MREs?

[Grayfox54]

Looking to add some cases of  MREs to my emergency supplies.  I had some miltary MREs courtesy of a National Guard friend, but they have gone bad. Now way past date and when checked, had to be thrown out.  The military ones and some A-Pack brand are all I'm familiar with. BTW: A-Packs suck!

I've done my research and understand about packing dates, inspection dates, TTIs, etc. Lots of them to be found on the internet, but prices for fairly recent ones are expensive and shipping is outrageous. Shipping ranges anywhere from free to $40 per case.    Generally, only out of date meals have free shipping. 

I've also seen quite a few foreign military meals such as German, Russian, British etc. While they are cheaper, I know nothing about these.  There are also quite a few commercial made meals as well. 

So tell me about MREs. Which are good? Which are the most value for the money. AND does anybody know of any stores in West Tennessee that stock them in case lots? I'd like to be able to inspect them myself and avoid the shipping costs.  Please add anything else you can think of. 

[xsubsailor]

 This is going on this weekend at the Agricenter. I've never been to one but it sounds like they might have something of interest to you.

West Tennessee Survival Expo & Gun Show

https://www.rkpreppershows.com/event/memphis-tn-survival-expo-gun-show-22418/

[Will Carry]

MREs gone bad? That is a contradiction in terms.

[Grayfox54]

I went to the Survival Expo. Only a few individual MREs at $10 each. No case lots. The whole thing was a big disappointment. Lots of useless junk. Very little of it actually geared to survival. Didn't even make a decent gun show. 

BTW: I'm not interested in freeze dried or dehydrated foods. The way I see it, in a real SHTF scenario, clean water will be more precious than food. 

Edited February 24, 2018 by Grayfox54

[Grayfox54]

MREs gone bad? That is a contradiction in terms.

You betcha they went bad. The oldest ones were 10 years old. Opened a couple and they were down right nasty just to look at. I wasn't even gonna try eating them.   Unfortunately, I made the foolish mistake of storing them in my garage. No climate control and the rats got into some of them.  I won't do that again.  

I did go through them and was able to salvage some stuff. Crackers, snacks, peanut butter, accessory packs and heaters. But non of the entrees, breads or deserts survived. 

[Omega]

If you are looking for long term storage, look for the dried meals, like the kind that get used by hikers and mountain climbers.  I don't do the mre thing as I only do week long hunt trips so just get a few of these, they have Pace, Campbell,  Prego etc:

 

[peejman]

Yep.  Try these... available lots of places. 

https://www.mountainhouse.com/m/category/buckets-and-kits.html

or TOTM's, if you can get them. 

 

[Grayfox54]

I'm not interested in anything that requires water. Mountian House and such may be just fine for a camping trip where water is readily available. But I'm thinking about the disaster situation. No power, no water and no help. Think tornado, earthquake or TEOTWAWKI. Completely on our own for a week or more. Water is bulky and heavy. What little there will be should be used for drinking, not cooking. 

[tnhawk]

3 hours ago, Grayfox54 said:

Looking to add some cases of  MREs to my emergency supplies.....

The military ones and some A-Pack brand are all I'm familiar with. BTW: A-Packs suck!.....

So tell me about MREs. Which are good? Which are the most value for the money. AND does anybody know of any stores in West Tennessee that stock them in case lots? I'd like to be able to inspect them myself and avoid the shipping costs.  Please add anything else you can think of. 

From my experience, none were good!  Most of us bring our own food when we know we will be given MREs.  Even my hound has standards for a meal.

[Omega]

50 minutes ago, tnhawk said:

From my experience, none were good!  Most of us bring our own food when we know we will be given MREs.  Even my hound has standards for a meal.

I find the complete opposite to be true, the standard MRE has improved so much since they were introduced, now favoring many commercially acquired products.  They're not luxury meals by no means, but one standard meal can carry you the entire day if need be and have surpassed the dehydrated beef patties of old.

[Ronald_55]

Look at the S. O. S. Ration. No water needed. 5 year shelf life. Not a lot of variety, but not heat sensitive. Even stack up pretty nice because of the square shspe. Lots of calories in small package.

http://amzn.to/2GHts7I

They have long storage water too.

http://amzn.to/2CHPIvU

 

 

 

 

[tnhawk]

16 minutes ago, Omega said:

I find the complete opposite to be true, the standard MRE has improved so much since they were introduced, now favoring many commercially acquired products.  They're not luxury meals by no means, but one standard meal can carry you the entire day if need be and have surpassed the dehydrated beef patties of old.

The next time I'm in the field you can have mine!

[Omega]

41 minutes ago, tnhawk said:

The next time I'm in the field you can have mine!

Too bad you're in Memphis  or I'd be happy to.  I'd bet they would go fast if you put them up in a free thread.

[Grayfox54]

I've eaten MREs before. It ain't fine dining, but they ain't bad. I could live on 'em if I had to. And that is the point.  

Ronald: those SOS bars look interesting. I might try some for the "git home" bag. But I did notice in one of the reviews that these are intended for marine/lifeboat use. Even says so on the label. The reviewer stated that they don't supply enough calories if you're active. I still might try 'em. They are pretty cheap. 

 

[Ronald_55]

Well with each pack being 3600 calories, that should be enough to make it home. To deal with the ratio, you can just eat more that the suggested portion. 

