and utilities.
Unfortunately, there has been fostered in the minds of some an expectation that when we experience hard times, when we have been unwise and extravagant with our resources and have lived beyond our means, we should look to either the Church or government to bail us out. Forgotten by some of our members is an underlying principle of the Church welfare plan that “no true Latter-day Saint will, while physically able, voluntarily shift from himself the burden of his own support” (Marion G. Romney, in Conference Report, Oct. 1973, p. 106).
Oops, my bad!
Roy, that is a good example of what I’ve said in another thread about over-applying statements that don’t apply to me personally. When I look at exactly what that quote says ( and only what it says), it doesn’t address anyone who has budgeted their resources properly but still faces difficult times. The exact quote in the relevant sentence is:
Quote:when we experience hard times,
when we have been unwise and extravagant with our resources and have lived beyond our means, we should (not) look to either the Church or government to bail us out. The parts I bolded are written as qualifiers of the first part – highlighting specific actions that have contributed to making hard times unmanageable and narrowing the Church or government responsibility to covering our own bad choices (especially when the Church has preached against being unwise, extravagant and living beyond our means for many decades).
I agree completely with what is said in that quote – and I don’t apply it to the situations where I personally received assistance from the Church and government to pay for housing, food and utilities (since I wasn’t living extravagnatly and beyond normal means before those times). I get it that the Church wants members to do a budget analysis in order to receive Fast Offering assistance and cut costs as much as possible – and why many Bishops won’t give assistance to people in order to make payments on their Cadillacs and 7,000 square foot house, with the accompanying extravagant utility bills.
http://store.lds.org/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product3_715839595_10557_21004_-1__195686 I’m trying something new on the iPad so I hope this works. The link is to a booklet titled “Essentials of Home Production and Storage”. I have a 1978 edition. In it it says to store and save a one year supply etc. even though the booklet is still available I think the Provident Living website contains what is current policy.
If my memory serves me right when I joined the Church about 1979 the linked booklet was the policy. It later expanded to include a two year supply. I imagine that my family was fairly typical of the general membership and we lost a lot of food through spoilage. This might have had something to do with the policy revision about 10 years ago.
The booklet is still pertinent and contains very good information about personal and family preparedness.
I think unfortunately we have a prime example of disaster in New England and Canada coming up right now. It will be interesting to see if church members fare better or not. On a positive note, I pointed out that the home teaching system in Japan meant that every member was accounted for in their tsunami recently.
My stake still talks a fair amount about year supplies and I usually feel it’s a good idea, but frankly I’ve interpreted a year supply to mean we should be as financially independent as possible in case of job loss and natural disasters. That being said, the year supply council presents a challenge for me for a few reasons.
• Assuming a wide-spread / regional disaster I can’t figure out if I’m supposed to share my year supply with others. If so then my year supply will turn into about a 72 hour supply because I live in an area where there are few LDS. I think it would be difficult for me to turn away others who need food. This provides a disincentive for me to have a year supply for anything but job-loss related reasons.
• A year supply isn’t much good without fuel. I’m dependent to a large degree on natural gas and electricity to use my year supply.
• You can’t live on more than a few days without water, and even giant water barrels wouldn’t keep my family of 6 alive for long.
• Am I supposed to have a gun to protect my family. This seems to be an unwritten or assumed part of a year supply. Or at least it seems like justification for owning a small arsenal. I own a couple of guns, and I sort of get it, but the implications of protecting your year supply seem extremely undesirable at worst and counter-productive at best.
• Hoarding food is inefficient from a financial, economic, and social point of view.
• Having a year supply of cash (in a bank) is much more efficient, unless you believe the US government is doomed to collapse or that hyper inflation will destroy the value of your cash.
• As noted above, space is a big deal for many members of the church. Also, many members of the church, especially in poorer areas, wonder about where tomorrow’s meal will come from let alone next year’s meals.
Despite those challenges, I mostly have a year supply. As a very positive result of having unprocessed grains, I think my family eats pretty healthy because we use lots of whole grains and cook from scratch.
Roadrunner wrote:
• Having a year supply of cash (in a bank) is much more efficient, unless you believe the US government is doomed to collapse or that hyper inflation will destroy the value of your cash.I have thought about this. I suspect it’s going to happen sometime. Maybe soon the way things are going.
But money? No, not money. That would only work for the first few days of a disaster. You need tradeable commodities, and also a way to defend them. Money doesn’t have practical value in and of itself.
SamBee wrote:Roadrunner wrote:
• Having a year supply of cash (in a bank) is much more efficient, unless you believe the US government is doomed to collapse or that hyper inflation will destroy the value of your cash.I have thought about this. I suspect it’s going to happen sometime. Maybe soon the way things are going.
