וַיִּקְבֹּ֞ץ אֶת־כׇּל־אֹ֣כֶל ׀ שֶׁ֣בַע שָׁנִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֤ר הָיוּ֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם וַיִּתֶּן־אֹ֖כֶל בֶּעָרִ֑ים אֹ֧כֶל שְׂדֵה־הָעִ֛יר אֲשֶׁ֥ר סְבִיבֹתֶ֖יהָ נָתַ֥ן בְּתוֹכָֽהּ׃
And he gathered up all the food of the seven years which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities; the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same.
Bereishis Rabbah 90:5 gives several explanations of how the food of the surrounding fields was stored.
Sefaria · Bereishis Rabbah 90:5
אֹכֶל שְׂדֵה הָעִיר אֲשֶׁר סְבִיבֹתֶיהָ נָתַן בְּתוֹכָהּ — נָתַן מַה שֶּׁבִּתְחוּם טְבֶרְיָה בְּטְבֶרְיָה וּמַה שֶּׁבִּתְחוּם צִפּוֹרִי בְּצִפּוֹרִי, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁכׇּל אֶרֶץ וְאֶרֶץ מַעֲמֶדֶת פֵּרוֹתֶיהָ; וְרַבִּי נְחֶמְיָה אוֹמֵר שֶׁנָּתַן בָּהֶם עָפָר וְקַטְמִיּוֹת, דְּבָרִים שֶׁהֵן מַעֲמִידִין פֵּרוֹת.
English: Bereishis Rabbah says that produce from a city’s surrounding territory was stored in that city because each land preserves its own produce; R. Nechemiah adds that earth and ash-like substances were placed with the produce to preserve it.
On the daf / in context: The Midrash offers more than a modern logistical principle: it records both the locality-based storage explanation and R. Nechemiah’s preservation method.
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: The verse is read as describing a concrete method of preserving and locating the stored produce, with more than one tannaitic explanation in the Midrash.