An Overview of Food in 7 Days to Die
Food is a critical component of survival in the post-apocalyptic world of 7 Days to Die. As a player in this harsh environment, you'll need to regularly consume food and water to maintain health, stamina, and wellness. With proper nutrition, you can explore farther, build more, and battle zombies longer before needing to stop and replenish yourself.
There is a wide variety of food items to be found, grown, hunted, fished or cooked in 7 Days to Die. Knowing which foods provide the best nutritional balance and bonuses is key. Some restore health, some restore stamina, some hydrate better than others. Understanding the full range of edible options can make the difference between barely scraping by and truly thriving.
Finding and Obtaining Food
Food can be found in a variety of locations throughout the world. Searching kitchens, shelves, refrigerators, trash cans and dumpsters can reveal usable food items. Looting farms, stores, restaurants and even school cafeterias can provide a bounty of canned goods, grains, vegetables and other foods.
Many foods can also be grown with the right materials and skills. Seed packets allow for growing wheat, corn, coffee beans, hops, blueberries, aloe and more. Fertilizer helps plants grow bigger and faster for better yields. Greenhouses allow food to be grown year round regardless of season or weather.
Hunting wild animals through shooting, traps or chasing them into spiked pits provides meat and other items like bones, hide and fat. Building a fishing pole allows bodies of water to be cast into for catching fish and murky meat among other aquatic edibles.
Killing and harvesting zombies themselves can also yield rotten flesh, bones and fat which can be cooked into consumable items at campfires, chem stations or other crafting stations.
Food Categories
There are many different categories of food in 7 Days to Die:
- Fruits like goldenrod flowers, blueberries and yucca fruit
- Vegetables including corn, potatoes, mushrooms and chrysanthemum
- Grains such as corn meal, wheat and oats
- Canned goods like canned salmon, canned pasta and canned dog food
- Meats from animals like venison, rabbit, chicken, boar and bear
- Cooked items including grilled meat, boiled eggs and charred meat
- Drinks like goldenrod tea, grain alcohol, murky water and yucca juice
Restorative Properties of Food
Different foods have different restorative properties when consumed:
- Health - Provides instant healing of injury
- Stamina - Replenishes lost stamina for sprinting and swing tools
- Food - Satisfies hunger, prevents starvation damage
- Water - Quenches thirst, prevents dehydration damage
Some foods also provide special bonuses like a temporary boost to max health or stamina, increased heat resistance or cold resistance, higher run speed or more health regeneration.
Food Decay
Most foods decay over time when kept in a player's backpack or chest storage. Food decay accelerates if a player dies after eating a food but before its full digestion period. The following factors influence rate of decay:
- Inherent decay rate of specific food type
- If food has been cooked or not
- What container the food is stored in
- Presence of salt or other preservatives
- Ambient temperature where food is located
Use refrigerators, freezers or food crates to slow decay rate substantially and prolong edible life of perishable foods.
Food Poisoning and Sickness
Consuming raw meats, rotten foods or unclean water carries a risk of food poisoning. Symptoms include:
- Nausea overlay effect
- Stamina drain over time
- Faster food/water depletion
- Reduced melee damage capabilities
- Lowered resistance to other disease sources
Avoid drinking murky or dirty water straight from ponds to limit exposure to harmful bacteria. Wash glass jars at a campfire before collecting clean water. Cook raw meats thoroughly. Eat perishables before they rot. Follow these guidelines to minimize risk of debilitating food-borne illnesses.
Detailed Food List
Below is an extensive itemized list covering the wide range of consumable food and drink items currently available in 7 Days to Die:
Foraged Foods
- Aloe - Provides instant healing and wellness over time. Found by harvesting aloe plants in the desert.
- Chrysanthemum - Low saturation food. Grows as yellow flowers in snowy regions.
- Coffee Beans - Harvested from coffee plants, used to brew coffee for stamina replenishment.
- Corn - High calorie grain food. Can be harvested from growing corn stalks.
- Goldenrod Flower - Quenches thirst. Found growing in various biomes.
- Hops - Used for making grain alcohol. Grows on hop vines.
- Mushrooms - Small amount of food. Often found in caves, forests and plains biomes at night.
- Potatoes - Fairly abundant underground food source. Dig up with a hoe or shovel.
- Yucca Fruit - Efficient thirst quencher and ingredient for yucca juice. Grows from yucca trees common in the desert.
Hunted Foods
- Animal Fat - Obtained from animal corpses. Used in cooking recipes.
- Bones - Harvested from dead animal bodies. Used in cooking recipes.
- Chicken - Killed for raw chicken and feathers. Provides meat when cooked.
- Egg - Laid randomly by chickens. Boil for well rounded nutrition.
- Honey - Obtained by breaking honeycomb blocks from bee hives. Used as ingredient in recipes.
- Meat - Generic raw meat from animal kills. Higher quality when cooked.
- Murky Meat - Dubious raw meat caught by fishing. Has a chance of food poisoning if eaten raw.
- Mutton - The raw form of sheep meat from kills. Cook it for improved satisfaction.
- Pork - Raw meat harvested from wild boars. Safer when cooked.
- Rabbit - Killed for raw rabbit meat and hide. Cook for a safe meal.
- Snake Meat - Raw meat from killed rattlesnakes and other snakes. Cook before eating.
- Venison - Deer meat obtained through hunting. Healthier cooked.
Canned Foods
- Canned Beef Ration - Decent hunger fill but higher radiation.
- Canned Cat Food - Dubious canned meat producing food poisoning. Favored by zombies.
- Canned Chicken Ration - Safer alternative to canned cat food. Slight radiation.
- Canned Chili - Well rounded nutrition. Slight chance of food poisoning.
- Canned Dog Food - Questionable meat source. Avoid eating if possible.
- Canned Mutton - Lamb meat in a can. Safer than canned cat or dog food.
- Canned Pasta - Carbohydrate-rich canned meal. Not the most nutritious.
- Canned Salmon - Fish meat in a tin can. No risk
FAQs
What are some good early game food sources?
Early on, focus on gathering abundant foraged foods like yucca fruit, aloe, corn and potatoes. Loot canned goods and other non-perishables from kitchens and stores. Hunt small game like rabbits. Boil murky water before drinking to avoid sickness.
Should I drink water from ponds or collect rain?
Avoid drinking untreated water from ponds or other outdoor sources to prevent getting infections. Either boil water, make goldenrod tea or collect rainwater in empty jars for safer drinking water.
Do all foods fill hunger?
No, some foods like goldenrod flowers only restore thirst. Others like yucca juice, grain alcohol or coffee restore stamina. For hunger, eat items that list a food value like meats, grains or vegetables.
Can spoiled foods or rotten flesh be eaten?
They can, but likely cause food poisoning. Burn or toss out moldy bread, rancid meat or rotten flesh to be safe. Cooked rotten flesh and moldy food at least satisfy hunger before sickness.
Should raw meat be cooked?
Absolutely. Eating raw meat risks food poisoning. Use campfires, furnaces or other heat sources to cook raw chicken, pork, murky meat, mutton and other meats before consuming them.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.
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