Not everything stores well in bags due to the texture of the food and the effect of being vacuum-sealed in a bag. For instance, I prefer canisters or jars for chocolate chips (in bags they become chocolate chip "bricks"), coconut, cereal (crushes to dust in bags), cookies, crackers/snack food, powdered milk, lettuce, sweet peppers, etc. I have a lot of canisters in every size they make and have most of them in use. I use jars for longterm storage. Canisters are easier to reseal than jars, which is why I consider jars longterm storage. The integrity of some foods are destroyed by vacuum sealing in bags - dry foods, moist foods (coconut, tomatoes, etc.), crunchy things, or light and airy things (cake, biscuits, breads etc.). Seal-a-meal has food storage containers that are good for storage of delicate foods. You place the entire plastic container in FoodSaver bag to vacuum-seal. The plastic containers have air holes in the lids that allows a complete vacuum-seal to prevent freezer burn. The rigid lids prevent the foods from being crushed. The containers can be put in the freezer after you vacuum seal them in FoodSaver bags. These are great for storage of things that might crush if using a bag. -Grainlady

Two adults here, as well. Wasted food is the most expensive food you purchase, so I do careful meal plans to help reduce that "forgotten" something-'er-other, especially in the crisper drawer. I dehydrate, freeze, or vacuum seal with a FoodSaver for longer storage. Instead of waiting for the celery go go limp, I'll dehydrate a portion of it. Works great in soups, casseroles, etc. I also dry the celery leaves. Can't get all those mushrooms used? Slice and dehydrate them. I make entire soup mixes with a wide variety of dehydrated foods. We eat dehydrated zucchini as a substitute for potato chips. Hard cheese keeps longer in FoodSaver bags. When grapes are on sale, I'll stock up and freeze them in FoodSaver bags. I like the green bags for bananas, as well as freezing or dehydrating bananas when I can get a deal on them. FoodSaver canisters are great for leaf lettuce and fruit in the refrigerator. They keep much longer when vacuum-sealed. When potatoes are buy a 5# bag - get one free, I make them into mashed potatoes and freeze them in dollops and vacuum seal the dollops in FoodSaver bags. Otherwise, we'd never be able to use 5#, let alone 10#... I also cook and mash sweet potatoes and dehydrate them on the fruit roll-up trays. When crispy-dry, I run them through the blender and make sweet potato powder. Reconstitutes to make mashed sweet potatoes by adding hot water. I do the same thing with tomatoes for tomato powder. Reconstitute it with water for making pizza sauce, etc. It's amazing how many tomatoes you can get in a quart jar when you dehydrate them, and even MORE when you make tomato powder. Ripe fruit can be made into fruit roll-ups. You can dehyarate yogurt. I even dehydrate lean cooked meat cut into 1/2-inch cubes. After they are dry, I package it in FoodSaver bags and stick it in the freezer. Make sure your refrigerator is 40°F, or colder, and your freezer is 0°F or colder. Food degrades faster when those temperatures are warmer. -Grainlady

