Freezing MRE's

[riverrat373]

I know that storage life of MRE's is dependent on storage temperature. Most info I have been able to find says 5 year storage life if stored at 60 degrees or less. Can you store MRE's in the freezer to extend the storage life beyond five years?

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[knuckle Head]

I found the article on Yeah or Nah.

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Also MRE Logistics - Frequently Asked Questions look under how long do MRE last.


QQ. How long do MREs last (i.e. What is the shelf life of an MRE)?
AA. MREs are designed to have a shelf life from three years (when stored at 80 degrees F) to over 10 years (when stored at 60 degrees F). Higher temperatures will decrease the MRE lifespan. Studies have taste-tested many MREs that were 10 to 15 years old and with the exception of some discoloration, they still tasted fine, had acceptable nutritional content and exhibited basic product safety characteristics. A regular rotation of MREs within 5 to 7 years is recommended.

Freezing an MRE does not destroy the food inside, but repeated freezing increases the chances that the stretching and stressing of the pouch will cause a break of a layer of the laminated and may damage the food. These pouches are made to withstand 1,000 flexes, but repetitive freezing does increase the failure rate by a small fraction of a percent. Also, if MRE food is frozen, then thawed out, it must be used the same as if you had thawed commercial food from your own freezer or home.

Personally I have eaten them 10 year or 12 years old, they were store in a cool dry basement stack against the wall on the floor (to help keep them cool), I figured better to find out now (while hospitals and I have medical insurance if they are going to make sick than later) I am still walking and kicking.

My suggestion is store them in as cool dry place as possible without freezing.