24 Practical Ways to Prepare for Food Shortages and Rising Grocery Prices in 2026
Navigating the uncertainties of food shortages in 2026 and beyond demands a strategic approach, whether you find yourself in a city apartment, suburban home, or tending to a small or large homestead.
The warning signals about certain foods being in short supply have already sounded, prompting a ripple effect on costs. This has become our “new normal,” unfortunately, and it’s not changing anytime soon. I predict volatility for the years ahead. The only sensible solution is to accept reality and prepare accordingly.
As the inputs for production become pricier, so do the end products.
Factor in ongoing bloody conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, the destruction of key infrastructure, rampant inflation, the cost-of-living crisis that is making life difficult for most, the amplifying impact of climatic challenges like droughts and storms, and the trajectory of food prices, and the situation becomes even more precarious.
In this article, we’ll explore the factors at play and equip you with actionable insights to safeguard your food security amidst these complexities.
Keep reading to find the list of foods that will be in short demand and/or whose price is expected to rise.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service Food Price Outlook, food prices are still expected to rise in 2026, even if the pace of inflation is slower than in recent years. USDA’s January 2026 forecast projected overall food prices up 3.0%, with grocery store prices (food at home) rising 1.7%
USDA noted that several grocery categories were expected to rise faster than average in 2026, including beef and veal, fresh vegetables, sugar and sweets, nonalcoholic beverages, and some processed food categories. Beef prices in particular remain under pressure due to tight cattle supplies.
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Foods That Will Be In Short Supply in 2026
As we look ahead to 2026, it’s crucial to be aware of the exact foods that might become scarce, leading to higher prices. The cost increase isn’t just about more people wanting these foods – it’s also due to rising production costs.
When oil prices surge, so does the cost of food, for example.
Among these items, the uptick in demand can further be attributed to the spiraling costs of other food commodities. It’s noteworthy that several of these items represent vital and nutritious staples.
Beef
Beef should be at the top. USDA’s 2026 outlook shows beef and veal prices rising faster than overall grocery prices, and ERS data showed beef and veal already running well above year-earlier levels in early 2026. The main issue is a tight cattle supply, which keeps beef prices high and makes it more vulnerable to shortages at the consumer level.
Rice
Another kitchen staple, rice, is grappling with challenges from droughts, floods, and extreme weather. The increased demand for rice, partly driven by wheat, is pushing prices higher. Adding to the complexity, India’s export ban is contributing to the rise.
Eggs
As avian flu concerns persist, the global egg production landscape remains under constant threat. Avian flu, a contagious viral disease affecting birds, has the potential to disrupt poultry farms, affecting both egg supply and pricing.
Fresh Vegetables
Fresh vegetables belong high on the list too. USDA projected fresh vegetable prices up 4.8% in 2026, with early-2026 prices already running higher year over year. Weather volatility, transportation costs, and perishability make this category especially vulnerable to supply disruptions and sudden price jumps.
Sugar, Candy, and Chocolate
Less important, but still worth noting.
Butter
Dairy farms shutting down across America are paving the way for more frequent dairy shortages.
Olive Oil
Olive oil is worth keeping on the list, though more as a volatile and expensive food than a pure shortage item.
Canned Foods
The rising cost and scarcity of aluminum are driving up the price of canned goods. If your pantry relies on cans, take note. Canned tuna and other sources of quality protein are likely to see price increases.
Rising ingredient and packaging costs are also affecting pet food.
Fruits
Fruit will continue to rise in price. Certain crops, such as oranges, mangoes, and bananas, might be most affected.
Okay, so what do you do about this?
How to Prepare for Food Shortages in 2026
Food shortages rarely look like total collapse. More often, they show up as higher prices, lower quality, smaller package sizes, missing staples, and sudden disruptions. The good news is that ordinary families can do a great deal to protect themselves without panic or fear.
1. Know Exactly Where Your Money Is Going
Even if you already keep a budget, spend one month writing down every dollar that leaves your household. Groceries, subscriptions, takeout, impulse purchases, convenience spending, everything.
When you see where the money is truly going, you can redirect it toward food security, pantry depth, and useful household assets.
Related Article: Here’s How I Cut My Family Grocery Budget By Thousands of Dollars
2. Buy Extra of What You Already Use
Do not panic-buy random foods your family never eats.
