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There are many options for the outdoorsman seeking nutrition and hydration in the wild.
Among the more common choices are freeze-dried prepared foods, Meals Ready to Eat (MREs), P,B & J sandwiches or even live food encountered along the journey - plant and animal.
Depending on the type of sustenance preferred by the explorer, an assortment of cookware, serving dishes and utensils and perhaps a heat source will also be required for the trip.
For the army/navy retailers, these products comprise both an excellent stand-alone business and an ideal accessorization component of their overall camping and outdoor category.
Primarily, though, the army/navy store is a great outlet for the MRE, which is the food of government choice for military personnel stationed in active combat zones.
MREs are fully cooked and consist of either full course meals or are broken down into individual servings of snacks, appetizers, soups, entrees and desserts. They do not require re-heating, re-hydration or preparation time, although they can be re-heated if desired.
The U.S. government goes to great pains to research and develop a wide variety of MREs, designed to provide maximum energy, nutrition, taste, palatability and ease of use for the soldier afield.
Better noshing through science
The latest wrinkle eminating from the U.S. Army's food labs in Natick, Massachusetts is the new Unitized Group Ration.
According to the Army, the "Unitized Group Ration - Express provides hot meals for up to 18 soldiers. The ration is a completely self-contained feeding system, requiring no additional equipment, heat or water. By pulling a tab on the unit, a soldier releases a saline solution into the container that activates heaters similar to those found in the MRE. In as little as 30 minutes, soldiers have a hot meal. The UGR-E is designed for soldiers serving in remote locations or at a forward operating base."
Natick has also developed the First Strike Ration (FSR), touted as an improvement over the basic MRE.
According to Army food scientists, the FSR "is about the size and weight of the brown-packaged MRE while containing the nutritional value of three meals at about the same bulk and weight of the traditional MRE."
The FSR contains only food items that can be eaten on the move. Each food item in the package is individually wrapped and can be eaten out of hand.
"Soldiers can rip it open, put everything in their cargo pocket and move out," according to Natick spokesman Jeremy Whitsitt.
MREasy
Although the MRE is made by and for the military, some of them make it to the commercial market. Army/navy stores should stock and sell them to campers, hunters, survivalists, local first responder organizations and other emergency care groups. MREs have an average shelf life of three years.
Major Surplus of Gardena, California is a provider of MREs to the army/navy market. Steve Adkisson of Major notes that supply is always a dicey proposition, given that the commercial market gets second billing after military needs.
"Supply is good today, but 18 years in the business tells me that it is going to change. Retailers should stock up on them now since the price is likely to go up," said Adkisson.
He pointed to the rise in the cost of raw materials such as flour as a precursor to potential price increases.
Adkisson advised retailers to stock up early on stoves, cookware and utensils to avoid other price increases.
"Anything steel or metal from China is seeing 20-40% increases, due to certain taxes that factories now pass on to importers that were once paid by the Chinese government," Adkisson noted.
He also cited the devalued dollar as a factor in increased prices.
But he sees the camping market as a viable one in economically challenged times.
"Maybe camping is going to be good this year. It's easier and cheaper to take the family camping when the cost of travel and housing is so high," Adkisson said.
author: by Mark Hawver