Food storage questionnaire

[arbilad]

The Ward Preparedness Specialist and I will be team teaching a preparedness class starting next week. It's going to be a three week class where we see where people are at and help them to where they need to go with preparedness. It'll cover food storage, 72 hour kits, Red Cross info, etc. The Bishop is really excited about this and wanted us to get started ASAP so that we could cycle as many people through as possible.
Anyway, I need to come up with a questionnaire to have people fill out and bring to class. We want to know where they're at preparedness wise and where they want to be. What sort of questions should I ask? I want to avoid the type of intrusive questionnaire that turns people off to the class or scares them about the scope of preparedness. You've all probably seen the sort of questionnaire that sounds as if it's asking, "What do you have stored? Where is it stored? When are you usually asleep or out of the house so your storage is undefended?"
What would you put on such a questionnaire? I'm not going to ask for a complete inventory of storage, but I am thinking of general questions such as, "Do you have a lot of nutritional variety in your storage?" And especially a question to the effect of "Does someone in your family have special nutritional needs, such as a food allergy?"
On the side, not as a direct part of the class but as a educational supplement, I'm going to start making videos of how to make simply foods out of food storage. I'll make those available here once I start making those. Although you'll have to put up with my ugly mug when watching them.

[silverstate51]

Do you feel you have adequate variety in your food storage?
If not, then how can we assist you in obtaining what you feel would be the right varieties?

Are you aware of the best methods of storing your food, as regards temperature, moisture, rotation...?
Would you like assistance in improving or setting up your storage area(s)?

Start with an area of concern, and then ask if you can help.
Provide assistance and information, never demand it.
Just my two pence. :001_smile:

[prairiemom]

If you ask people if they are prepared (i.e. for a winter-time power outage) they will say yes. If you ask if they have enough food, they will say yes. Most people think they are prepared.

I would ask them to bring an inventory to class of what they have right now in their storage. And in the class ask them to write out one week's worth of menus based on what they have. The menus should include enough servings of dairy, fruits and vegetables to be healthy (esp important during times of stress!) Chances are pretty good they can come up with a few days of balanced meals, or maybe even a month's worth of dishes but not nutritionally balanced menus.

I wouldn't necessarily ask them to turn their questionnaires in. Rather, have them keep a notebook with a copy of their inventory and what their goal is and what it's going to take to get to that goal. I have some worksheets for inventory and goal-setting. http://www.providenthomecompanion.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Acquiring-your-three.pdf The thing is, no two people will have the same way of "working" FS or the same goals or same starting point. I would teach them how to (realistically) evaluate where they are and what it will take to get where they want to be.

This video has some good ideas on questions that people need to answer when designing their FS plans: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxl1pGdAWpE

Wendy DeWitt has some good ideas for coming up with your 3-month storage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUaFMEyLXOM

Good luck! It sounds like you have a great bishop who's made FS a priority. I hope you get a good response.

[jennvan40]

My only suggestion is not to reinvent the wheel. There are some really amazing resources out on the internet, including those posted by prairiemom above. Sometimes in callings that we are doing for the first time, we forget that there have been others in the calling before us in many different areas. And with the beauty of the internet, we can share in others hard work and great ideas.

[Rand]

I have done a little of this type of thing. One of the best things we have done was to use Elder Oaks talk on Good, Better and Best. Have the people grade themselves on each aspect of preparedness as good better or best. It's good to give some criteria for those judgements, we used 2 weeks is good, 3 months is better and a year or more is best. We asked them about: Water purification or supply, a family emergency plan, food storage, clothing storage, financial resources, heating and cooking capacity, communication capacity, resources such as tools etc., and spiritual preparedness.

I hope that helps.

