MREs Are Great For Emergencies, But They'll Expire Fast If You Don't Store Them Correctly

The MRE promise is right there in the name: it's a meal, ready to eat. Although they generally taste better heated up, they are designed to be eaten cold as well, just in case you find yourself behind enemy lines (literally or figuratively) without a heat source. Either way, they're a boon for soldiers out in the field, as well as those who grab them from army surplus stores and save them in their basement for a rainy day. But as useful as they can be, you need to be extra careful to store them correctly, or you may find that your Meal, Ready-To-Eat is a Meal, Ready-To-Trash.

You may have seen videos from YouTuber and all-around national treasure Steve1989MREInfo where he eats military rations and MREs — some of them over a hundred years old. Eagle-eyed viewers might notice that, while eating those old rations, he did not die. That's because those rations were stored in airtight containers that kept all pathogens and bacteria at bay. It's vital to keep the packaging of your MREs completely intact, as even the slightest breach can lead to contamination — and eventual food poisoning.

Once you've got your MREs gathered together, and you've made sure no puncture wounds have compromised their integrity, you can safely store them in that old standby: the cool, dry place other labels tell us to store food in. MREs are designed to be hardy, but that doesn't mean you should subject them to unnecessary wear and tear. If it's too hot or too cold, they might not be able to last as long as they otherwise would. You should also take special care not to freeze those MREs, because that can cause them to puncture, as well. The ideal storage temperature is somewhere between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit, with 55 degrees being the sweet spot for an MRE to last at least five years.

With this in mind, you should be able to keep some MREs amongst the other popular apocalypse snacks in your go bag for any future calamities. And you may even be able to understand why MREs are having a bit of a moment — even if many actual soldiers spurn them, giving them such delightful nicknames as "Meals, Rarely Edible."