I looked a bunch for food options. This one was on the heavy end of the list, but the shelf life, no special storage requirements, no water needed (actually meant to not induce thirst), and price caused me to choose them.

[Will Carry]

14 hours ago, Grayfox54 said:

 

 

You betcha they went bad. The oldest ones were 10 years old. Opened a couple and they were down right nasty just to look at. I wasn't even gonna try eating them.   Unfortunately, I made the foolish mistake of storing them in my garage. No climate control and the rats got into some of them.  I won't do that again.  

I did go through them and was able to salvage some stuff. Crackers, snacks, peanut butter, accessory packs and heaters. But non of the entrees, breads or deserts survived. 

I'm not doubting they had gone bad. I was just making a joke. My Boy Scouts were whinnying on one camp out about having to cook and clean dishes. I said "OK next time we'll just carry MREs." This was in the 1980s. They were all exited about the next camping trip. I handed out their rations for the weekend in MREs. They never complained about cooking again. I understand the new MREs are much better.

Edited February 25, 2018 by Will Carry

[Billrube]

Storing MREs in an unregulated environment where they are exposed to high temps is a death sentence. Stored indoors in a stable environment MREs will last much longer than the printed dates. 

At the last two gun shows in Jackson that I have been to there is a guy that sets up right across from the snack bar and he had several cases of MREs 2015 pack date I believe for $50 per case. I'm sure cash and multiple case purchase would get a discount. 

[Grayfox54]

Well, I thought I had found the best deal available on Amazon. Combo pack of 2 cases Menus A & B, inspection date of 2019 for $140 with free shipping. That's $70 per case. Not at all bad considering what other sellers are asking. Went back last night to go ahead and order, but found the price had suddenly jumped to $158.  What the Hell! An $18  increase in less than 24 hours? I just may have to rethink this. Or should I just bite the bullet?

[GlockSpock]

Well, I thought I had found the best deal available on Amazon. Combo pack of 2 cases Menus A & B, inspection date of 2019 for $140 with free shipping. That's $70 per case. Not at all bad considering what other sellers are asking. Went back last night to go ahead and order, but found the price had suddenly jumped to $158.  What the Hell! An $18  increase in less than 24 hours? I just may have to rethink this. Or should I just bite the bullet?

Try this:

https://camelcamelcamel.com/


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[hipower]

16 minutes ago, Grayfox54 said:

Well, I thought I had found the best deal available on Amazon. Combo pack of 2 cases Menus A & B, inspection date of 2019 for $140 with free shipping. That's $70 per case. Not at all bad considering what other sellers are asking. Went back last night to go ahead and order, but found the price had suddenly jumped to $158.  What the Hell! An $18  increase in less than 24 hours? I just may have to rethink this. Or should I just bite the bullet?

Ok...maybe I'm just stupid this morning, but I didn't find this listing.

And for the novice just getting involved in purchasing MRE products...are these self heating types?

[Omega]

3 hours ago, hipower said:

Ok...maybe I'm just stupid this morning, but I didn't find this listing.

And for the novice just getting involved in purchasing MRE products...are these self heating types?

Here is one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005I5ML36/ref=asc_df_B005I5ML365383663/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=395009&creativeASIN=B005I5ML36&linkCode=df0&hvadid=198096709148&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8439559766886482118&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=t&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9013097&hvtargid=pla-382794266380

[peejman]

22 hours ago, Grayfox54 said:

I'm not interested in anything that requires water. Mountian House and such may be just fine for a camping trip where water is readily available. But I'm thinking about the disaster situation. No power, no water and no help. Think tornado, earthquake or TEOTWAWKI. Completely on our own for a week or more. Water is bulky and heavy. What little there will be should be used for drinking, not cooking. 

All the more reason to stockpile about a weeks worth of water along with the food. 

[Shorty]

Try calling Camp & Trail Outfitters on Collierville Town Square (Army surplus store).  I've seen some in there before.  It's been several months since I've gone in there so I don't know if they carry them regularly.  I want to say Sportsmans Warehouse in Southaven has some form of MRE over where the freeze dried camping foods are.

[Jamie Jackson]

I find it handy to have a few cases of MRE's around. Post Katrina they allowed me a few days to cut trees off my house and square away other priority tasks before concentrating on cooking.

MRE's are a far cry better than the C-Rats we had when I served. MRE's are gourmet food by comparison.

While it's been a number of years since I've used the below linked site, I had positive experiences with MRE Depot, and they are a decent information source. But darn...those things have gone up in price!

https://www.mredepot.com/default.asp

https://www.mredepot.com/MRE-Menu-C-p/mc1213.htm

 

I keep some of those Mainstay SOS or Lifeboat rations in my GHB. They serve a niche purpose, not something I'd want to eat daily. But they are a compact and lightweight calorie source.

 

Water and freeze dried food. Well, a person needs a way to purify water anyway. We have a Berkey in home and I have a Berkey Sport and a Life Straw in my GHB. I've eaten the Mountain House straight out of the bag, not tasty and darn salty, but tolerable.

 

 

[Omega]

Anyone still interested I seen this ad on craigslist: https://clarksville.craigslist.org/spo/d/mre-cases/6507585549.html