How long is it safe to keep MRE’s

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  • willtill

    The Dude Abides
    MDS Supporter
    May 15, 2007
    24,314
    If the pouch is bloated then throw it away. If it looks normal, prob affect the taste of whatever it is but thats really not great tasting product to begin with so you have that.

    That's why they stick those little bottles of Tabasco in the accessory pack. To kill the germans in the entrees
     

    UPSguy

    WWII enthusiast
    Dec 31, 2020
    87
    Carroll co
    I appreciate all the info guys. Since shelf life might be a factor then on the MRE’s so it sounds like. What are your goto long term storage rations currently then?
     

    sinzitu

    Ultimate Member
    Feb 5, 2009
    1,473
    TN
    I used this site as a reference years ago. Still some useful info and reviews. Dated but take it for what it’s worth

    mreinfo.com

    Also some stuff on YouTube under Steve1989MREInfo
     

    Boondock Saint

    Ultimate Member
    Dec 11, 2008
    24,366
    White Marsh
    I appreciate all the info guys. Since shelf life might be a factor then on the MRE’s so it sounds like. What are your goto long term storage rations currently then?

    MREs, properly stored, have a theoretical shelf life of about five years from date of production. Realistically, they will last much longer, though they aren't the most cost effective means of food storage. Still, there is something to be said for the ease of clicking a button and having tens of thousands of calories show up at your doorstep with a few years of shelf life.

    There are a number of commercially available options (think sealed food buckets) that with some minimal preparation offer solid long term storage at a fairly reasonable cost. The drawback is that these options will require water to prepare the items.

    Additionally, you could buy a large quantity of rice and/or beans and part them out into smaller portions in sealed mylar bags with oxygen absorbers. This option is probably more cost effective and offers functionally indefinite shelf life, but is a bit more labor intensive and doesn't solve the water issue.

    For real world purposes, I find that rotating canned/jarred goods in/out of storage works the best. If you're buying a couple cans of beans for the week, buy 3-4. Rotate out two from your storage and salt away the newer cans. Stock what you eat and your storage will build up over time without being an immediate tax on your wallet or your time.
     

    Ponder_MD

    Ultimate Member
    Mar 9, 2020
    4,558
    Maryland
    What I've been doing over the last 10 years or so is testing one entree by age using the included heater. Some entrees have lost their appeal, others are fine. Have been accumulating MREs since 1981, have never seen an entree package bulging. I believe the vacuum packing wouldn't leave any room for bulging.

    Peanut butter can be hit or miss but crackers, fruit, hot sauce and candy have never gone bad, yet.

    Of course all the other contents such as the accessory pack, heater will last for decades

    I have a few cases that are pushing 10 years old. I follow Docster's process. Nothing has ever been inedible, merely unappetizing. The only thing that became unappetizing was the "civilian" goodies inside, such as the Skittles (turned into one giant Skittle) and the M&M's (dried out to the point of crumbling).

    The actual sealed entrees and snacks (bread, crackers, cheese, peanut butter and jelly) are all fine.

    Just so you know- If you're a vet with access to the commissaries, the Fort Meade commissary sells individual and cases of MRE's...or at least they did, the last time I looked.
     

    jmiller320

    Ultimate Member
    Aug 7, 2008
    1,892
    Havre de Grace
    Anyone know the company that makes the peanut butter? I ate it while I was in Iraq in 2003. Very good peanut butter. Back in the early 1980'd I went TDY to U.S. Army Natick Soldier Systems Center in Massachusetts. We toured the kitchen facility and got to eat some of the early versions of the MRE, Some of them were very good and some were nasty. They did rapid aging tests on the packages and if the contents was ballooned up, throw it away.
     

    Blacksmith101

    Grumpy Old Man
    Jun 22, 2012
    22,154
    I appreciate all the info guys. Since shelf life might be a factor then on the MRE’s so it sounds like. What are your goto long term storage rations currently then?

    Buy yourself a copy of the LDS Preparedness Manual which is the best food storage information resource I have seen.
    https://www.abysmal.com/product/LDSPREP-8.html

    There are some older versions available online but the current manual is the most up to date.
     

