Emergency Rations

A.W.U.K.

A.W.U.K.

Joined
Sep 27, 2002
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O.K., I've done a search and can't find a thread on specifically this topic.

What do people recommend for an emergency meal? I'm thinking of some sort of food item with quite a high calorific value, in sturdy packaging, which will keep a long time, preferably years.

I'm thinking of something not too heavy, which can just be left in the pocket of a rucksack or coat, or somewhere in a car, until an emergency arises.

Have I ever made use of emergency rations? Just once. I was driving back from London on the M40 when severe flooding slowed down the traffic to a virtual standstill and a 2 hour journey took 7 hours. Fortunately I was in the habit of keeping a 24-hour ration pack in the vehicle and with the help of my trusty SAK treated myself to an afternoon tea of army biscuits spread with meat paste, followed by various sweets. But I was trying to think of something a bit more compact and light for when one isn't in a vehicle.

Andy.
 
In a rucksack or a car i'd go with corned beef. Quite a lot of fat which is great for emergency situations. It even has it's own opener. You can eat it cooked or straight from the can.

If however you want it in a coat pocket i'd just go with normal army rations. I don't know about british ones but i used to use the Malaysian army rations when i went camping with the scouts and it tasted alright. Had curry with chicken meat in it and even packs of fruits. All in all a complete meal.
 
I'm sure I've seen posts on that in the Wilderness & Survival forum. Maybe not in a separate post, but as part of a survival kit....

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MREs - army rations are a good option.

Another option are life boat rations, such as those made my Mayday.

Canned food from the grocery store is fine too. Just make sure it is something ready to eat without adding water.

Will
 
Spam-small tin's so's you eat all with no left over to spoil! Shelf life 6 year's! Horray for "Mistery Meat" :eek: :D Add a sealed tin of Sourball hard candy and your good to go.
 
As mentioned lifeboat rations are good to be left in a car trunk for years, heat does nothing.

MRE's go bad very fast in the trunk in summer.

Spam is good stuff but I wouldn't eat it after a full summer of trunk heat.

Skam
 
Corned beef is a good idea, if a bit lumpy to carry in a pocket. Liable to make you thirsty, so would need water.
Lifeboat rations seem good, long-lasting and convenient, but not easy to obtain over here.

Andy
 
Have you checked the Pennrith web site?
How about tinned biscuits?
Over here Power Bars are popular. They are about industructable. They can
melt and reform or turn to bricks, but you an still eat them.<><
 
Canadain I.M.P. are more usefull then US MREs becasue of the way it is packed.One should have enough calories for a day 1600 i think.
 
cheung_victor said:
Canadain I.M.P. are more usefull then US MREs becasue of the way it is packed.One should have enough calories for a day 1600 i think.
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How are they packed differently?

I am intersted in trying these out. Do you know where I can order them online, or where I can get them here in Van?

Will
 
As pointed out above, Powerbars are one option. I've been known to live for several days on Powerbars while bike camping. YMMV
Gene :D
 
I was leafing through a Brigade Quartermasters catalogue yesterday and they had some kind of a powerbar type thing that would fit your bill. They also had little water packs that were storable.
 
Trail Mix (pick your own quantity) makes good emergency food. I have some stored in jars that I have had for about 18 months, just ate some and it seemed OK to me, so obviously shelf life is not a problem.

You could also seal some in a vacuum bag with quantity to suit both your meal requirements and how you intend to carry it.

Your butcher may have a vacuum machine (for meat) that you could request to bag some Trail Mix up for you.
 
Lots of good suggestions.

One advantage of selecting items you actually like to eat is that you can easily rotate the supply, keeping it relatively fresh. If you select items you can only gag down "in an emergency," rotation is less likely.

Canned tuna in oil has a good weight-to-calories ratio.

Compare the specs on various bars. Cost does not equal value. Also, most bars have partially hydroginated fats (AKA "transfats") -- heart attack in a wrapper (Not an issue vs. starvation but a real issue if regularly consumed).
 
What Thomas Linton said. The best emergency rations are what you eat day-to-day, just buy more of it. Particularly stuff that comes in cans and has a long shelf life.

Gun show yesterday and one of the vendors had MRE's so I bought a case. I wouldn't eat that stuff day-to-day so the case will just get stored as a second tier emergency ration. If I get down to eating that, it's bad.
 
What kind of temperature extremes are MREs and other emergency foods good for? It can be 100 degrees in the summer here and 40 below in the winter, so I never like to leave food or drink in the truck.
 
I store MRE's in an old cooler and leave it in the garage. The cooler moderates the temp so teh stuff inside doesn't go through extremes. I would think that 40-60F would be ideal.
 
Shann said:
What kind of temperature extremes are MREs and other emergency foods good for? It can be 100 degrees in the summer here and 40 below in the winter, so I never like to leave food or drink in the truck.
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Lifeboat rations (S.O.S. brand from Emergency Preparedness at link below) are listed as temperature stable from desert temps to artic cold. I've had them in my car inside a Rubbermaid tub in summer heat (90+ Farenheit) and they maintained okay.
http://www.emprep.com/food water.html

The good thing about lifeboat rations is their 5-year shelf life and sturdy mylarized packaging. I've eaten some that were past the 5-year mark and they tasted the same. The downside of lifeboat rations is the taste. To me they taste like cardboard with coconut overtones. Very bland and flat tasting. In a way, that's a good thing because it means I won't eat them before they are NEEDED.

My usual shorter-term emergency munchies in the car or beat-around pack are Power Bars. But they are enough like a candy bar that they don't last long. ;) Another shorter term food item I keep in my car are dry-roast nuts. IMHO **ALWAYS** get the dry roasted kind. The regular ones have oil that will go rancid, especially in summer heat.
 
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