Walmarts canned chicken is good and they now have canned ground beef and pork which doesn't cost much more than fresh.
Another very simple and cheap staple is white rice. I store it in 1/2 gallon Ball glass canning jars with a desiccant and an oxygen absorber. Store the jars away from light. It will keep for 20 years at least that way. I date the jars and we opened one this week from 2011 and the rice is perfect. I buy jasmine rice from Thailand in 25 pound bags at the Asian store. Remember a very large portion of the world’s population basically lives on rice.
FYI, because brown rice is fatty it will go rancid in a few months. For longer term storage I put it in the same jars and store in our upright freezer. So far it has lasted as long as needed.
“Dittos on canned food. If you’re not worried about it freezing it’s definitely the cheapest.”
Dumb question, probably, but freezing ruins canned foods?