    Pinecone

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 4, 2013
    28,175
    I found the Army doctrine on MREs.

    The inspection process is to open a certain number at random from a lot looking at color and smell and even taste. If they are OK, the whole lot is considered to be OK.

    So this process is based on a warehouse of them.

    For home use, you could try one each year or two starting at some point, and if that one is OK, assume the rest are.

    Or just keep them until you need them. As was mentioned, if the pouch is not swollen, it is probably OK. Color and taste may be off.

    The military assumes that most of theirs will be consumed by the inspection date.

    For the MC/W (cold weather MRE) they entree is a Mountain House freeze dried, vacuum packed. But Mountain House states that the military packaged are only have a life of at least 3 years, but that is all the the military specified. Their commercial packaging is 25 years.
     

    willtill

    The Dude Abides
    MDS Supporter
    May 15, 2007
    24,314
    I HAVE eaten a road killed deer, freshly harvested by a pickup, just picked good meat from the remains.

    I've done it too. Of course one of the hindquarters was pulverized into meat pudding by the vehicle impact, but the rest was fine. I deboned that buck and made all of it into jerky.
     

    psycosteve

    Meme magic works!!!
    Sep 3, 2012
    4,724
    Gentrfying the Hagersbush.
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2I6Et1JkidnnbWgJFiMeHA

    Depending on storage conditions is the big thing when it comes to MRE's. I believe the current guidelines are 6 months at 120F and 3 years at room temperature. I would be very cautious buying MRE's after a desert war just for this reason. For long-term storage, I would be looking at freeze-dried foods and more renewable food sources like hunting, fishing, and farming to supplement what is already at hand. Canning and other food preservation techniques should be looked at as well.
     

    lazarus

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 23, 2015
    13,678
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2I6Et1JkidnnbWgJFiMeHA

    Depending on storage conditions is the big thing when it comes to MRE's. I believe the current guidelines are 6 months at 120F and 3 years at room temperature. I would be very cautious buying MRE's after a desert war just for this reason. For long-term storage, I would be looking at freeze-dried foods and more renewable food sources like hunting, fishing, and farming to supplement what is already at hand. Canning and other food preservation techniques should be looked at as well.

    Relatively fresh dated MREs aren’t a bad choice if you don’t either mind eating MREs occasionally or don’t mind chucking them periodically. If you got cases of MREs that are the same batch, you could just eat one every 6 months till you ran low or ingredients that are the least stable start seeming iffy and then replace your stash.

    I keep a few on hand knowing I’ll either eat or chuck them annually. But I don’t keep them as real bulk food storage. I keep a few on hand for a bug out scenario or some other scenario where I need food and can’t really do food prep of any kind (IE rehydrate freeze dried food or cook an actual meal). No plan for weeks of food. Just a couple per person in my family.

    We keep enough freeze dried food for about a week or so. I’ve got a few bags of “3 day” freeze dried meals that are an easy grab and go as well for when space isn’t as bad. The 4 bags are enough for 3 days for my family of 5 as two of my kids aren’t yet teenagers. One in my go bag, one in my wife’s and two in a “grab and throw in the car” tote along with MREs for everyone else (I keep an MRE in my go bag). Plus I’ll admit a couple bulk bags of ramen noddles in the tote also (stores forever, good source of sodium if you are sweating a lot, some calories, no harder to make than a freeze dried meal. Easier to eat if you can’t heat water).

    Some extra freeze dried food of a variety for another few days of eating, plus some freeze dried ingredients for cooking such as powdered milk, powdered butter and powdered eggs. Freeze dried veggies (peppers, celery, carrots). The kind of stuff to use with long term storage bulk stuff like rice and beans to cook a tastier and more nutritious meal. And a few weeks supply of rice and beans.

    Just the different layers. Stuff that takes zero prep, energy bars, stuff that is limited prep, but self contained for MREs, stuff that takes more prep, but still easy to make and lasts a really long time. Freeze dried food. Then a bunch of long term storage food like rice and beans for the most calories kept on hand.

    All of it we rotate through replacing periodically roughly within the expiration period.
     

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