Provisions–What Got Eaten

As of yesterday, provisioning for the next leg of the Figure 8 Voyage is complete. Foods have been purchased, loaded aboard and neatly stowed, and once again, Mo’s lockers are full-up.

This time around, provisioning was largely a function of re-establishing par levels for core foods. Having done that, I sat down this morning to see what, in fact, I’d eaten since last October.

Below is a list of foods that were consumed during the 237 days it took to get myself and Mo from San Francisco to Halifax.

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Open-and-Eat Canned Goods
Soups and stews, 108 cans
Baked Beans (Heinz), 12 cans
Eggplant Ragout, 12 cans
Giant Baked Bean in Tomato Sauce, 22 cans
Ravioli, 30 cans
Dolmas, 16 cans

Canned Vegetables
Black Beans, 30 cans
Carrots, 8 cans
Corn, 20 cans
Peas, 14 cans
Tomatoes Stewed, 40 cans
Tomato Sause (for pasta), 16 cans

Canned Meats
Chicken Breast, 28 cans
Beef Ground, 22 cans
Beef Roast, 29 cans
Pork, 8 cans
Salmon, 26 cans
Trout Smoked, 15 cans

Dairy
Butter, 8 cans
Powdered Milk, 35lbs
Whole Dried Egg, 1.25lbs
Cheese (fresh and dried) 6lbs

Grains and Other Starches
Crisps and Crackers, 15lbs
Corn Chips, 10lbs
Muesli, 62lbs
Polenta, 3lbs
Pasta, 15lbs
Potato Flakes, 13lbs
Potato Hashbrowns, 3lbs
Quinoa, 12lbs

Nuts
Roasted Almonds, 5lbs
Roasted Cashews, 2lbs
Roasted Peanuts, 13lbs

Bars and Chocolates
Cliff Bars, 360 ea
Chocolate Bars, Lindt Dark 3.5 oz, 52 ea
Chocolate, M&Ms (peanut), 10lbs

Dried Fruit
Blueberries, 3lbs
Figs, 5lbs
Prunes, 5lbs
Apricots, 3lbs

Beverages
Coffee (ground) 23lbs
Beer, 186 cans
Wine, 30 bottles

Toilet Paper, 54 rolls

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Lessons

1. What Didn’t Get Eaten

Polenta. During the Figure 8 Voyage 1.0, I had a hankering for polenta (polenta, black beans, stewed tomatoes and salmon was a favorite dish) and had run out. So, for the 2.0 attempt, I stocked up. But my tastes shifted from polenta to quinoa on the 2.0 attempt, and so, Mo still carries several pounds of polenta aboard.

Hummus. I departed with 30lbs of hummus aboard in small-portion tetra packs. But I’d ordered this sight-unseen, and found, once at sea, that the brand I’d purchased was not to my taste.

Peanut Butter. A favorite breakfast ashore is toast with peanut butter and jam. But as I baked far less often at sea than anticipated, little of the peanut butter was consumed.

2. Ease of Preparation

I overestimated my ability/desire to cook while underway. As the months rolled on, and especially in the south, I gravitated toward the easier-to-prepare meals, and, during the last few weeks, I was eating foods right from the can with no preparation at all. This means I used almost none of the 40lbs of rice aboard, which, compared to quinoa, was too difficult to prepare. This issue applied to baking as well. I baked bread and cakes fewer than ten times, whereas the budget called for once a week.

3. Successes

-Bob’s Red Mill Muesli is hearty and healthy. I ate this happily every morning.
-Costco canned meats are of excellent quality and were consistently enjoyed.
-Cliff Bars were an easy and flavorful calorie boost. I never tired of Apricot and Peanut Butter flavors and was sad when they all ran out about a month before the Halifax landfall.