Meals Ready to Eat
When it comes to preparing for natural disasters or uncertain conditions, no one does it better than the military. If you’re getting prepared for an emergency, using meals, ready to eat are one option. In use by the military since 1983, meals, ready to eat are prepackaged, have a specific daily caloric amount, and are easily cooked without much water. Provident Pantry has put together various packages of meals, ready to eat, with amounts containing enough food to last from three days to a year.
Meals, ready to eat, also referred to as MREs, are self-contained, individual food packages used by the military for servicemen out in the field. Development for MREs began in 1963 and the triple-foil and plastic layer pouches replaced the meal, combat, individual rations in 1981. Over the past 30 years, MREs have gone through some additional changes in terms of the foods being offered and portion sizes. Presently, 24 possible meals and 150 other items are available, and packaging contains biodegradable utensils and napkins. Beverage bags, which are used with hydration packs, are also part of some MREs.
Although only a small amount of water needs to be added to an MRE, the food can also be heated. A Flameless Ration Heater (FRH) is capable of doing this. An FRH is a water-activated exothermic chemical heater that raises the temperature of an eight-ounce MRE to 100°F and displays no visible flame. This way, soldiers can have a hot meal without creating a fire.
All meals, ready to eat have a specific caloric allotment. Each serving contains 1,200 calories, and a package of MREs contains food for up to 21 days. One package contains an entrée, a side dish, a dessert or snack item, crackers or bread, a cheese or sweet spread, a powdered beverage, utensils, an FRH, a beverage mixing bag, and accessories such as napkins, seasoning, and gum.
Durability is another quality all MREs have, and the packaging is designed to withstand a typical military environment or the stress of a natural disaster. Containers for meals, ready to eat can survive a parachute drop of 1,250 feet and non-parachute drops of 98 feet. Because the packaging for MREs is so strong, the meals were given out in the aftermaths of Hurricanes Katrina and Ike. When it comes to preparing for a possible natural disaster, you can trust that MREs will literally stay with you through the storm.
