Of everything in the three-day kit, food is the part people overthink. You are not provisioning an expedition. You are making sure that if the power is off for two days and the shops are shut or cashless, everyone eats three times a day without a cooker, a fridge or a kettle.
Three rules for emergency food
No cooking, no fridge
Assume you have no electricity and no safe way to heat anything. Everything should be edible straight from the tin or packet. Hot food is a bonus if you have a gas hob, not the plan.
Things you already eat
If your family eats baked beans, buy more baked beans. Stock you never touch becomes stock you throw away. Familiar food also matters more than you think when children are unsettled.
Rotate, don't hoard
The kit food is the back of the cupboard. Use the oldest tin when you cook normally and put a new one behind it. Nothing ever reaches its date.
How much
Plan on two main no-cook meals per person per day plus snacks, for three days: six meals each. The government's own list mentions tinned meat, fish and vegetables, dried fruit and nuts. Use the calculator on the kit page for exact numbers.
What to stock
Good no-cook options
| Type | Examples | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| Tinned protein | Tuna, sardines, mackerel, chicken, ham, corned beef | Filling, keeps for years, eaten cold without complaint |
| Tinned pulses and meals | Baked beans, chickpeas, lentils, ravioli, chilli, curry pouches | Edible cold, come with their own liquid |
| Pouches | Microwave rice (eaten cold), ready-to-eat lentils, quinoa, dahl | Light, no tin opener needed, fine at room temperature |
| Tinned vegetables and fruit | Sweetcorn, peas, carrots, peaches, pineapple, fruit cocktail | Vitamins and fluid; children will eat tinned peaches |
| Puddings | Rice pudding, custard, sponge pudding | Calories and comfort in a tin |
| Dry goods | Crackers, oatcakes, rice cakes, breakfast cereal, nuts, dried fruit, peanut butter | Long life, no preparation |
| Drinks | Long-life milk, UHT plant milk, squash, cartons of juice | Fluids that are not just water |
What to avoid
- Anything that needs boiling water as its only method: dried pasta, instant noodles, freeze-dried camping meals. Fine as extras if you have a gas hob, useless otherwise.
- Very salty food without extra water. Crisps and salted nuts make you thirsty; balance with tinned fruit and pulses.
- Glass jars in a grab bag. Heavy and breakable. Keep them in the home kit only.
- Novelty "survival" rations. Expensive, and the first thing people regret buying.
The fridge and freezer in a power cut
Your first food decision in a power cut is to leave the fridge and freezer doors shut. A fridge keeps food safely cold for about four hours; a full freezer stays frozen for around 48 hours, a half-full one around 24. Eat fresh and chilled food first, then frozen food as it thaws, then the tins. If food in the fridge has been above 8°C for more than four hours, or thawed food has been at room temperature for more than two, throw it away rather than risk it. More in the power cut guide.
Cooking safely without electricity
Never use a barbecue, camping stove, patio heater or generator indoors, in a garage or in a tent, even with the door open. If you want hot food in a power cut, a gas hob lit with a match is safe; a camping stove is for the garden only, well away from windows.
A sample three-day menu for two adults
| Day | Breakfast | Lunch | Evening |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cereal with long-life milk, tinned peaches | Tuna, crackers, sweetcorn | Chilli pouch with cold rice pouch, rice pudding |
| 2 | Oatcakes with peanut butter, dried fruit | Baked beans, oatcakes, tinned pineapple | Mackerel, chickpeas, crackers, custard |
| 3 | Cereal bars, long-life milk, nuts | Lentil dahl pouch, rice cakes | Corned beef, tinned peas, fruit cocktail, chocolate |
Roughly 18 tins and pouches, a box of cereal, a pack of crackers and oatcakes, and 2 litres of long-life milk. About £20 to £25 at a supermarket, and every item is something you can eat on a normal Tuesday.
Storage boxes and the few bits worth buying are on the recommended kit page. None of the links on this site currently earn us a commission; if that changes we will say so.
Common questions
How long does tinned food last?
Most tinned food is safe for years beyond its best-before date if the tin is undamaged and stored cool and dry. Taste and texture slowly decline. Discard any tin that is bulging, deeply dented along the seam, rusty or leaking.
Do I need special emergency rations or freeze-dried meals?
No. They are expensive, need hot water, and nobody enjoys them. Ordinary supermarket tins and pouches that you already eat are cheaper, familiar and rotate through your normal cooking.
Can I cook on a camping stove indoors in a power cut?
No. Camping stoves, barbecues and patio heaters produce carbon monoxide and must only be used outdoors. A gas hob lit with a match is fine if you have one. Otherwise plan on cold food for three days; it is perfectly manageable.
How long is food safe in the fridge and freezer without power?
Keep the doors shut. A fridge keeps food cold for about four hours. A full freezer stays frozen for around 48 hours, a half-full one around 24. After that, discard anything that has been above 8°C for more than four hours, or thawed food you cannot cook immediately.