Living in Florida, we are preparing for a possible hurricane once again. This is not surprising, because we know Florida gets hurricanes. As a vegetarian or vegan there are perks when it comes to vegan food preparedness for a hurricane. Why is that? Well, we are not generally stocking up on the same products that non-veg people are. I've noticed this during preparing for this hurricane as well as when we got hit with Hurricane Matthew last year. Vegetarians and vegans are generally reaching for foods that are different than others to stock up on, so while their shelves are emptied at the store quickly, ours are not!

When I go to stock up there are loads of shelves already cleared, but as a vegetarian I have no problem stocking on plenty of the things I want. They are always still readily available. Gotta love that! What are some good vegetarian and vegan foods to stock up on for a hurricane? Check out my picture above of some of the things I stocked up on. Here's a list to help you out:

• primal sticks (or other vegan jerkey)
• cereal and granola bars
• dried fruit
• nuts
• trail mix
• shelf stable plant based milk (usually down the cereal aisle)
• toaster pastries (Nature's Path brand has vegan ones)
• cereal
• canned soup
• peanut butter (and bread, crackers, etc.)
• canned beans
• canned veggie dogs
• canned fruit
• fruit juice
• rice cakes
• pretzels/crackers
• fruit that doesn't need to be refrigerated (bananas, apples, oranges, etc.)
• muffins (you can buy them or make them ahead of time, as they should be good for a couple of days in an airtight container)
• bread

If you have a propane grill, make sure you have some propane on hand. If your electricity goes out, the items in your freezer will start to thaw out. Being that they vegan, they will still be okay longer than if they were not. However, you can cook some of those items on the grill in the hours you don't have electricity. You can cook up things in your fridge and freezer, such as veggie burgers, veggie dogs, etc. You can even use it to boil some water to make things like oatmeal, ramen, noodles, etc. 

Make sure your vehicle has plenty of gas, and do make sure you have flashlights, batteries, and candles on hand. If you can, it's also a good idea to have a back-up charger for your phone.

You do not need to buy bottled water. The water that comes out of your tap is held to a higher standard than bottled water and is readily available, so you don't have to run around looking for some bottled water. Gather up some water containers (food grade, such as your stainless steel canteens and plastic water bottles), make sure they are properly washed and cleaned, and then fill them up with water. Store them with the lid on tight and not in sunlight and they will be good for months. If you need to purchase some empty re-fillable bottles to fill up with your tap water, check local stores in the kitchen and camping departments. Read more about filling your own bottles of water here.