Melissa lives on a farm so her family grows much of their own food, especially the protein. A garden supplies much of the vegetables, but she still depends on other farmers, a national food co-op, a source for long-term food, a Menonite store, and occasional visits to Costco and Aldi.

• Costco:
  
  Every single time that I tag along with a friend to Costco I stock up on maple syrup. This is one item that seems to never go on sale (please tell me if it does!) but it's one of the "forever foods" that can last almost forever if unopened.
  
  Other than maple syrup and parmesan cheese from Italy, all items I purchase at Costco are ON SALE!
  
  Because I have a Ready Pantry there's no temptation anymore to pay full price for anything beyond the basics that just never go on sale.
  
  Would you like to see a video of me shopping at Costco? Leave a comment!
  
  
• Azure Standard:
  
  This national co-op for organic and healthy ingredients plays a big role in my Ready Pantry.
  
  Here are my favorite items from Azure:
  
  The world's best butter
  The butter I use for bulk baking because it's cheaper
  All-purpose flour in 25# bags
  Oats in 50# bags
  Chocolate chips in 10# bags
  
  
  Not only do I find great quality and standards when shopping at Azure, I also get to build community by meeting others in my area who care about healthy ingredients. I have met some of my favorite friends through Azure, including my co-host for this course, Cara!
  
  
• Aldi:
  
  If I need to go to the grocery store I almost always choose Aldi over a supermarket.
  
  Why?
  Aldi pays their employees well compared to other retailers.
  The store doesn't overwhelm me with endless choices.
  I can get in and out in no time due to their efficiencies.
  People put their dang carts up, haha!
  They have many organic options.
  
  Here are some items I regularly buy at Aldi:
  
  Avocado oil - it has a long shelf-life so I like to buy it by the flat every year or so.
  Sicilian olive oil - I used to buy the big olive oil at Costco but now I prefer the single country of origin that I can find at Aldi, plus we aren't going through gallons of olive oil now that we use lard for almost all our cooking.
  Organic sliced cheese
  Prosciutto from Italy
  Italian dried pasta
  Organic tomato sauce - I never seem to make enough sauce so I buy theirs by the flat.
  Organic ketchup - this is something I just haven't been able to replicate at home yet. We don't use a lot of ketchup any more but I still buy it by the flat.
  Yellow hotdog mustard - there's one kid here who is obsessed with this humble ingredient, so we always have it on hand for him. Otherwise I use my fermented Dijon mustard.
  Coconut oil - unless I need a huge quantity for making soap (my fall 2024 goal is to learn about soap making) these smaller jars are the perfect size for our household. We use olive oil for stir fries and a few recipes from this cookbook.
  DOC Prosecco - I just love a bottle of bubbly to share with mom on Sundays!
  
  Would you like to see a video of me shopping at ALDI? Leave a comment!
  

• Thrive Life:
  
  Freeze-dried food never appealed to me. (Except for astronaut ice cream.)
  
  My husband would purchase buckets of freeze-dried meals when we first started on our food storage journey, and I would say out loud "I sure hope I never have to eat this stuff." The long-term storage option was tempting, but the ingredients raised all my red flags. We got rid of that a long time ago and started searching for #10 cans of long-term food for storage that passed our standards for what we eat.
  
  Fortunately, we found something much better!
  
  I did feel a little bit uneasy about the similarities between this company and a MLM, but after researching them for a couple years I finally did some taste tests. The single ingredient items, like freeze-dried celery, are wonderful. The company claims that everything, even the soy sauce in their grilled chicken bites, is non-GMO.
  
  The freeze-dried meat really is good, but as a farmer who raises beef, pork, and chicken, I'm pretty picky about the meat we eat. Instead of stocking up on their meat I like to pressure-can the protein we raise. Still, it is a great choice if you aren't as picky as me.
  
  The fruits and vegetables are fantastic, and I keep some instant milk and cheese on hand as well.
  
  If you have children, think about freeze-dried food this way: you can buy a year's supply of food from Thrive (but do it bit-by-bit, with monthly delivery, unless you win the lottery!) when the child is a baby and you won't need to use it until after they go off to college or adult life!
  
  Visit my page on ThriveLife to see my current favorites, but here's my general advice:
  
  Order a chef pack plus an item or two off the month's specials. When you get the chef pack, which includes almost everything you need to make multiple, delicious, easy meals, use it! Practice cooking with freeze-dried food now, so if the power does go out for an extended time and you need to reach for these ingredients, you're confident about your ability to use them! Then continue to order a few items each month (with the subscription delivery) until you have the stockpile that you are comfortable with.
  
  However, here's a warning: you might find yourself reaching for these cans in your everyday life, as it's just so simple to put together meals with prepped and chopped ingredients like diced onion and sliced celery! Grab a jar of pressure-canned meat and broth, and you're minutes away from a homemade soup, with no cutting board needed!
  
  
  
  
• Mennonite or Amish store:
  
  
  
  Do a Google search to see if you have a Mennonite or Amish store in your area! I found a small, beautiful, charming one about an hour away from me called Shiloh General Store. After saving up cash for a few months I made the drive there and slowly walked each aisle... three times! I was so excited to be there and didn't want to miss anything!
  
  
  
  Here's what I bought on my last trip:
  
  
  
  Light buckwheat flour - I wanted to try buckwheat pancakes but wasn't ready to commit to the 25# bag at Azure.
  
  Powdered milk - I put this in jars and vacuum sealed them. I pray that I never have to drink powdered milk, but keep it on hand for baking.
  
  Demerara sugar - this little bag should last me quite a while, as we only use it to make muffins look fancy when we're making extras to give away
  
  Bar soap - I wanted to try the basic soap, and it was simple but good. I'll continue to buy this if I don't succeed at soap making this fall!