[Rand]

If you like the idea, I'll share what we put together for our presentation by email, if it is helpful to you. Blessings

[silverstate51]

Prairiemom,

Arbilad did state " I want to avoid the type of intrusive questionnaire that turns people off to the class or scares them about the scope of preparedness. You've all probably seen the sort of questionnaire that sounds as if it's asking, "What do you have stored? Where is it stored? When are you usually asleep or out of the house so your storage is undefended?"
What would you put on such a questionnaire? I'm not going to ask for a complete inventory of storage, but I am thinking of general questions such as, "Do you have a lot of nutritional variety in your storage?" And especially a question to the effect of "Does someone in your family have special nutritional needs, such as a food allergy?"
(Bold enhancement mine)

Asking them to bring an inventory to class runs directly counter to this. I would suggest establishing a rapport, showing them what they're inventory should be, and offering assistance. If someone brings an inventory, fantastic."

[DMGNUT]

Big plus to Silverstate on showing examples of what they should have, and on Rand's "good, better, best..."

[arbilad]

Exactly. My main goal is to get people on fire about storage, and become able to find the resources. We're more counselors than teachers. So we will have handouts of where they can go on the web to get the information they need. And we will answer specific questions. But mostly we want to help people identify their food storage issues and give them the resources they need to resolve them. We can't teach everything there is to know about food storage in 3 weeks.
Thank you everyone for the help.

[prairiemom]

Prairiemom...
Asking them to bring an inventory to class runs directly counter to this. I would suggest establishing a rapport, showing them what they're inventory should be, and offering assistance. If someone brings an inventory, fantastic."

I also said they are not to turn them in. The inventory is ONLY for them to look at and refer to while Arbi is teaching. Only for their own reference. Not for Arbi or anyone else to inspect.

The reason I say this is, it's very easy to talk in generalities and principles. You need to make those principles concrete, something you can build on. So, for ex, when he asks "Do you have nutritional variety?" most people, answering in the abstract or thinking about just the principle, will say "Yes." But if they have their inventory in front of them and see 3 cases of peanut butter but only 2 jars of apple sauce, might want to re-think that question.

When he asks "Are you storing the food wisely?" and of course, they are going to say "yes" until they look at their inventory and see jars of food in the garage where they'll freeze.

Most of us only have a small sliver of our FS at any given time. And we think we're OK. Until we inventory it, see where it's stored, count up what we have vs what we need.

My suggestion is only that, in addition to teaching the general ideas and principles, the student should have a concrete, realistic picture of what he's working with, right there, while the principles are being taught.

[libertygranny]

Are you also going to start doing ward group orders of stuff? As the Home Storage specialist in my ward I have found that those who truly care about fs order every month. Some admit they just started to really take it seriously thanks to my due diligence every month in offering things they need/want.

I even met one on one w/one sister to go over her family's goals, help set up an inventory record and how to make a workable list going forward.

About every 6 months we do an order from the Home Storage Center here in our area because our ward has a can sealer. Most months I do group orders from Emergency Essentials monthly group specials, MRE Depot, Pleasant Hill Grains, Honeyville, or Bulk Foods...depending on what we want to order. I have ordered the canned bacon (big hit and we will do another order after the first of the year), canned freeze dried cheeses, canned beef chunks, chicken, hamburger, and turkey, plus we also order non food items like first aid kits, water bottles w/purification tablets, etc.

[constable01]

You can put out a questionaire but you'll get answers like mine......I just write a big "YES" on the page and pass it back and will not answer specific questions about my preps.

Why?

Because if things get really bad don't think for an instant that some other members of church besides your neighbors,strangers and so called friends won't sacrifice your entire family in a selfish ploy to save theirs, yeah they may get eternal punishment for all the good that will do you and yours.

Therefore my answer to specific questions about preps is "Sorry, that's a "nunya" situation, as in thats "nunya business"!!!

[thomasusa]

I have been handed an "inventory questionnaire" several times in my ward over the years.
Each time I quietly fold it in half and toss it when I get home.
I don't want someone thinking they can count on my supplies - not that I have any. :001_smile:

If I were asked to inventory and bring my list, with the express intent of NOT handing it in, I wouldn't do that either.
What is the point?
I can just run through my supplies mentally as a lesson covers different aspects.

I would gladly participate in a well prepared lesson where different facets of preparation are covered in detail.

