I feel sorry for our soldiers Ever ate a MRE?

flutemandolin · #21 05/18/04, 10:19 AM

I guess they are a safety hazard as well! Just got this in my email at work yesterday:

Quote:

United States Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
Office of Safety and Occupational Health
Safety Alert

No. 2004-02 April 28, 2004 Page 1 of 3

Subject: Fire Hazard associated with storage of MRE (Meals, Ready-to-Eat)

Area of Concern: Wildland Fire Food Cache Storage Areas

Distribution: Warehouse/Cache and Safety Managers

Discussion: This alert concerns fire/explosion hazards associated with MRES (Meal, Ready-to-Eat) and specifically, the food heating device found in hot meal packets - referred to as FRH (Flameless Ration Heater). The FRH is a food heating device developed by using hypercorrsoion of a magnesium-iron alloy. The FRH, developed by BaseTech, is currently packaged with every MRE.

If the MRE’s are exposed to fire and the magnesium powder ignites, a class D fire will occur -- exhibiting sparking and flare up if sprayed with water. In the event that the plastic pouch containing the FRH melts, the introduction of water to the magnesium-iron compound can cause the production of hydrogen (up to a maximum of a 1/3 cu. ft. per pad). If the hydrogen that is produced is allowed to accumulate in a confined space there is a potential for fire intensification and a risk of an explosion.

bgak47 · #22 05/18/04, 11:03 AM

You should have tried C & K rations! Not to mention D rations!

**Shrek** · #23 05/18/04, 01:00 PM

I like packaged rations. Of course being a happy bachelor helps.

#24 05/18/04, 09:43 PM

MREs are better than C-rats which are better than WWII C-rats which are both better than the dehydrated special ops crap of Nam. Still like the "John Wayne bars" the best though.

Esteban29304 · #25 05/19/04, 07:53 AM

The MRE's are not bad at all. Some entrees are better than others. You should try to eat the old C Rations! Once, we passed thru a small Vietnamese village & a very poor looking kid kid was begging on the road for food. We stopped our tank & I tossed him a can of " Turkey Loaf" C rations.[ they were yukky]
He turned the can around, read the label, & shot me the bird & thru the can down!

#26 05/19/04, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuck

Actually, they are engineered to do just the opposite. All of the empty calories are taken out, so if you are living on a steady diet of them, you'll only need to "go" about once every couple of weeks. No kidding.

That must be why they have the tag line "Meals Refusing to Exit" :-)

Dawndra · #27 05/19/04, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Esteban29304

The MRE's are not bad at all. Some entrees are better than others. You should try to eat the old C Rations! Once, we passed thru a small Vietnamese village & a very poor looking kid kid was begging on the road for food. We stopped our tank & I tossed him a can of " Turkey Loaf" C rations.[ they were yukky]
He turned the can around, read the label, & shot me the bird & thru the can down!

That's way too funny!

Esteban29304 · #28 05/19/04, 12:41 PM

MRE's came out during the time I was in Vietnam. They were given to LRRP's.[ Long range recon patrol] for their one meal a day. Composed of about 3000 calories, they were designed to give the soldiers the strength they needed for the whole day. We [ Calvary] ocassionally got them from LRRP's & we thought that they were pretty good. We added " Nuoc Mam", a Vietnamese fish sauce , to some that were less tasty!

#29 05/19/04, 06:56 PM

Turkey loaf is gourmet compared to pork slices.

texican · #30 05/19/04, 11:55 PM

Having put myself into some awful situations in the past, such as not budgeting for food one semester in college, in the bad ol days before credit cards, I've known hunger. Stranded in the Alaskan bush, waiting for weather to clear for weeks...

MRE's are great sustenance. Of course, I'll eat pretty much anything, if it's moving slow enough. And I double dog dare anyone to say they wont eat something. After about day four or five, all the persnicketyness disappears, and anything goes.

Looking at the cost of MRE's, why in the world would anyone want to eat one except in an emegency. I keep a revolving y2k pantry with 12 - 24 months worth of provisions, and not one MRE...they cost too much. Even in the truck, I keep emergency rations, but more in the line of canned venison, tuna, chili, crackers, etc.

If the MRE tractor trailer rig turned over in my front yard (fat chance, too far back in the sticks) I'd stack em under the beds and in the closets, and eat em with glee.