Instead, when staples go on sale, buy an extra one or two:
- rice
- pasta
- flour
- oats
- canned tomatoes
- olive oil
- beans
- coffee
- meat for the freezer
This builds a pantry naturally and affordably.
3. Build a 30-Day Stockpile
Aim to keep 30 days’ worth of actual meals on hand, not just random ingredients. A smart approach is a combination of freezer meals, home-canned complete meals in jars, and pantry staples.
Think chili, soups, stews, meat sauce, casseroles, pulled meat, broth, and ready-to-finish dinners.
Rotate freezer meals every 3-4 months for best quality, replacing what you use as part of normal life.
This is a great way to train yourself to meal plan if you’re not already doing it.
The Digital Meal Planning Tool I Wish I Had When I First Became A Wife And Mother
I am creating a meal planning tool for homemakers who are done with last minute dinners and expensive convenience food. If you want a simple and affordable way to feed your family real meals every night, join the waitlist and you will be the first to try it when it launches.
4. Learn to Cook from Scratch
One of the greatest protections against rising food costs is skill.
Can you turn flour into bread?
Dry beans into nutritious meals?
A whole chicken into several dinners?
Vegetables into soup?
Leftovers into lunch?
Anyone can follow a recipe—that’s not really cooking in a household management sense.
Cooking skills create abundance from ordinary ingredients and cheaper staples that will get a family through the leanest of times. You need to become an ingredient household, this will drastically reduce your grocery bill, food waste, improve your general health, and teach you what our ancestors always understood about cooking and nourishing a family.
Related Article: 60+ Extremely Cheap Meals Made from Scratch with Basic Kitchen Staples
5. Reduce Food Waste
Most households throw away more money than they realize. The USDA says the average American family of four loses about $1,500 each year to uneaten food, while newer EPA estimates place the cost even higher at roughly $2,900 per household of four.
That’s insane. That’s my property tax bill. That’s a family vacation. That’s a 1/4 cow or more for the freezer.
Again, learn how to really cook. Use leftovers, freeze extras, rotate pantry goods, revive produce into soups or stocks, and plan meals around what must be used first.
Related Article: 9 Homemade Kitchen Staples That Save You Over $2,000 Per Year
6. Build an Emergency Food Supply
The days of mocking preppers are done.
Having an emergency stockpile of food and supplies just makes sense.
Build yourself a month’s worth (at least) of shelf-stable foods on top of anything you may have in the freezer and refrigerator.
A pressure canner is a great investment for this because it lets you make shelf-stable complete meals in jars with low-acid foods that can’t be safely water-bath canned.
These are the best non-perishable food items to stock:
- White rice
- Dried pastas
- Rice noodles
- Chickpea noodles
- Dried beans
- Oatmeal
- Canned meats
- Canned fish
- Canned vegetables
- Canned fruits
- Canned soups
- Fresh eggs (preserved in hydrated lime water)
- Dried fruit
- Jerky and pemmican
- Coconut oil
- Lard
- Granola bars
- Nut butter
- Nuts
- Jam
Related Article: 20 Non-Perishable Foods Non-Preppers Should Stockpile For Emergencies
7. Buy A Chest Freezer
In our old condo we had a small chest freezer tucked away that was always loaded with bulk meat purchases, trout from our fishing trips, and freezer meals.
Don’t tell me you don’t have space, because we made it work and you can make it work as well. You don’t need a huge model either, a small chest freezer holds so much.
8. Grow Your Own Food
Plan a survival garden.
In our old apartment, I grew food in my community garden, the balcony, and indoors under grow lights.
You’ll be amazed at how much you can grow in a small space. My balcony kept us in tomatoes and various lettuces, greens, green beans, and herbs all summer. And I wasn’t even trying to truly maximize the space.
Now I have 3 acres and a productive raised bed garden that requires no external inputs to grow an abundance of food for eating and preserving.
If your local community garden is full, look into government programs that help you establish your own.
You can grow indoors year-round — but you need grow lights.
I have the Click & Grow Smart Garden, which is self-watering and uses soil pods. Even if I just grow herbs for cooking, I’ll consider it a win, as herbs are among the most expensive items at the store. But it also lets me grow things like tomatoes, kale, lettuce, etc. In the spring, I can use it to start seeds as well.
