Survival Cave Food - Helping Families Prepare!

In an increasingly unpredictable world, ensuring access to reliable, high-quality food during an emergency is more important than ever. That’s where J.R. Fisher, founder of Survival Cave Food, comes in. With over 25 years of experience in the emergency food industry, J.R. has dedicated his efforts to providing individuals, families, and communities with premium, long-term food storage solutions. Survival Cave Food specializes in shelf-stable, fully cooked canned meats, freeze-dried meals, and emergency food buckets, designed to help preppers, homesteaders, and outdoor enthusiasts be prepared for any situation. With a focus on nutrition, taste, and shelf life (up to 25 years), J.R. and his team ensure that every product delivers both peace of mind and the ability to thrive during times of crisis. In this exclusive Delivery Rank’s interview, we dive into J.R.'s journey from founding Survival Cave Food to becoming a trusted name in emergency food preparedness.

What initially inspired you to start Survival Cave Food, and how has your mission evolved over the years?

Many years ago, I was an EMT on a volunteer rescue squad in Virginia Beach, VA. Whenever hurricanes or disasters struck, I was out in the middle of it, and I saw firsthand how unprepared people were. They didn’t have food, medical supplies—nothing.

In 2010, I started a company called Survival Cave. At first, I sold some of the available survival foods, but most of them were terrible. So, we developed our own line of freeze-dried foods. Soon, people started asking for long-lasting protein sources, so we created a line of canned meats that could last 12 to 15 years, while our survival food meals were designed to last 25 years.

The business took off, especially during a time of uncertainty in the world. Now, after 15 years, we've seen ups and downs, but the need remains. With my background in emergency response, I recognized the demand for quality survival food—and that’s how it all began.

Many people think of emergency food as a last resort. How do you encourage consumers to see long-term food storage as a proactive investment rather than a reactive measure?

The majority of our customers are well-educated individuals who don’t want to stand in line at the Red Cross, waiting for whatever is being handed out. Many are corporate executives, professionals, and even government officials—we’ve sold to the Coast Guard, the Senate, and Congress. They simply want to avoid dealing with crowds and food shortages.

That said, most of our customers aren’t what you’d traditionally call “preppers.” In fact, I’m not sure I’d consider any of them preppers. If you have more than a day’s worth of food in your house, you’re preparing for something, right? You’re the type of person who thinks, What if the power goes out? and wants to have food available for the weekend. In that sense, everyone preps to some degree. Some people prepare for a week, others for a month, and some for years—it’s just a matter of how far you take it.

As people get into preparedness, they start to realize that food isn’t the only necessity—water is just as crucial. Most people don’t have a backup water supply, and if the water goes out, they’re left with nothing. Today, our water supply is heavily contaminated. When I was a kid, we drank from the garden hose—you can’t do that anymore. Our water contains pharmaceuticals, microplastics, and all kinds of pollutants.

Having a supply of clean water is essential—at least one gallon per person per day as a bare minimum, and that includes pets and children. So, if you think of prepping in those terms, it’s really just smart planning.

Your products boast an impressive 25+ year shelf life. What sets Survival Cave Food apart in terms of quality and preservation techniques?

Let’s talk about our canned meats. First off, they contain no preservatives, no additives, no fillers, and no added water—just pure meat. Our process is entirely different from what you’ll find at the grocery store.

When you buy canned meat from a grocery store, you’re essentially getting every part of the animal, without knowing exactly what’s inside. In contrast, we hand-select premium cuts of meat. The processing methods are different too. At the grocery store, meat is typically thrown into a large vat, mixed with high amounts of salt and preservatives, and cooked down. Then, it moves along a conveyor belt, where a set amount—often less than the advertised weight—is placed into each can. For example, a 14.5-ounce can might only contain 12 ounces of meat, with the rest filled up with water. Plus, that meat is exposed to air during processing, which limits its shelf life to about 18 to 24 months, even with all the added sodium and preservatives.

Our process is entirely different. We start with fresh, uncooked meat, place it directly into a can, and seal it with just a trace amount of salt—nothing else. We ensure each can is completely full—whether it’s 14.5 ounces or 28 ounces—without adding water or fillers. Then, we slow-pressure cook the entire sealed can. For example, our chicken consists of two-thirds white meat and one-third dark meat. This method not only kills bacteria but also locks in freshness and gives the meat an incredibly long shelf life, far superior to anything you'd find in a grocery store.

