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Hey, buddy, does this taste okay to you?

Ugh. This makes the 10-year-old cans of "Beef, Ground, with Spiced Sauce" I ate out of C-rats in the early 80s look downright appetizing...
 
Ah wonderful and everytime you use it you think of that little membrane probably less than a few milimeters thick and thinking "its still intact right it wouldn't break after getting dropped right?"
 
Mmm Yum. Now I can clean my rifle and prepare supper with one handy tool. Pity about the girlies though, tough target. And of course sometimes you just don't need to go. :)
 
That is just not right.

Really, next time I see a special forces guy sick over chicken and rice I'll have more understanding...

We really need to get some input from the guy that did the user testing.
 
Now why am I seeing a blind taste test...

"This is your first day in the Army and we have a treat for you. Our lab guys have been working on a new mre so you all get two helpings, one of the old mre prepared the old way and one of the new mre prepared the new way. Chow down and fill out the comment cards provided."
 
I remember the good old days when I got a ten-cig pack of smokes in my rations. They always tasted *REAL* good after a few minutes in the CS gas house. *grin*
It took me almost a weak to stop feeling queasy when the Sgt. yelled out "Smoke 'em if you got 'em".
 
I also thought it was freaking hilarious that we were taught to mix our MRE peanut butter with insect repellent to make a firestarter. The peanut butter just never tasted the *same* after that...
 
Nice insights signless


I was wondering why this mre idea seemed familiar and then it hit me, I typed it up for a suit of T20 Battle Dress I did a year ago. Maybe I read it somewhere or maybe they stole the idea ;) like I did :D

Snippets of the system below, from June 25, 2003...

The MRE-OS (Onboard System) is a recent improvement over the old MRE-FT (Feed Tube) which required the soldier in the field to prepare the MRE then connect it to a special fitting to consume without opening the suit. The MRE-OS includes 3 servings of food, water and a dental gargle for after meal freshness. The (backpack option has) a fitting to the MRE-OS allowing additional nutrition for long missions in hostile environments. The quality of the individual MRE's has not however been improved.

As with all Battle Dress Systems, though not often discussed, there is a standard waste reclamation and elimination system. This extracts all the water from the waste for reuse and holds the dry waste as compressed ash pellets for later disposal.
Click to expand...
I was also wondering about the membrane failure rate. The least they could do is put some dye in the food that reacts to urea and other toxins (like lead, mercury, etc.) so that if the membrane fails your food turns an alarming shade.

Also, does anybody know if the US military is governed by the same standards as the rest, like FDA approval?
 
Also, does anybody know if the US military is governed by the same standards as the rest, like FDA approval?
Click to expand...
A good question. For combat rations, I don't believe so. I recall a specification back in the 80s for rations for SF troops (or others who operated for long periods of time away from supply) that had a line about "minimize permanent physiological damage from long-term consumption".

Not like things in some of the mess halls were that great. I couldn't look at a breaded veal patty for years after I got out of the service...

John
"Our unit is nicknamed the "Death Dealers", so our messhall is the "Chateau d'Mort"...)
 
Yeah, I should have been clearer, I meant for rations. Also I don't mean to imply any of it is bad, just thinking they might not have to go through the extensive review and testing for approval.

Thanks for the info jappel.
 
Dan,

No problem. FWIW, these days I believe that all of the normal mess halls are run by civilian contractors. Dunno if the various Cook MOS' are even still around.

In the '80s, at least, one source of much of the military's food was the surplus food the Federal government purchased from farmers as price support. There's gotta be a mini-adventure about a corrupt noble and the procurement system in that somewhere...

John
 
some one called a 98 spoon?
Army cook after a failed survival check on my initial training roll.
Yes some of chow was fed excess price support and the free cheese plans.
Hmm How many Kilocredits will you give me for the top secret reciepe for creamed beef?
 
You might have missed this paragraph...
Hydration Technology of Albany, Oregon, which makes the membrane, says soldiers should only use urine in an absolute emergency because the membrane is too coarse to filter out urea.
Click to expand...
 
Originally posted by Uncle Bob:
You might have missed this paragraph...
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />
Hydration Technology of Albany, Oregon, which makes the membrane, says soldiers should only use urine in an absolute emergency because the membrane is too coarse to filter out urea.
Click to expand...
</font>[/QUOTE]No, I saw it and read it, but forgot while posting, silly brain.
 
There are civvy survival filters that can filter urea out. I have a feeling SF types make sure they've got one.
 
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