The Meal Ready to Eat or MRE, has revolutionized
the Sustainment and Transportation portion of the
Generate-Transport-Sustain-Redeploy (G-T-S-R) theory in logistics. The MRE was
developed in 1975 by the Department of Defense and then produced in large scale
in 1975.
It was first field tested by the 24th
Infantry Division in 1983, and has become a normal part of soldiers lives in
current day.
The MRE is considered Class1 by the Army as
rations for troops.
This meal comes with 1,250 calories, 1/3 the daily U.S. Military recommended dose. Each package on average contains roughly 13%
protein, 36% fat, and 51% carbohydrates. In many training environments soldiers are
given two MREs for a full days worth of meals. That being said, the MRE
drastically recrudesces the “must have” situation of Class 1 supplies. Although
the MRE cannot be substituted for every meal, it does serve as perfectly good
substitute for soldiers in the field. This in turn holds an impact on the sustainment
of operations, because the demand is reduced. In terms of storage, an MRE (if
stored properly, unopened at 60 degrees F) can last up to 7 years. This helps
the sustainment phase because the MREs can be bulk shipped, stored in a climate
controlled warehouse, and held for years on end waiting to be used.
The MRE has the capability of being mass
produced and is packaged easily and compact for transportation. Menus labeled
as Class A can be packaged in a case with up to 12 MREs and Class B can be
packaged with as many as 24 MREs. As shown to the left in Figure 2, the boxes that contain up
to 24 MREs are relatively small in size: 42cm long, 27cm high, and 24cm wide. Due to the compact dimensions of the MRE box,
the transportation of multiple MRE boxes is very easy. On average, 48 MRE boxes
can fit onto a pallet that is used to transport the MRE. A standard truck can ship up to 40 pallets,
meaning that a truck has the potential to ship up to 46,080 MREs.
The compactness of an
MRE box that is ready to ship is one of the highlights of this meal. In comparison
to that of other Class 1 food, the MRE can be more efficiently and effectively
transported to locations all over world. Once the MRE has been positioned in
its most desired location, it can then be stockpiled in large bulk for long
periods of time. This can be useful for many different applications: war theaters,
training environments, humanitarian efforts, and many others. The MREs
sustainment and transportation capabilities vastly outweigh that of its
competitors, making it the most effective means of its source. Indeed the MRE is underappreciated by the common
soldier, but should be held in high esteem by all soldiers (especially
logisticians).
Having the ability to feed our troops is one of the major advantages of our military. Well feed troops have the ability to perform better in combat and when their skills are being tested. It would definitely be interesting to see if there are any ways in which the MRE can be improved. It is likely with that the current MRE produces quite a bit of waste from both it's packaging and unused food. Then again this may just be one of those things that is not broken and there is no need to fix it. The current packaging system is very efficient and allows valuable space to be maximized. It would definitely also be nice to see the MRE shift to better tasting meals as well.
ReplyDeleteWhile the MRE has a slew of upsides, it is important to consider the alternatives. The British use completely dried food where as U.S. MRE's are liquid based. This adds significant weight for the same amount of calories. The downside of the British MRE is it uses a small collapsable pan for heating, which can add a small amount of weight. The majority of troops have transitioned to using a jetboil IOT heat there food which is a great multi-use piece of equipment to have and is lighter than the pan. They are purchasing this on their own accord, however, and should the Army should consider issuing them in place of the pans and small charcol pieces. The author mentioned taste was an issue, however, in my experience, the British Army complains about rations much less. I think they are better than the MRE. Sure the MRE is great, and has been utilized in many sustainment situations, however, we should never rest on our laurels. We should constantly look to improve our systems, and considering our allies courses of action is a good place to start when comparing innovation.
ReplyDeleteThe MRE is an excellent way to feed our soldiers that are out in the field and it also makes it easy on logisticians that are having to calculate rations for troops days far in advance of a timeline. The meals no doubt could be better, but these MREs already offer a large variety of meals for soldiers along with even candy and chocolate that everyone loves. The MREs are a much easier way to push supplies in the sense of Class 1, as opposed to how it was in World War II where rations actually had to be carefully calculated instead of an MRE per soldier per meal. I agree with Gettysburg Shoe Factory's comment in the sense that every system can always be improved and we should be constantly looking to improve MREs. We owe it to soldiers everywhere to give them any advantage on the battlefield we can.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was younger, my stepfather would bring boxes of MREs and my mom would be furious because I went through month long phases of eating MREs instead of her home cooked meals- weird I know. While I now prefer hot meals over MREs, I have not lost sight of how convenient these meals actually are. They can be easily stored, taken apart, and traded. They evenly allow for camaraderie building, easy to eat on the go and easy to dispose (or should I say bury unfortunately). I remember soldiers talking about the older sea ration versions. I can't imagine the Army trying to improve the MRE anytime soon though it would be nice to have an MRE that can last seven years without the high amounts of preservatives.
ReplyDeleteThe MRE could be better. The British Army proved that. British Army MREs are only slightly bigger than one American MRE. The main difference is that a British MRE comes with three meals. Therefore, the British MRE takes up approximately 2/3 less space. It is possible for the Army to package the MREs in a way to make transport and use even easier. The British MREs taste much better and come with more snacks so the soldier can effectively space out their calories easier. Although the fancy pants Brits all eat their MREs warm, you can also eat British MREs cold.
ReplyDeleteBut I must admit I have way more pride eating a MRE than I would eating at a three star restaurant on a ship hundreds of miles out of harm's way...
Navy still sucks.
Go Army!!!
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