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To remove particulates and chemicals you need to filter. But that really only becomes an issue if you have a poor water source (which may be the case sometime). If you know you will have access to a relatively particulate free source nearby or can collect rainwater then you do not need a filter. Here is a ad blurb on what an MSR Miniworks filter does. The MiniWorks EX TWO STAGE filter fills a 1 liter container in just 60 seconds! * The First-Stage of the Marathon 205™ filter element is made of Ceramic and designed to remove bacteria, protozoa (including crypto and giardia) and particulates. * The Second-Stage inner carbon block core removes many chemicals, including pesticides, iodine, and chlorine. It also improves taste and removes odors.

FEMA recommends and it is oft quoted elsewhere that you should have 1 gallon of water per person per day. This is for drinking and hygiene. It is best to keep water containers sealed properly at all times to limit bacterial contamination as much as possible. If you use bleach to purify water, remember bleach has a shelf life of one year and loses effectiveness. As Rico mentioned, make sure it is unscented plain bleach. Here is a great resource on how to purify water; How to Purify Water - wikiHow You can by a bottle of cheap tablets online for around $5 -$6, and much more expensive filters for under $100 at; Nitro-Pak.com The World Leader in Innovative & Affordable Preparedness Gear Water Filters & Water Purifiers - Emergency Essentials Discount Emergency Water & Accessories - The Ready Store

There is a WWI precedent on hoarding; Navy Man indicted for Food Hoarding 1918 / Charleston Voice

Well for Canadian based sites there is; Security Bins - Home They only sell MH pouches not #10 cans. Their MRE was almost double the US price even when the currencies were at par a few short months ago Then there is; Military Rations and Freeze Dried Food - Discount Prices at Forest City Surplus Canada They only have pouches too. I placed an order with them in May. The order included some MRE for a video demo for my blog and I am still waiting for delivery. There is also; Harvest Foodworks makes freeze-dried and dehydrated meals specially formulated for outdoors enthusiasts But the info on their food is poor, says " freeze dried and dehydrated" foods but it is not clear which is which for the products and no shelf life. Also the instructions for some suggest putting contents into boiled water for a period of time. They say they don't sell direct in Canada but have a 3rd party ordering site. So if someone from Canada knows a source that would be great.

Another resource is Nitro-pak . However these won't help LDSVALLEY though, importing food into Canada by individuals is nearly impossible.

Hi thanks for the great info I found here. There is a few comments I would like to add wrt to freeze drying based on research I have done for some of my blog posts. Critical to the freeze drying process 1) Food is "flash frozen" below -40 degrees F in a vacuum, this prevents food's cell walls from breaking and destroying the texture (and shrinkage) and substantially degrading the nutritional value of the food, as happens when we freeze things at home. 2) Sublimation or removing the water from the food by directly turning from ice to vapor by carefully and gently heating it (typically a maximum of 100 to 130 degrees F) is critical to the process 3) After 98% of the water is removed stopping all bacterial growth, the food is packed, and this is where nitrogen comes in, it is nitrogen flushed so no oxygen is present in the food while it is packed. This is what allows the food to be preserved for so long after the process. If it is vacuum packed in a pouch small amounts of air will seep in over time so the shelf life is typically 5-7 years. If the food is "nitrogen packed" in #10 cans then there will be no vacuum the outside air wants to invade into, so the food can last a lot longer. So I wouldn't try freeze drying at home and expect the same shelf life. Mountain House is the commercial brand for Oregon Freeze Dry and they claim shelf life 25-30 years in #10 cans. I question this number though, while the food may be safe for 25-30 years, will it have the nutritional value and edible qualities then? Other freeze dried food sellers state is the max shelf life of #10 cans is 10-15 years. This is important because you may want to slowly consume and replace your food reserve at some point over a few years and you want it to be more than just edible then. I am doing some more investigation in this area. A few other comments; - Fresh and cooked foods can be freeze dried, it does not have to be cooked. - Nutritional value degrades once food is harvested, it would be good to know how long typically it takes from the time food is harvested till it is freeze dried. I am investigating that as well. Dehydrating food also destroys vitamins and nutrients. Normal freezing of food is the worst. - As hankpac mentioned storing water is required regardless. It takes more water to process and cook such as wheat and other staples, as well as soaking dehydrated food than it does to just re-hydrate freeze dried food. I agree with Hemidakota that a variety of food reserves should be kept. MRE is excellent if you need to travel or are to use when you are not in a condition to prepare food. But I would not plan 3 months worth of MRE, even the military does not recommend eating their MRE for extended periods. MRE is also the most expensive.