The 5-Second Trick For how long do mres last
Have you ever been in a natural disaster? You can count yourself lucky if you haven't. For those who have, they can tell you what a harrowing experience it is to be holed up in your home or shelter while waiting for the emergency crews to arrive. The experts say that you should have a 72 hour kit prepared as that is how long it could take the clean up crew to clear the area. Can you really wait it out that long? Do you have enough food and water available? What happens if the power goes out? Will you be able to prepare the food otherwise? That is a feeling of helplessness that no one should feel.
One of the most ideal food rations in emergency situations is the MRE or meals ready to eat. Originally, they were military issued but now you can also purchase civilian MREs as well. There are little differences seeing as the manufacturers are mostly doing the same kind of business providing for the military and the public.
Meals ready to eat have a shelf life of 3-5 years if stored in the right conditions: dry and at cool temperatures. Each package of an MRE is a complete meal including a main dish, side dish, dessert, bread or crackers and a spread. You also get a beverage mix, coffee and other accessory items. All food items included, an MRE meal has on average more than a 1200 calories. To put it in perspective, the average woman should have a daily food intake of 1500 calories while the average man should consume 2500 calories. So if you're a woman eating an MRE, that meal alone represents almost your daily caloric intake. Two MRE meals will do if you're a man.
Perhaps what is literally warming in an emergency situation is that the MRE package also includes a flameless ration heater. Even if you're without a source to heat your food, you'll still be able to enjoy a hot meal with an MRE because it has a flameless heat source that is activated by water. Just make sure you have a prepared water supply in your emergency kit as well.
With all the talk of global warming and climate change, it should be warning enough for everyone to prepare for natural disasters by keeping their emergency supplies well stocked. Having a couple of cases of MRE and water jugs on hand will sustain until help arrives.
Originally, meals ready to eat (MRE) were designed as military rations by the U.S. army to feed their soldiers in operation and on the field. More and more, they have been adopted by civilians as a great food resource for emergency disaster situations. For a trained soldier, eating and preparing from an MRE pouch might be a no-brainer, but for the ordinary person, it might prove to be challenging.
An MRE package is one complete meal for an individual. When you first open up the package, open it up like a bag of chips and don't rip it up along the sides. You can use the bag for disposal purposes later. In your package, you can expect it to include a main entrée, a side dish, a snack or a dessert, bread or crackers, and a spread for it. The package should also come with a spoon, a drink mix, and a flameless ration heater (FRH) that is water activated. Finally, the MR package also comes with an accessory pack with miscellaneous items such as chewing gum, water resistant matches, toilettes and toilet paper and seasonings.
Arrange your MRE meal contents so everything is easily identifiable. Find your main entrée and your FRH. The main entrée should come in a small flat box. Open the box and you'll find your meal in another sealable pouch. Save the box as you'll need it later. Next, peal open the top edge of the FRH. Inside, you'll find the heating element of the FRH and it is important that you do not touch this. Slide your main entrée package into the FRH bag with the unopened edge on top. Fill the FRH bag with just the right amount of water as indicated by the bag line. After you put the water in, you will find that your bag starts to steam. It does get very hot so put the package back in the main entrée box that it came in to prevent your hands from handling the hot food. Tilt the box at a 45 degree angle so the water doesn't run out of this method and the box does help to heat the food evenly. After approximately 10 minutes, your meal should be fully heated. Just take out the entrée from the FRH and repeat the process with your side dish.
MREs are a great and convenient meal for when you're on the go and also for emergency situations. It just takes a little know-how to prepare and cook your MRE package for the first time.
One of the most ideal food rations in emergency situations is the MRE or meals ready to eat. All food items included, an MRE meal has on average more than a 1200 calories. Even if you're without a source to heat your food, you'll still be able to enjoy a hot meal with an MRE because it has a flameless heat source that is activated by how long do mres last water. One of the most ideal food rations in emergency situations is the MRE or meals ready to eat. Even if you're without a source to heat your food, you'll still be able to enjoy a hot meal with an MRE because it has a flameless heat source that is activated by water.