Starting Your Stockpile (Not Hoarding)

Today we are going to clarify the difference between a stockpile and hoarding. There is a LOT of confusion between these two terms and what they mean.  Hoarding is basically storing away items that you don’t need, and may not even use just for the stake of having/storing them.  A stockpile is TOTALLY different. This is storing extra food/goods that you WILL use, and rotate based on date.  Hoarding, again, refers to storing things that you will not use before they go bad.  Even a good stockpiler knows that any extra items that will not be used, should be donated to charity.

Many times, TV shows portray couponers as hoarders, and most of the time, this is not the case.  We have a local ministry, where we give free toiletry items to over 200+ people each month, and these items come from donations, but we also use coupons and give from our stockpile!

So, let’s talk about why stockpiling is essential to saving money.  First, your buying items at their lowest price.  Your stockpile should consist of items that were bought at the lowest possible price, and will be used/donated before the expiration date.  For example, if you are able to get 10 cans of baked beans through Buy One Get One specials that also use coupons, you might spend less than $0.5o for each can.  This is a GOOD EXAMPLE of buying food for your stockpile.  You know that these items can be eaten within the timeline of the expiration date, AND you purchased them at a greatly reduced cost. 

The largest item in my stockpile is Bounty.  I am brand specific (meaning I won’t use any other brand) when it comes to paper towels, and so I only buy Bounty when I can get it at it’s lowest price.  I keep a Price Book (Get your own FREE forms) on many items, and paper twoewls is one of them, so I ALWAYS know what is considered a “good price” for Bounty.  CVS will have sales throughout the year where you spend $25 on Proctor and Gamble items and get $10 in ECB’s.  THIS is when I stock up on Bounty (Plus I always have a coupon too).  I end up getting the towels for 50% less than what I would spend at Walmart or any other store.  However, I KNOW that we will use these paper towels, they don’t “go bad,” and the deal is not offered each week, so I buy them each time this deal comes around. 

We live in a suburban area in PA, but there are several mountainous areas around us, where people actually live 30 minutes to an hour away from a grocery store.  I actually worked in one of these areas for awhile.   It is VERY common for these families to keep extra supplies on hand, especially in the winter.  They may have a deep chest freezer where they store extra food.  I even have a friend whose parents have an underground gas tank with their own gas pump! So, while stockpiling may appear different to those who live in more urban areas, inour area this would be considered a good economic practice.  We also have a very large population of deer here, and some people even hunt deer for meat, and then have a butcher cut up the meat for them to freeze.  This helps keep our deer population from exploding, and it also helps feed families.  So, remember, the U.S. is a LARGE country, and while most of us do have a grocery store right down the road, it doesn’t mean we can’t use solid economic principals when buying food and other goods. 

This year I have a group of students working on a project about the Oregan Trail as Pioneers.  They could only carry 1,000 pounds in their wagon and had to prioritize what they could take along on their “trip.”  I often think that we are often in the same position.  Many families don’t have extra storage space for a stockpile, but there are also many that do.  So the size of your stockple will depend on where you live, how much storage space you have, and how many are in your family.  Only you know how much food/goods your family consumes, and if you have three or more children, having a stockpiling room might be practical for you!  If you live in an apartment, you  can still create a small stockpile in a pantry or extra room. 

You will be spending a little more in the beginning (but not much) to start your stockpile. Remember, you’re only buying things that are at a greatly reduced cost, so it should not add that much to your budget.  For example, each week, if there is a BOGO special and I have coupons, I may go ahead and buy an extra amount to put towards my stockpile.  Then, every few weeks/months, take a week and create menus based solely on your stockpile!  This helps you rotate your stockpile inventory, and ensure that you’re eating the products before their expiration dates.  To make sure that your stockpile items aren’t expiring, you have to rotate them frequently and try to create menus based off of it.  I know there are several recipe websites such as allrecipes.com that allow you to search for recipes based on specific ingredients. This is how I decide what we’re eating from the stockpile. I enter what I have, and voila! I get a recipe based on the ingredients that I already have on hand!

Remember, stockpiling is really good management.  It’s also good economic practice, if you’re doing it correctly!