In the News · Food · UK
The UK Wants Every Home to Keep 72 Hours of Food and Water. Here's a Sensible List
The government's Be Ready campaign asks every household to keep three days of essentials, including food that needs no cooking and about 3 litres of drinking water per person per day. Some shops saw sales surge; most supermarkets saw no material change.
Published Nov. 2, 2026, 06:24 GMT
Last updated: 2 Nov 2026References
What the government is asking
The Be Ready campaign, launched in late October as a three-year drive, asks households to be able to manage on their own for 72 hours in an emergency such as a long power cut, flooding or a water supply failure. There is a new government website with a downloadable checklist. Wes Streeting, fronting the campaign, said people should be "alert, not alarmed".
The food and water part, made practical
| Item | For 2 adults, 3 days | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Drinking water | About 18 litres (3 litres per person per day) | Add extra for cooking and washing, and for pets |
| Ready-to-eat food | Tinned fish, beans, soup, fruit; crackers; nut butter; cereal bars | Choose food you can eat cold |
| Tin opener | 1 manual opener | The item most people forget |
| Baby supplies | Ready-to-feed formula, not powder | Powder needs safe, boiled water |
| Pet food | 3 days' worth | Plus water for the pet |
The checklist also includes cash, hand sanitiser or wipes, a torch and spare batteries, blankets, a charged power bank, a battery or wind-up radio, a first aid kit and several days of any prescription medicines.
Our tips so it doesn't go to waste
- Buy what you already eat. Then use the oldest tins in normal meals and replace them, so nothing expires.
- Write the date on the box and check it twice a year, for example when the clocks change.
- Don't panic-buy. Building the kit over a few weekly shops is cheaper and keeps shelves stocked for others.
Did people really stock up?
Some retailers reported big jumps. Iceland said tinned food sales rose 40% over a weekend. Maplin said torch sales almost quadrupled, power banks and radios doubled and security cameras rose 130%. Preparedness shops reported far more: EvaQ8 sold about 300 radios against a usual 15, and Sgt Prepper said it was 10 to 15 times busier. The British Retail Consortium's Jim Bligh said availability remained strong, and several supermarkets reported no material change in sales.
Go further
Our step-by-step home emergency kit guide covers the non-food items, and what to do in a power cut covers the first hour.
How we wrote this: our staff read the reporting listed below, checked the facts against more than one source where possible, and wrote this piece in our own words. Anything not confirmed is labelled. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