If you’re short on space, focus on a few key crops; I recommend tomatoes (expensive to buy, easy to grow), lettuces and leafy greens (ridiculously easy and can be grown most of the year), and green beans which are just so productive and easy.
Related Article: 13 Container-Grown Vegetables For Small Spaces
9. Extend Your Growing Season
If you have a garden but only use it to grow food in the spring and summer, why not look into techniques that let you extend your growing season even further?
10. Preserve Your Food
Even if you don’t grow your own food, you can still learn water bath canning, pressure canning, fermenting, dehydrating, freeze drying, etc.
In the summer, when the farmer’s markets are full of cheaper seasonal produce, you can buy as much as possible and then just preserve the food yourself.
Just because you live in an apartment doesn’t mean you can’t start pressure canning.
11. Bake Sourdough Bread
You will save a lot of money and increase the nutritional quality of your bread by learning to bake your own — especially if it’s sourdough bread.
Sourdough is vastly superior to yeasted breads as it’s a fermented food that makes grains easier to digest and more nutritious.
Sourdough is not intimidating or time-consuming unless you make it so.
Related Article: Sourdough Slider Buns Recipe
12. Bulk Ingredients
Bulk ingredients, properly stored, can save you tons of money.
We mill our own grains (Komo Fidibus Medium is an incredible mill) that we purchased locally from an organic farm — hard wheat, soft wheat, spelt, einkorn, corn, kamut, rye, buckwheat.
Even with the upfront purchase of an expensive mill (that will last a lifetime) and grains with food-grade buckets and mylar bags, we calculated the costs and savings, and it all pays for itself within the first year.
Related Article: 13 Tips For Baking With Freshly Milled Flour, Including Sourdough
13. Do Not Cheap Out on Nutrition
One modern trend I have seen on YouTube that I absolutely loathe is watching people attempt to eat as cheaply as possible in a day.
This results in them eating hyper-processed convenience foods that are high in calories but offer little to no nutrition.
It is absolutely possible to be obese and to overeat while being malnourished.
When you’re making choices over what to buy, choose nutrient-dense foods.
For example, red meat like beef might cost more, but it offers way more for you than chicken.
14. Eat Nose-To-Tail
Kale isn’t a superfood. Neither is the berry shipped from thousands of miles away.
You know what is? Liver. Bone marrow. Eggs.
Maybe you can’t afford a whole grassfed cow to put in a chest freezer, and you can’t afford that chest freezer right now either, but you can buy those packs of chicken hearts, gizzards, and livers that are in every grocery store and learn how to cook them.
I grew up eating that multiple times in the week. It was cheap and nourishing food. Add some potatoes on the side and it’s a filling meal.
Try making my recipe for liver dumpling soup if you’re nervous or do not like the taste of liver.
15. Preserve Eggs
When my eggs preserved in butter reel went viral, I had numerous comments to the tune of “yOu CaN jUst bUy eGgS iN tHe gRoCerY sToRe!”
And then came the current 2024 egg shortages and drastic price increases.
Who is laughing now? Not me. Because it’s not funny.
Preserve some darn eggs, it’s easy.
You can get a 5-gallon bucket and water glass eggs that will remain fresh up to two years. You can do this in a condo and preserve hundreds of eggs if you want.
Get onto your Facebook chicken groups and find a local farm that sells fresh, unwashed eggs. Buy as many as possible and waterglass them.
Eggs are at peak nutritional quality in the spring and summer months from pastured hens allowed to free range on grass.
16. Long-Term Storage
Food-grade plastic buckets and Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers can store some items (like wheat) for up to 25 years or more.
Buy what you can afford and store it for peace of mind.
It’s not like it’s getting cheaper even if food shortages aren’t coming.
17. Cull your Livestock
We free-range our chickens, ducks, and geese.
It dramatically cuts down on feeding costs.
Come fall, we cull (slaughter) all but a chosen scaled-down flock of poultry to avoid high feed costs that occur in the winter.
See my articles on saving money on chicken feed and also ways to free range chickens safely for more information.
This year, I’m preserving enough eggs to last us all winter until the hens start laying abundantly again.
18. Find Free Meat Online
My online chicken groups are full of irresponsible suburban backyard flock keepers who won’t properly handle their excess roosters.
I regularly read posts from people begging others to take their pet roosters and give them homes — pet homes only.
In my province rooster rescues are a literal thing.