writersblock- What is the ambient temperature you will be keeping your food? That's what matters. Here in Kansas it can easily be 110°F in the summer - and the humidity start out at 97% (without rain) in the morning and 29% humidity by mid-day, but our home is air conditioned (between 75-78°F), and the basement stays cooler than that (68-72°F). My sister lives in south Texas and I've had to discourage her from a lot of home food storage because she keeps her home temperature at 80-85°F in the summer. She has settled on keeping about 3- to 6-months worth of food on-hand and that works well for her. She uses her refrigerator and freezer for things she needs to keep longer. She has noticed canned fruit (like pears or peaches) will change in flavor and texture if she keeps them too long, due to the heat in her home in the summer (which lasts 10-months - lol). Home food storage charts consider "room temperature" 70°F., and at that temperature you can expect to get "normal" shelf-life (+/- 2-3 °F ). Optimum food storage temperatures are between 40°F to 60°F. For each 10° below 70° you can store your food, it will increase the shelf-life, as much as double. So some things may keep better in a refrigerator or freezer if you keep the ambient temperature warmer than 70°F on a regular basis. Even MRE's (military meals ready to eat) are affected by temperature. Stored at 70°F they will store for 100-months. At 80°F - 76-months and 90°F - 55-months. Food is still safe to eat, but the flavors and texture will alter when store where it's warmer than room temperature. Some stored foods also degrade quicker than others due to temperature. Dairy products and powdered eggs are the most sensitive groups and need to be kept cool, so even in the basement we place them on the lower shelves, close to the floor where the temperature stays a little cooler. That takes care of the first enemy of food - HEAT. The other enemies are LIGHT, MOISTURE, OXYGEN, PESTS (insects and others). LIGHT - store food away from direct sunlight, and anything stored in jars or glass, keep in a cool and dark place. MOISTURE - Chose dry places. Avoid under sinks, where it can get both warm and humid. Run a dehumidifier in storage areas where there is high moisture. OXYGEN - I pack all dry goods (10% moisture or less) using a FoodSaver (vacuum-sealing in bags or canning jars) or using Oxygen Absorbers. That will kill any pests that may be present, or their eggs from hatching, due to the low amount of oxygen (easy AND effective). Low-oxygen storage will also extend the shelf-life. I never really got into using mylar bags and oxygen absorbers and packing food into buckets, but I have used oxygen absorbers in canning jars. I've been using a FoodSaver for food storage since I purchased my first one in 1986 - long before I ever thought in terms of "home food storage" the LDS Church way. I especially like using oxygen absorbers when making "meals-in-a-jar" using freeze-dried meat in them (like these recipes from Chef Tess - http://honeyvillefarms.blogspot.com/2012/03/meals-in-jar-guest-post-chef-tess.html#.VqepW4-cH2c). INSECT INFESTATION - Skip the bay leaves.... According to research done at Utah State University, "Bay leaves, chewing gum, 6-penny nails, and an assortment of other unscientific methods they tested, are not effective. The only instances where they have been effective are when no insects were initially present in the food." If you have dry pet food (including bird seed) in your home, they are often the source for insects since they are treated differently than human food, so store them carefully as well - in an air-tight container and away from your food. Use storage methods that actually work, such as removing food from the original package/box when you bring it home from the store, and storing it in an air-tight container. Don't leave any food residue on canisters/jars/containers. If you have your home treated for insects on a regular basis, that is also helpful. Regular cleaning will also go a long way to preventing a pest infestation. As I open a #10 can of freeze-dried food, I divide it between canning jars (whatever size works best as a user-friendly amount) and I will vacuum-seal them with my FoodSaver and jar sealer (or you can use an oxygen absorber). I also like to keep an assortment of small (2-serving size) packets of freeze-dried items in my 72-hour kit so I can just add hot water and make a meal during a power outage. My favorites are Mountain House: peas, green beans, corn, chicken fajita filling.... I wish I would have known about freeze-dried foods when I had kids at home - so convenient. If you aren't familiar with freeze-dried food, buying the 2-serving packets will be a good way to try them out. I have "umpteen" plastic totes filled with vacuum-sealed FoodSaver bags - filled with grains/seeds/beans/pasta/oatmeal...., all lined up on heavy-duty shelving. I've never had an insect infestation in all the years I've been using a FoodSaver for food storage (1986). -Grainlady

When I redid my kitchen this spring, I wanted a different solution to the dog kibble storage; it had lived in an old popcorn tin I spray painted black on the outside, for the last 32 years. Storing in the basement or garage attracted mice BIG TIME. So, I found the wonderful company on eBay and had a drawer liner custom built to hold the dog kibble. <http://www.kennedyhardware.com/custom-bread-drawer-liner.html?cat=89> I have a drawer (shallow drawer on top, same size as middle, on bottom) that holds this wonderful thing and it holds 30 lbs of PurinaOne Lamb & Rice kibble. Oh the joy of opening a drawer, sliding back the top, and using the measuring cup that lives in the drawer with the kibble, to fill their bowls! No smell, no rodents or insects, just perfection! One of my FAVORITE things in my new kitchen.