One-to-two-week emergency food list
For the longer stocks that Sweden, Norway, Germany and the Red Cross ask for. The amounts come from Germany's official 10-day table (BBK), scaled by us to 7 and 14 days. The items come from Switzerland's one-week list (BWL), which is the most complete official list of this kind.
Water
Germany plans 2 litres per person per day for drinking; most other countries use 3 litres.
| Food group | 7 days | 10 days | 14 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drinks (water, juice) | 14 L | 20 L | 28 L |
| Cereals, bread, potatoes, pasta, rice | 2.5 kg | 3.5 kg | 4.9 kg |
| Vegetables and pulses | 2.8 kg | 4.0 kg | 5.6 kg |
| Fruit and nuts | 1.8 kg | 2.5 kg | 3.5 kg |
| Milk and milk products | 1.8 kg | 2.6 kg | 3.6 kg |
| Fish, meat, eggs | 1.1 kg | 1.5 kg | 2.1 kg |
| Fats and oils | 0.25 kg | 0.36 kg | 0.5 kg |
Staples (need cooking)
- Rice or pasta
- Pulses (lentils, beans, chickpeas)
- Oil or fat
- Stock cubes, salt, pepper
- Sugar, jam, honey
Tins and ready meals
- Tinned vegetables, fruit or mushrooms
- Tinned meat and fish
- Ready meals and instant soups
- Long-life sausage and dried meat
No-cook food
- Hard cheese and processed cheese
- Muesli, dried fruit, nuts
- Rusks or crispbread
- Chocolate
- UHT milk and condensed milk
- Coffee, cocoa, tea
Also
- Special food for intolerances, babies and pets
- Gas stove and fuel
- The 2024 table from Germany's food agency (BLE) gives 3.3 kg rather than 3.5 kg for cereals, bread and potatoes over 10 days.
Buying and storing
- Stock food you already eat, and rotate it: use the oldest first and replace it, so nothing expires unnoticed.
- For 72 hours, choose food that keeps at room temperature and can be eaten without cooking: tins, crispbread, dried fruit, nuts, muesli, long-life milk.
- For a week or longer, add dry staples such as rice, pasta, oats and pulses, plus oil, salt and sugar, and a stove to cook on.
- Dry staples need water to cook: count it in your water stock.
- Store food cool, dry and dark, in airtight containers once opened.
- Allow for babies, special diets, allergies and pets.
- Keep a manual can opener, and throw away tins that are swollen, dented or rusty.
Official sources: Germany: BBK, Ratgeber für Notfallvorsorge (10-day table); Switzerland: BWL, Kluger Rat – Notvorrat (2017).