I could go off on this, but I’ll stick to the topic at hand: that is FREE or super cheap meat for YOU that is high quality.
Roosters are delicious if made properly (see my article on eating roosters and my recipe for authentic coq au vin made with a rooster for more information) and some of my favorite things to eat.
You can spend a day gathering free roosters and then either slaughter them yourself or take them to a processor that will do it for you.
19. Buy Whole Animals & Primals
A whole cow, pig, or lamb costs significantly less than its parts individually purchased at a butcher shop.
If you have a chest freezer you can fit a lot into it and buying whole animals will save you significant money, especially if you want grassfed/pastured meat.
You can also buy primal cuts and do the butchering yourself.
Last fall we butchered our Icelandic lambs ourselves for the first time.
It was easy.
Guys, we live in remarkable times when we can learn how to do so much by simply watching a YouTube video of it.
And while you (probably) can’t butcher a cow in your tiny condo — you can do so with a lamb or pig.
If i can do it, why can’t you?
20. Use The Food Bank
If you need it, use the food bank.
Use whatever other social assistance programs are available to you.
You’ve paid taxes all your life for just this moment when you actually need to make use of these programs. And the government will waste it anyway, so you may as well take some back.
There is no shame in it. There is never shame in needing help.
21. Homesteading Starts With You
Homesteading starts with you, not with land.
I drive down roads where people on vast rural properties choose to do nothing, literally, with the vast wealth they have. They mow their lawns, fertilize and weed them with unnecessary poisons, and then call it a day.
My mother thought everyone in this country was so wealthy that they had so much land but grew no food on it.
She wondered where the chickens and goats were.
And you — you may be in an apartment rolling your eyes at me. But I don’t care. Because I started in an apartment myself, I started from nothing, so I know exactly what is possible.
Pick one thing and start. Maybe decide to learn something new each month.
This month that might be making a homemade sourdough starter and beginning the (fascinating) journey to master sourdough bread.
Next month, it may be fermenting food or canning.
It only sounds overwhelming and intimidating because it’s new to you.
Like anything else, once it becomes a part of your routine, it becomes second nature.
Today the thought of fermenting beets or making raw milk kefir or even traditional soured milk seems like something totally alien. Tomorrow you’re making your own homemade cheese and have a freezer full of meat you butchered yourself.
22. Buy Local
I think you might be amazed if you realized all that may be around you and nearby.
We have an organic market garden close by that is pay-what-you-can.
And it’s all on the honor system. Can you imagine?
The work and generosity these people put into their land only to offer it away to the community like this.
And this is a huge market garden that grows vegetables and raises meat.
Do you have something like that close by? Have you asked?
Moving out into the country, my eyes were opened to the possibilities.
23. Can You Raise Livestock?
If you can legally (or even just uh get away with it and have cool neighbors) you can easily raise chickens and ducks in the smallest of backyards.
With a larger space, you can add geese, an animal that prefers pasture and will only need grass for 90% of its diet. And miniature goats, pigs, and sheep aren’t that hard either.
We raise Icelandic Sheep on only one acre of land, and they don’t get any hay through the warm months.
24. Fishing, Hunting, & Foraging
I’m not even going to pretend these are easy or cheap to get into.
Foraging and fishing are likely the most accessible from the list, depending on where you live.
It took me years from getting my hunting and gun licenses to go on my first hunt (I successfully shot a massive turkey, too!), but the patience and preparation paid off.
My husband and I fish for trout each summer (check out my smoked trout recipe) and fill the freezer with incredible trophy fish.
Final Thought & Cultivating An Attitude of Hope & Giving Back
We’ve lost something of our humanity in the last few years.
I can feel it and see it within myself too, this encroaching cynicism. But I refuse to give in, and I refuse to give up.
How sickening and privileged it would be to surrender to despair.
How weak would my own moral character be if I allowed myself to become apathetic when I still have beauty and possibility all around me, especially in my two sons, who are the future? And what kind of future am I helping build for them if I remain unmoved and indifferent?
No. I will not do that. I will fight that creeping degeneracy.
This year, as I think about how to prepare for food shortages and harder times, I am also thinking about how to give back—to my community and to people who need help.
I ask that you consider doing the same. When we give, we often receive things we never expected, and we may touch someone’s life in ways we never anticipated.
The world is full of pain. Let us choose to go forward in grace and love instead.
