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 Should be in eveyone's closet, garage, or basement. Jul 20, 2010
This is the third order (replacement) for these survival food bars. They reside in our emergency kit as a last chance food source.
I have only tasted the 'expired' rations. Not bad! No, they are not a 'meal' and they are not in the same category of resource as an MRE ('meal' ready to eat). These are intended to keep the user from starving to death. It is assumed users will have adequate water. If no water is available, food will be way down on the list of things needed. It's 'nice' that the rations are kosher and halal. Would I serve these on a picnic? No. But I would not serve water that tastes of a chemical purifier either...but would be 'thrilled' to have both if I were hungry and thirsty.
I will buy this product again, and again, and again as it expires. One down side...the price has gone up dramatically over the years at a rate higher than what could account for inflation. Likely the demand has gone up due to people being more 'preparedness' minded.
Great (survival) product at a good price.
Great product. Jul 12, 2010
The purpose of these rations is to keep people alive despite limited potable water supplies. They've got plenty of vitamins and minerals, however, they are greatly lacking in sodium and other electrolytes. That's a benefit when potable water is extremely limited, but it's a curse if you'll be performing strenuous activities.
Each bar contains only 23mg of sodium, which is 1% of the recommended daily allowance. That makes sense - any more salt is going to provoke thirst. But it also means that with any moderate or greater activity, you're going to be sweating out electrolytes, and these bars won't replace them. If you have any desire to fend for yourself in a survival situation (doing anything but sitting around waiting for help to arrive) I'd STRONGLY suggest adding a sports drink powder high in sodium and potassium. Same thing if you're planning on using them to replace/augment hiking rations.
The texture is heavy but crumbly, and doesn't seem to absorb much water. (The first two ingredients on the list are Enriched Flour and Vegetable Shortening; the shortening would repel water or saliva) Meaning: it's not going to provoke thirst anywhere nearly as bad as most baked goods.
The taste is similar to a lemon cookie. It's slightly cloying, but quite tolerable. Taste might not be a significant consideration for adults, but when you've got kids, you don't need the extra aggravation of one of them refusing to eat at meal time because they don't like the taste of their rations.
The packaging is a sturdy foil. Tough, but can be opened without tools, and can be folded closed to protect an unused portion.
All in all, I'm impressed. I wouldn't want to eat these things for a month straight, but they would be great to get by for a few days. They managed to cram 3 days worth of food into a package about 1/3 the size of an MRE.
Mainstay also markets 1200 and 2400 calorie packages, which are more conveniently sized for personal emergency kits.
Nutrition facts (summarized from the package I received):
Serving Size: 1 bar
Servings per container: 9
Calories: 400
Fat: 20g (36%)
Sodium: 23mg (1%)
Carbohydrates: 46g (15%)
Protein: 3g
Vitamin A: 50%
Vitamin C: 60%
Calcium: 50%
Iron: 10%
Thiamin: 15%
Riboflavin: 25%
Niacin: 30%
Vitamin D: 50%
Vitamin E: 25%
Vitamin B6: 90%
Folic Acid: 35%
Vitamin B12: 20%
Phosphorus: 40%
Magnesium: 30%
Pantothenic Acid: 100%
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 Better that starvation Jun 04, 2010
If you have gluten sensitivity or are diabetic, you are out of luck. I am neither, but I did get a bit of a sugar spike when I tried one. I pray I never have to rely on these as my main source of food for any length of time. Its not that they taste bad. Its really like a thick but fairly dense shortbread cookie but not hard to chew. The texture breaks apart fairly easily. So imagine having to live off of a chunky shortbread cookie for every meal. The first one was ok when I was hungry, but meal after meal? I think I would vomit after a few meals of this. But if I was facing starvation, I think I could put up with it.
Emergency Food Rations in a Compact Package Jun 04, 2010
If you are looking for gourmet, organic, free-range food this product is NOT for you. If, however, you want good quality subsistence rations, with a long shelf-life, in a compact package, and at a reasonable price, these things can't be beat. A case includes 10 packs of 3-day rations, or 30 days of nutrition for a single person that will fit in a space about the size of 2 loaves of bread for under 70 bucks. Plus, the shipment I received had a May 2010 manufacture date and a May 2015 "good until," date, so even if the Zombie Apocalypse doesn't materialize right away you won't have to get fresh replacements very often. This is an excellent value.
Quality survival product Mar 21, 2010
This bar has the best nutrition of the available "survival cookies". The flavor is reasonable, and it has a short-bread like texture that is not unpleasant. It may not be thirst provoking, but you will want something to wash it down, it has a slightly oily after taste. This is survival food, not a gourmet meal, the flavor and texture will get old quickly, but the nutrition will keep you going in a survival situation. Shelf life is likely almost indefinate, although the 5-year rating is probably appropriate for best nutrition. This is a nearly perfect short-term survival ration. If there is a downside to this product, it would be the weight, 1.5lbs per 3600-calorie bar, but this is not meant to be a lightweight backpacking food. Used as it is meant to be, as a long shelf life, short term survival ration, it serves very well.
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