I cant say I find that all surprising as companies over there have been doing that for decades to supply the millions of folks who live on the edge of the grid expecting to be flooded out or snowed in for four months of the year, if you arent going to eat tourists then you have to have some plan to deal with the winter. in the past they would have good lifed it and spent autumn canning fruits and drying beans anyway.
nothing to do with teotwawki at all just common sense, it wasnt so long ago here that folks would have a pantry full of stuff to last out being snowed in, my neighbours buy from suma so to get a good price have to have a 6 month stock of kidney beans, lentils and tinned tomatoes.
a lot of folks in the states will buy in bulk rice, pasta ect and can it themselves in big buckets and fill with dry ice to preserve it so it can last a year or two next to piles if tinned peaches and corned beef, a few have the mind set that they cant trust the government to come to their aid like they didnt in katrina, they also have plans to waterproof all their important stuff and just be prepared in general. when you look at the effects of mass flooding, snow ins and forest fires over there then its common sense really and not nutty survivalism.
I should say that with the economy as it is and they are forecasting another super cold winter this year then its the numpy who doesnt have a few weeks worth of simple basics tucked away to tide you through even if its just taking advantage of the special offers on baked beans at morrisons. survivalists, preppers etc.. have a bit of a bad name because they at least are looking forward for the unexpected and while everyone else is thinking they can just move into asda for a year or two to avoid the plague of zombies they at least have bought time to think when the 24 hour out of season food stocks disappear. folks seem to have forgotten just what seasonal eating was like with autumn being spent bashing out jams and stewed fruits to last till april. its scary just how ignorant and complacent society as become regarding the total lack of food security we actually have in this country. 700 dollars for a years calorie security? pretty cheap I reckon as its not even a months shopping bill.
seeds in a tin stay stable longer than seeds in a packet which is why kew has special climate controlled seed banks set up.