Ideas such as:
Water: containers, rotation, purifiers, and most important were to get more water in a crisis.
Food: How much and what/where to buy.
Cooking: Solar cooking (demonstration - everyone likes to eat), rocket stoves.
Light: Solar renewable LED, solar battery charging, other lighting.
Other energy collection: wind, solar, ... (Solar sometimes means hot water, hot air, or photovoltaic.)
Weapons: What works and why. How much ammunition is enough. (I have no idea.)
Generators: LP, gasoline, propane.
Growing stuff: how can I feed my family from a garden on my 0.20 ac lot?
Skills: What are some good skills to have to both get by and sell service to others?

...

These are the questions that keep me awake at night.

[jennvan40]

I like that idea, instead of asking them what they have (to some implying you want something from them), ask them what they want to know from you. Maybe you can make suggestions of ideas you could present on....similar to what thomasusa wrote above. I would be much more likely to attend a class/presentation on that if I knew the things I wanted more info on were going to be covered at some point.

[phylm]

In teaching my past prep classes, my first question is: "What keeps most people from doing their emergency preparation?" The answer is: "It takes all our money to just get by. We can't afford to buy food for storage." Most of them are (and have been) overwhelmed by the thought of storing a year's supply.

It is necessary for them to realize that putting food and other essentials by is done by developing a different mindset, focusing on "necessary," not nice. "How much tuna, salt, flour, or sugar, etc. could you buy instead of an Extra Value Meal at Mickey D's?" I give them the cost of food items from the church storage facility--#10 cans of oatmeal, dried milk, wheat, flour, sugar, fruit drink--and show them how reasonable a basic breakfast for a year would be. One basic nutrious meal a day per person for a year, then concentrate on the mid-day meal, then supper. I stressed that a legume and a grain makes a complete protein, making meat nice, but not necessary.

I try to get them started the first week by urging the storing of water, using clean juice bottles, etc. for storage.

We usually held prep meetings once a week for an hour, learning skills, making one-bowl bread, home-made mixes, emergency candles and fire-starters, solar and fireless cookers, and lazy-man gardening, dehydrating, canning, and more. In the meantime, they were saving for trips to the church facility, where we brought back full loads every time.

It was especially gratifying to have two families, who started with no storage, show me, at the end of four months, that they had stored enough basic food to maintain themselves for a year.

I'm still a fairly (2-year) newcomer to my ward, and am worried about the lack of preparation for much of the ward. I had one stint of prep training--the one-bowl bread exercise--at a monthly RS meeting several months ago, and some members still come to me to ask advice on prep, but the leadership is a bit casual about the whole thing. The RS/Priesthood have a preparation meeting set for March. I have been asked to take part in it.

[mirkwood]

I used to have a good non intrusive one. If I can find it I'll post it here.

[thomasusa]

...We usually held prep meetings once a week for an hour, learning skills, making one-bowl bread, home-made mixes, emergency candles and fire-starters, solar and fireless cookers, and lazy-man gardening, dehydrating, canning, and more. In the meantime, they were saving for trips to the church facility, where we brought back full loads every time.

It was especially gratifying to have two families, who started with no storage, show me, at the end of four months, that they had stored enough basic food to maintain themselves for a year...

It sounds like I should have attended your lessons.
Do you have any teaching materials, lesson plans, or handouts that I could read to get me on track again?

[phylm]

It sounds like I should have attended your lessons.
Do you have any teaching materials, lesson plans, or handouts that I could read to get me on track again?

I'll see if i can put them together quickly and get them to you. Would prpbably be easier if you'd IM me your email address. Phylm

[arbilad]

Thanks everyone who offered advice. I have a preliminary questionnaire that I will post soonish. And if anyone has files they want to send me, PM me for my email address. All examples and ideas help.

[phylm]

Thanks everyone who offered advice. I have a preliminary questionnaire that I will post soonish. And if anyone has files they want to send me, PM me for my email address. All examples and ideas help.

Forgive me, but I'm computer tech disadvantaged. If you'd like to take a look at the info I just sent Thomasusa, please PM me your email address.
:thumbup1: