Survival Meals Ready to Eat

If you are like me and want to prepare for the upcoming apocalypse or just need some rations for a day trip then you should check out these new MRE ration packs from Western Frontier. They are called MRE for a reason(Meals Ready-to-Eat) as they are genuine US Military surplus packs.

These real United States excess wartime rations packs are perfect if you are preparing in advance to be a survivalist, prepper or just like to eat well as an outdoor enthusiast. These ready to eat meals are perfect for hunting, camping, hiking, fishing, boating, and most importantly an emergency food supply.

They have been designed for maximum shelf life (around 5 years) and their nutrition value is excellent with an average of 1250 calories per meal. What’s great is that each meal has been pre-inspected by Western Frontier and guaranteed that’s its fresh for you. The included flameless Ration Heater is packed into each meal which is a nice addition. This means you can eat your meal hot anywhere anytime.

MRE Meal Types – Menu Numbers

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So far I have come across the following types and Numbers of ready to eat survival meals. With over 20 different meals it will take a while to try them all. So are Survival Meals Ready to Eat worth it? Hell yes. These will save your life one day.

  • Menu 20 Pork Sausage and cream gravy.
  • Menu 19  Beef Patty with Jalapeno Pepper Jack.
  • Menu 17 Pork Sausage maple flavored.
  • Menu 16 Ribbed shaped barbeque flavored pork patty
  • Menu 13 Cheeze Tortilla with tomato sauce  (vegetarian)
  • Menu 21 Chicken Brest Filet with seasoned garlic and herb.
  • Menu 23 Chicken pesto pasta.
  • Menu 18 Beef ravioli in meat sauce.
  • Menu 14 Ratatouli mixed vegetables (vegetarian)
  • Menu 15 Mexican style chicken stew.
  • Menu 22 Asian style beef strips with vegetables.

What is a Flameless Ration Heater FRH?

So many of you are probably wondering what is an FRH or Flameless ration heater? Well, it’s an exothermic chemical heater pouch that is activated by water to exhibit a thermal reaction. The ingredients for an FRH are basically metallic iron particles, table salt (NaCl) combined and mixed with a small amount of magnesium. These all react together to provide heat when water is added.

What is a Flame-less Ration Heater

Don’t worry they are all trapped in a microfilter that only lets water in but let’s heat out. It’s a self-heating meal ready to eat.

How to use an FRH

Usually, depending on the type of flameless ration heater (FRH) you only need to add 30 milliliters of water, into the pouch which has the ration heater strip. This mixture can heat a 230-gram meal packet by 100 °F in about 10 minutes. Totally silent and totally flame free.

So now that we know how to warm up our ration pack meals lets dive in further to see what we get in our survival meals ready to eat packet.

Depending on the type of MRE ration pack you purchase you will get a list of items similar to the following

Survival Meals Ready to Eat – MRE Contents: 

In each MRE survival pack, you will receive the following food products and accessories.

• Entree – the main course, such as Spaghetti or Beef Stew
• Side dish – rice, corn, fruit, or mashed potatoes.
• Cracker or Bread
• Spread – peanut butter, jelly, or cheese spread
• Dessert – cookies or pound cakes
• Candy – M&Ms, Skittles, or Tootsie Rolls
• Beverages – Gatorade-like drink mixes, cocoa, dairy shakes, coffee, tea
• Hot sauce or seasoning – in some MREs
• Self-Heating Flameless Ration Heater included in each pack.
• Accessory Pack – spoon, matches, coffee, creamer, sugar, salt, chewing gum, toilet paper. Contents of meals and accessory packages vary.
• With 24 different menus, you won’t get tired of the same foods.

As you can see there is a massive amount of food and side dishes available just for one meal. All you need to supply is the water. When I was in the army as a reservist we would often swap out our meals with each other as sometimes it’s a lucky dip on what you will get. I don’t drink coffee so I would always swap that out for hot chocolate or extra candy. Nowadays you can often pick out the main dish like chicken, beef, or even vegetarian.

What I like about these MREs is that they are so complete it’s all you need to take with you. Even items like toilet paper are included. We have a few of these meals in our first aid kit on the boat just in case something happens and we are stranded. Make sure to rotate them out every year or so.

You also don’t have to use the flameless ration heater. If you have a campfire going just put a kettle or mug onto some hot coals. This will heat up your pouch faster and makes the stew rice and toasty. Perfect for those hotter cups of coffee or hot chocolate.

How long do MREs last?

Well, it’s not a defined science but I have eaten MRE meals up to 10 years old. I survived but the meals were starting to taste bland. MRE packages don’t have an expiration date stamped on them. They usually have a manufactured date of when the package was made on the main ration carton box. Sometimes this stamp is also on the individual food packets. I would say stick to the usual 5-year-old rule. As long as your MREs are stored in a cool dark place under 75’F you should have no dramas.

If one of your ration packs does leak or has a pinprick hole discard it immediately. Don’t take any chances with eating a possibly contaminated meal. I have seen many times out on a reconnaissance mission that MRE packs can get torn or holed due to the many sharp objects in a rucksack.

What tastes better chicken or beef?

This is all a personal preference, but I prefer beef. It’s best to order a couple of each type to compare and then mix and match down the track. I just like to eat a nice beef stew while sitting around a campfire. It just reminds me of my mom’s hot pot stew when growing up.

My verdict is these MREs have come along way since I was in the Army Reserve. A lot of the older ration pack had freeze-dried food. These lasted longer but the taste was very bland and basic. Its great to see that Western Frontier have stepped up the game and included some tasty meals.

Trust me when you are starving and running low on energy these 2300 calories are just what you need. Never throw out the unused ration pack condiments. Save them for an afternoon snack. Or bring them home for your kids to enjoy. My kids often liked to eat the peanut butter or jam that I would bring home after a weekend Army training camp.

Packing your Bug out Bag

I love hose these are fully sealed and ready to go. Don’t forget if you are packing a few of these in a quick bug out bag to also pack in a water purification device.

I can totally recommend the Lifestraw Mission 12 water purification system for camping. This is suited for a family to be able to filter out over 12L of water an hour. Enough for your whole family each day.

I like how it folds down small and is nice and light. Other items to pack are some money, first aid kit, jumper, raincoat, tent, tools, matches, string, gun and a slingshot for hunting.

All this gear should keep you safe and secure if you need to make a quick getaway in a hurry.

Conclusion – Ready to eat meals for camping

If you are a prepper, survivalist or just an outdoor adventurist looking for survival meals ready to eat then these packs are totally worth it. It’s a small price to pay for a comfortable energy-rich experience in the wild. Its a one-stop shop for all of your dietary requirements.

Let me know in the comments if you use these MRE packs or can recommend some other brands.


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