British Army Rations - Use by date ?

On Thu, 20 Jan 2005 20:26:27 +0000, Adam Bentley
<[email hidden]> uttered:

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone knows the shelf-life of British Army 24 hour
ration packs. I have a couple of old(ish) ones and want to know how
good they will before I eat them in the middle of the pennines 8=)

They don't :-)

They have batch numbers on them. The QM is given a regular list of
batches that are coming up to their use by date.

Batches are opened and tested for bacteria in the food, this
determines the use by date.

They last up to 3 years...

--
Dewi,

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"Dewi" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Thu, 20 Jan 2005 20:26:27 +0000, Adam Bentley
<[email hidden]> uttered:

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone knows the shelf-life of British Army 24 hour
ration packs. I have a couple of old(ish) ones and want to know how
good they will before I eat them in the middle of the pennines 8=)

They don't :-)

They have batch numbers on them. The QM is given a regular list of
batches that are coming up to their use by date.

Batches are opened and tested for bacteria in the food, this
determines the use by date.

I have been told by ex-army friends to open the chocolate first. If it has
turned white from being in a hot place (Iraq etc) then certain other menu
items may not be good to eat, esp pate style foods.

Nick

On Thu, 20 Jan 2005 23:30:57 -0000, "Nick Pedley"
<[email hidden]> uttered:

Quoted message said:

"Dewi" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Thu, 20 Jan 2005 20:26:27 +0000, Adam Bentley
<[email hidden]> uttered:

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone knows the shelf-life of British Army 24 hour
ration packs. I have a couple of old(ish) ones and want to know how
good they will before I eat them in the middle of the pennines 8=)

They don't :-)

They have batch numbers on them. The QM is given a regular list of
batches that are coming up to their use by date.

Batches are opened and tested for bacteria in the food, this
determines the use by date.

I have been told by ex-army friends to open the chocolate first. If it has
turned white from being in a hot place (Iraq etc) then certain other menu
items may not be good to eat, esp pate style foods.

Nick

I remember getting some with the process cheese removed, the rest was
deemed ok.

They had red and white tape around the boxes with the words 'Cheese
removed' lol, they were keep and stuck to the groin area....lolololol

--
Dewi,

(remove spin for email)

Quoted message said:

Nick Pedley said:

I have been told by ex-army friends to open the chocolate first. If it has
turned white from being in a hot place (Iraq etc) then certain other menu
items may not be good to eat, esp pate style foods.

The chocolate in the old ration packs was put in as a laxative.

AJH

I would have thought anyone working over in Iraq at the moment, would
not have needed a bowel stimulant. :-)

Norman

Adam Bentley said:

I was wondering if anyone knows the shelf-life of British Army 24

hour

Quoted message said:

ration packs. I have a couple of old(ish) ones and want to know how
good they will before I eat them in the middle of the pennines 8=)

Hi Adam,
depends on which rat packs you have.
If they are the yellow packed MRE - Meals Ready To Eat - (otherwise
known as Meals, Recycled Excrement) they have no shalf life. In the
next millenium they will still be Meals, Recycled Excrement.

If they are the 'old' style 24 hour man packs, then I have eaten them
at least 60 years old and never suffered....well any more than anyone
who has to eat MOD rat packs.
These were a regular issue to us 'fortunate' bodies who preserved that
status quo of successive Uk Governments - they work on the principle of
Neitzche-(in Thus Spake Zarathustra)- 'That which does not kill you
makes you stronger'..

So I would say to you....buy decent food from Tescos...it's probably
far better for you (even their most 'junky' of food!)

Happy trails,
Shel

<[email hidden]>

......Here's a toast to the dead already,
......And here's to the next (wo)man to die.

Adam Bentley said:

I was wondering if anyone knows the shelf-life of British Army 24 hour
ration packs. I have a couple of old(ish) ones and want to know how
good they will before I eat them in the middle of the pennines 8=)

See :

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3575038.stm

I'd go with 3 years....

Steve

Steve said:

Adam Bentley said:

I was wondering if anyone knows the shelf-life of British Army 24 hour
ration packs. I have a couple of old(ish) ones and want to know how
good they will before I eat them in the middle of the pennines 8=)

See :

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3575038.stm

I'd go with 3 years....

Steve

There was a garden fete or similar at the church in Gosforth about
1970. Dad returned with loads of unlabelled tins, with some date mark
underneath from the '40s. He had no idea what they contained, but they
were cheap - just a few coppers, and he recognised them as army food.
(He wasn't interested in culinary correctness. If Mum was indisposed -
usually giving birth - and he had to cook, we'd get stuff like
semolina & bacon pie).
All were in perfect condition. Some were seven pound tins of
jam/marmalade, others were the same size, but contained coffee. Some
were meaty. There was all kinds of grub, eagerly devoured, with no ill
effects.
I reckon you can tell instantly if something's gone off - just use
your nose.

--

R
o
o
n
e
y

Quoted message said:

I reckon you can tell instantly if something's gone off - just use
your nose.

Totally agree with the above comment. In "olden days" (before use by
dates), if food looked or tasted bad, then you didnt eat it - simple as
that. These days, far too much gets thrown away because it is just 5 minutes
past its yse by date!

I still have a few 1986 rat pack goodies around and still in them. The
chicken curry is particularly tasty.

It aint done be any harm - hooooooowwwwwwwlllllllll.

PU