When you open a can of our meat, you’re getting fresh, tender, juicy, and flavorful cuts—not something filled with preservatives and excess water. While our products are great for long-term storage and emergency preparedness, many of our customers buy them regularly just for everyday meals because they know they’re getting high-quality, wholesome meat without unnecessary additives.

While preppers and survivalists are a key audience, how do you appeal to a broader market, including everyday families and outdoor enthusiasts?

We don’t really focus on preppers—we focus on preparedness. Some people ask, Are you stocking up for the zombie apocalypse? But if the world were truly coming to an end, food wouldn’t even matter at that point. Instead, we market to people who may find themselves in real-life emergencies—like those caught in a wildfire, such as what recently happened in California.

After disasters like wildfires, floods in the Carolinas, earthquakes, or civil unrest, many people are left without access to food. In just the past five years, we’ve seen all of these events occur. We now know that riots can break out, and grocery stores can run out of food.

I don’t know if you’re familiar with my background, I wrote a book in 2016 or 2017 called The Great American Food Shortage. You can still find it today. In that book, I detailed various situations where having a supply of food is essential. One scenario I mentioned was the possibility of a pandemic disrupting shipments, leading to grocery stores running out of food, toiletries, and other essentials. At the time, people thought that idea was crazy—that it would never happen. And yet, just a few years later, it happened exactly as I described.

There are countless reasons why being prepared is important. It’s not just about extreme scenarios. Anything can happen—a power outage, downed power lines, supply chain disruptions. When people hear the term prepper, they often associate it with the Doomsday Preppers show. But 50 or 100 years ago, being prepared was just common sense.

Back then, it was normal to have a basement or pantry stocked with canned goods because you couldn’t always rely on a grocery store. In fact, grocery stores weren’t as abundant, and people couldn’t just go out and buy whatever they needed at any time. Your grandparents likely stored extra food—it wasn’t called prepping back then; it was just a way of life.

Then, as grocery stores became more common, people assumed they would always have easy access to food. But when COVID-19 hit, people quickly realized that wasn’t necessarily true. Shelves were empty, and basic necessities were suddenly unavailable. That experience showed us all that preparedness isn’t just for extreme survivalists—it’s for everyone.

Are there any exciting new products or advancements in survival food that you’re working on?

Within the past few months, we have introduced three different sizes of our meal kits. We offer a 120-serving kit, which lasts for 10 days, a 240-serving kit for 20 days, and a 400-serving kit for extended use. These meals are great because they include everything you need—breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks, desserts—everything you could possibly want. They are simple to prepare—just add water. Plus, these meal buckets have a shelf life of 25 years, so you can buy a few and store them in your pantry.

One important thing people often overlook is keeping survival food in their car. Having emergency food and water in your vehicle is a smart idea. Traffic can be unpredictable—whether it’s due to a snowstorm, an accident, or some other event, you could end up stranded for hours or even days. If you don’t have survival food, water, a first aid kit, or basic supplies in your car, we strongly encourage you to think about adding them.

Our company’s tagline is Helping Families Prepare. We’re not here to scare anyone by saying the world is coming to an end. Instead, we simply emphasize the importance of having food, supplies, and first aid on hand. We cover these topics extensively on our YouTube channel and blog. Our website features hundreds of blog posts detailing how much food you need, why you need it, and what essentials to start with if you're new to preparedness.

One crucial piece of advice for preppers is to keep their preparations private. In an emergency situation, you can choose to share what you have, but you don’t want people coming to your home and taking the supplies you’ve stocked up on. If you start telling everyone, Hey, I have a year’s supply of food stored up, your neighbors might remember that and think, I know exactly where I’m going if I run out of food.

It’s best not to advertise your preparedness efforts. However, having a trusted group of like-minded individuals in your neighborhood who are also preparing is a great idea. We’ve already seen what happens during shortages—COVID taught us that. When resources become scarce, people will break into stores and homes to get what they need because they’re desperate.

The biggest takeaway? Once you’ve prepared, keep it to yourself.

To read more about Survival Cave Food, please visit https://www.survivalcavefood.com/