But money? No, not money. That would only work for the first few days of a disaster. You need tradeable commodities, and also a way to defend them. Money doesn’t have practical value in and of itself.
Is there was a true natural disaster on the scale that banks failed and commodities were the only currency then your store cupboard would be so quickly looted and overrun that it would be pretty useless. Anyone see the London riots last year? And your shutgun won’t be enough to protect a year’s supply of food if other people are starving.
I don’t think the 1 year/3 month recommendation is really designed for a natural disaster. It’s either a principle of obedience or fear or helping us become more self-reliant and plan for the future.
I have mostly thought of food (and essentials) storage as a preparation in case of unemployment. I do try to stock up on the types of things we actually use that we would need to buy throughout the year, including toothpaste, tooth brushes, deodorant, shampoo, soap, razors, scotch tape, glue sticks, poster board, other schoolwork supplies for the kids. Food is more like a 3 month thing (not here in Asia, but when we were in the US), and unlike stockpiling wheat (the preparation of which is far above my pay grade), I was more interested in stuff we might actually eat or know how to prepare: canned and frozen food. I always kept a supply of frozen meats or dinner foods on hand that we would then try to clean out and replace every 2-3 months or so. I think these are good principles. We do also keep (thanks to my CPA husband) a supply of cash on hand in addition to what’s in the bank. We were in a ward about 15 years ago where one of the guys in the bishopric was huge on stockpiling guns and ammo in anticipation of the zombie apocalypse or to kill off his less prepared neighbors I suppose and make jerky out of them or something. It seems like an absolutely unchristian and terrible idea to stockpile guns. If people want my stuff that bad, they can have it.
hawkgrrrl wrote:I have mostly thought of food (and essentials) storage as a preparation in case of unemployment. I do try to stock up on the types of things we actually use that we would need to buy throughout the year, including toothpaste, tooth brushes, deodorant, shampoo, soap, razors, scotch tape, glue sticks, poster board, other schoolwork supplies for the kids. Food is more like a 3 month thing (not here in Asia, but when we were in the US), and unlike stockpiling wheat (the preparation of which is far above my pay grade), I was more interested in stuff we might actually eat or know how to prepare: canned and frozen food. I always kept a supply of frozen meats or dinner foods on hand that we would then try to clean out and replace every 2-3 months or so. I think these are good principles. We do also keep (thanks to my CPA husband) a supply of cash on hand in addition to what’s in the bank.
We were in a ward about 15 years ago where one of the guys in the bishopric was huge on stockpiling guns and ammo in anticipation of the zombie apocalypse or to kill off his less prepared neighbors I suppose and make jerky out of them or something. It seems like an absolutely unchristian and terrible idea to stockpile guns. If people want my stuff that bad, they can have it.
I love that image. What a crazy approach.
One of the men who I admire most is an old chap in my home branch. He served as temple president and area presidency exec sec. When I left he was meekly serving as branch clerk and in presidency meetings/PEC would only share an opinion when invited, despite having more experience than the rest of us combined.
During one slightly over-zealous food storage fifth sunday lesson he put up his hand and quietly said, “You’re all missing the point. We store a year of food so that in the event of a disaster we can feed our neighbours for a week.” What a paragon of christlike attitudes.
mackay11 wrote:During one slightly over-zealous food storage fifth sunday lesson he put up his hand and quietly said, “You’re all missing the point. We store a year of food so that in the event of a disaster we can feed our neighbours for a week.” What a paragon of christlike attitudes.
++++Like++++ I remember reading this in an Ensign somewhere – I believe it was from Elder Ballard but I can’t be sure. But yes – stockpiling guns, unless it is for hunting, would seem to run counter to the point!
mackay11 wrote:SamBee wrote:Roadrunner wrote:
• Having a year supply of cash (in a bank) is much more efficient, unless you believe the US government is doomed to collapse or that hyper inflation will destroy the value of your cash.I have thought about this. I suspect it’s going to happen sometime. Maybe soon the way things are going.
But money? No, not money. That would only work for the first few days of a disaster. You need tradeable commodities, and also a way to defend them. Money doesn’t have practical value in and of itself.
Is there was a true natural disaster on the scale that banks failed and commodities were the only currency then your store cupboard would be so quickly looted and overrun that it would be pretty useless. Anyone see the London riots last year? And your shutgun won’t be enough to protect a year’s supply of food if other people are starving.
I don’t think the 1 year/3 month recommendation is really designed for a natural disaster. It’s either a principle of obedience or fear or helping us become more self-reliant and plan for the future.
Depends where you hide it, I suppose. But you would have to defend some of it, which is not an issue the church really addresses.
Why doesn’t the church teach adults survival? We don’t have scouting in the church round here.
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