<P> Like the semi-dried meats, most salted, smoked, and simply - dried meats of different kinds that once were staples in particular regions, now are largely luxury snacks or garnishes; examples include jerky, biltong, and varieties of pemmican, but ham and bacon for instance, still are staples in many communities . </P> <P> Food rotation is important to preserve freshness . When food is rotated, the food that has been in storage the longest is used first . As food is used, new food is added to the pantry to replace it; the essential rationale is to use the oldest food as soon as possible so that nothing is in storage too long and becomes unsafe to eat . Labelling food with paper labels on the storage container, marking the date that the container is placed in storage, can make this practice simpler . The best way to rotate food storage is to prepare meals with stored food on a daily basis . </P> <P> Guides for surviving emergency conditions in many parts of the world recommend maintaining a store of essential foods; typically water, cereals, oil, dried milk, and protein rich foods such as beans, lentils, tinned meat and fish . A food storage calculator can be used to help determine how much of these staple foods a person would need to store in order to sustain life for one full year . In addition to storing the basic food items many people choose to supplement their food storage with frozen or preserved garden - grown fruits and vegetables and freeze - dried or canned produce . An unvarying diet of staple foods prepared in the same manner can cause appetite exhaustion, leading to less caloric intake . Another benefit to having a basic supply of food storage in the home is for the potential cost savings . Costs of dry bulk foods (before preparation) are often considerably less than convenience and fresh foods purchased at local markets or supermarkets . There is a significant market in convenience foods for campers, such as dehydrated food products . </P> <P> Grain and beans are stored in tall grain elevators, almost always at a rail head near the point of production . The grain is shipped to a final user in hopper cars . In the former Soviet Union, where harvest was poorly controlled, grain was often irradiated at the point of production to suppress mold and insects . In the U.S., threshing and drying is performed in the field, and transport is nearly sterile and in large containers that effectively suppresses pest access, which eliminates the need for irradiation . At any given time, the U.S. usually has about two weeks worth of stored grains for the population . </P>

State the importance of preparing food for storage