Taking inspiration from a toothpaste tube, TheEpicenter.com designed this stainless steel key. Much like the keys used on old tinned meats, you attach the slot over the end of the MRE retort pouch and simply twist in order to push the food to the top. Made in Eugene, Oregon. The hole fits key chains or carabiners up to 8 mm.
Freeze drying is the best way to preserve foods and Mountain House is the master. Every OR they offer samples of their new flavors. I tried the low sodium New Orleans Style Rice with Shrimp & Ham. The taste is excellent and it is slightly spicy with under 300mg per serving. Look for it and two other new low sodium meals early next year.
Reportedly, Cool Caffeine Mints have begun to show up in US military Meals Ready to Eat. Made with triple distilled Idaho peppermint oil and infused with caffeine, Cool Caffeine Mints come in packs of 10.
The manufacturers have provided a dosage rate to give you an idea of the anticipated effects of the mints:
3 to 4 mints = 1 can of caffeinated soda
4 to 5 mints = 1 cup of tea
8 to 10 mints = 1 cup of coffee
They are available for purchase directly through www.coolcaffeine.net who also offers caffeinated cocoa.
And old friend and one of our faithful readers sent us a heads up about Full Metal Jerky. He loves it so much that he says he won’t buy any other kind. We went looking for this spicy treat but it seems to be a Maryland brand. However, using their online map we found out that Extreme Outfitters carries the brand and it can be purchased online as well.
Even if we can’t try some of the jerky, when we found out that they had signed up with EmmeGirls modeling, we figured, what they heck, these guys deserve our support. But if that weren’t enough, Full Metal Jerky supports the troops. Show some jerky love. According to their website, Full Metal Jerky loves to send our troops free jerky.
“We are proud to support our troops and love to send them free jerky. To ensure only soldiers receive our offer, we have limited it to only APO or FPO addresses. Please fill out the form carefully and enter a complete and valid address.”
According to Denmark-based SSD reader “L”, the Danish military has adopted a new ration pack.
The new ration comes in one cardbox and includes these things (picture above)
1 x Freezedried breakfast (Oatmeal with berries etc)
1 x Freezedried dinner (all sorts of stuff. Chili Con Carne, Pasta In Spicy Sauce etc. There is a lot of different meals)
4 x ryebread
1 x Cocoa
2 x lemonade (lemon, raspberry etc)
1 x tuna
1 x liverpatê
2 x ketchup
3 x alcohol swabs
3 x sugar
1 x porridge (Apple, Strawberry etc)
1 x cheesespread
2 x jam
1 x crackers
2 x nutmix
3 x chewinggum (2 per pack)
3 x tea
3 x coffee
3 x salt
3 x pepper
2 x nutbars
2 x toothpick
1 x spoon
1 x toothbrush
Also included but not pictured is a spoon.
Granted, we are admittedly Anglophiles but we don’t publish every new Brit military development. However, we couldn’t pass this one up.
The MoD has just fielded new 12-hour ration packs to squaddies serving in Afghanistan. The 12-hour rations are designed to be eaten while on patrol and feature updated menus that include Hindu, Sikh, Halal and vegetarian selections. These have also been included in 10-man versions which can be prepared by someone with rudimentary cooking utensils. Essentially, a box of tinned (canned) foods that can be heated on a cooker (stove).
Quoted in an MoD press release, Private Ryan Salmon from D Company 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment (2 PARA) says: “The new 12 hour ration packs are a great change from the normal rations. It contains Beef Jerky and a sandwich, which are great for a quick meal. The chemical water heater and main meal are good when you are on short operations, you can get a quick warm scoff and not worry about messing around with a cooker.”
At the programmatic level, Captain Jeremy Rigby, Head of DE&S Defence Food Services which is based in Bath, says: “This new contract – which was delivered ahead of schedule and under budget – enables us to produce innovative new rations quickly, meaning we can swiftly adapt to the latest operational requirements. It demonstrates our ongoing commitment to respond to feedback from our troops in Afghanistan, making sure we give them food they enjoy whilst maintaining the high nutritional content – as well as making the packs as light and convenient as possible.”
Bon Appetit!
SSD friend Sal Palma has posted a cool field expedient recipe on his Blog.
MREs got you feeling “blah”? Not anymore, at least not if you get the Chow Bomb kit. Not only is the six-sided container an innovative design, they have made the packaging fun as you can see in the bottle for their MRE seasoning.
This thing is a steal. For less than $7 you get a Chow Bomb, MRE Killer Seasoning reload, 2011 MRE Contents Card, and an MRE Field Cookbook.
Visit www.chowbombs.com
