Emergency Food Ration Bars

[NVG]

I purchased these @ wallyworld (not my go to store). They are located in the camping section. 6 bars, vacuum sealed in mylar style packaging with 5 year shelf life. Apple cinnamon flavored. 400 calorie per bar-2400 cal per pkg. Cost was $5 pkg. Upon tasting, I found these very tolerable. I was expecting flavored, cardboard shredded blocks. I did some research to verify if these were US made to no avail. They are manufactured by Mayday Industries which was purchased by America Ready based in CA. They are then marketed by Ultimate Survival Technologies in FL.
I have since added several packages of these to my preps.
NVG

 

[BigBoxaJunk]

Good find. I've been thinking about food ration bars.

Next time I'm in Walmart, I'm gonna pick up some of those.

 

[RAMBOCAT]

The best I've tasted are MILLENNIUM BARS IN ASSORTED FLAVORS. They taste good enough that I had to hide them to keep my grand kids from eating them all.

 

[oldnovice]

I would also recommend the Millennium bars. Good taste and long shelf life. I carry a few of them in my EDC bag, in each car, etc. I wish they had more protein and fewer carbs; but, if I really need them, that will be the least of my worries.

 

[Dorky_D]

The Wallyworld ones (orange wrapper) are cheaper than most and the nutrition information shows a bit more in them than some of the other ration bars. They are almost always sold out and I cannot find them on Wally's site to order them to ship to store. They are flavored to taste about like a McDonald's apple pie from back in the day. It is a much different texture, but not too bad.
I have heard good things about the millennium bars.

 

[NVG]

Where are you guys buying the Millenium Bars at? What kind of shelf life do they have (Best buy date)? I'm interested in checking these out.
Wallyworld in Shelbyville and Greenfield has the "orange wrapper" bars in stock-was at both yesterday looking for plants w/wife

 

[RAMBOCAT]

Amazon has a large selection of Millenium Bars.

 

[Dorky_D]

FYI this is the UST "orange wrapper" that I am speaking of. The price from Amazon is too high, and it is not for the entire box as shown. Amazon.com : UST Core Long Term 5 Year Shelf Life 2400 Calorie Food Bar : Sports & Outdoors

 

[NVG]

FYI this is the UST "orange wrapper" that I am speaking of. The price from Amazon is too high, and it is not for the entire box as shown. Amazon.com : UST Core Long Term 5 Year Shelf Life 2400 Calorie Food Bar : Sports & Outdoors

Those in link are the exact ones I have purchased @ WM. $4.97 + tax per package.

 

[Dorky_D]

Those in link are the exact ones I have purchased @ WM. $4.97 + tax per package.

Yep!

 

[NVG]

Word of warning- I came across 1 package that was first purchased. It looks as if wrapper has been compromised. It is not drawn down tight against the product like all the others. I know some items that I seal in mylar w/O2 absorbers don't completely draw tight. I'm thinking I should open, inspect bars and reseal in new mylar.

 

[Dorky_D]

Word of warning- I came across 1 package that was first purchased. It looks as if wrapper has been compromised. It is not drawn down tight against the product like all the others. I know some items that I seal in mylar w/O2 absorbers don't completely draw tight. I'm thinking I should open, inspect bars and reseal in new mylar.

I have seen several like this. I check them before I buy them now. I also put them in another 2 plastic bags to protect the mylar layer just in case. I did eat the one I got that was loose. I am not sure if the seal was bad or not. It tasted fine, and I will just be careful and inspect them.

 

[NVG]

I'm glad someone else chimed in on this. I'm thinking mine are ok as well. Just for peace of mind, I'm re-wrapping them in mylar w/O2 absorber.

 

[cosermann]

I saw this thread and happened to be in the survival super store the other day, aka Wal-Mart, so I picked up a package of the rations to try out. A few thoughts: Comparable price to other bars per calorie. Decently palatable flavor. Cons - once the outer package is open, the entire inner product is exposed.

Also picked up one of the SOS Bars [1] recently to try out. A few thoughts: Similar price per calorie. Also decently palatable subtle flavor (coconut). A couple of things put the SOS bars over the top for me. They seem ever-so-slightly, but significantly moister with a less "dusty" texture than the Wal-Mart bars (although still crumbly). The other thing that I like, is that the bars inside the main package are individually wrapped. So, once the main Mylar pkg is opened there's still some protection for the inner product (though not nearly as robust), and the bars are already broken into portions.

Between these two, I'd go with the SOS product, but I haven't had a chance to try the Millennium bars yet (have heard good things about them).


[1] - http://www.amazon.com/Rations-Emerg...&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

 

[snorko]

I have some similar product in silver & blue mylar. They date from the mid to late 1990's. Anyone up for a taste test this weekend?

 

[rhino]

I did an informal taste test of the three widely available brands: SOS, Mainstay, and Datrex. There is a topic about it somewhere if you search.

The SOS brand was by far the best tasting. The other two were so far behind that they're not even worth considering if you have the option of getting the SOS. The Mainstay are too sweet. They're like gnawing on a block of sugar with a vague lemon test. The Datrex are so dry that you need a lot of water to choke them down, which is funny because they claim to not "provoke thirst." They're horrible.

 

[Dorky_D]

You also might want to look at the nutritional values as well. Some brands are better than others. I know most of these are not going to be vitamin and mineral powerhouses, but it is something to consider if you were planning on using them for several days and with much physical exertion.

 

[Dorky_D]

FYI I saw the orange packaged stuff at Meijer today too.

 

[NVG]

FYI I saw the orange packaged stuff at Meijer today too.

Thanks for info. What was price?

 

[Dorky_D]

I can't remember. I think they were either under $5 or under $6. I can't remember numbers for anything!