Freeze-Dried Food

[Bearman202]

I put it in this area because I wanted to get a nod from the Admin before I posted anything. Basically, I'm looking for reviews of the different companies. I know about a couple of them, and would be willing to share. I learned the hard way that even though it sounds like a good deal, it's not. i.e. some of them are better than others. I want to talk about ingredients and price, mostly, with some relevant comments about calories included. (Yep, that company that sells mostly soup? Well, each package has 60 calories. They give you a lot of soup, but you need 2000 calories per day to live. Do the math.)

I'm asking first because I know one of the companies became spam from the beginning. I'm not interested in promoting any one company, I'm interested in getting good information from people who have bought the products and tried them. Let me know, okay? :confused:

[Grand58742]

Nothing wrong with discussing the differences and it could help some folks out along the way avoid some of the types that aren't as good as others.

I'm partial to the Mountain House myself, but they are packed with sodium and I'm only partial to some of the meals but that's more personal choice than anything. Just got the Wise food packets, but haven't gotten into them yet so I have no idea of taste or nutritional content.

And moved to the appropriate forum for you.

[1Admin]

No problem, we just have a problem with scumdog spammers, mostly Johnny Come Lately new preparedness companies- or older ones without ETHICS- coming in here and spamming their sites, products, etc. Stuff like that does you no good cause if a company is low enough to do that, they are probably going to screw you on your product also. It's unfortunate to say but their is a lot of mischief and charlatans out there.

Some are just sad old 50 year old guys that cling to other's coattails and try to price snipe them all over the place and then play bait and switch with products. Or dirtbag ba$tards that use names that are similar sounding to long standing companies, perhaps in an effort to garner business from the established company's already built up reputation. Either way, their ARE some downright scoundrels in this industry, unfortunately they know how to talk the talk, how to sound like they are honest, etc.

Their is a few real deal companies left out there that have been around for a while and don't have a closet full of skeletons. Some of these that come to mind are: Emergency Essentials, Major Surplus/Voodoo Tactical (same comany), READY RESERVE (not to be confused with a company with a similar sounding name), READY RESERVE is also an ADVERTISER here (see bottom of page) and they pack AMMO and FOOD for long term storage. As further props to them, that brand was the first dehydrated food I bought (1988) and the first company I hooked up with to sell food for. We have rotated a boatload of food from READY RESERVE over the years and never had a problem with any of it. Other manufacturers that are top notch include Mountain House (freeze dried) and Rainy Day foods (mainly dehydrated but also some FD). Nitro Pak is probably still around, I've never done business with them, but I met them a few times doing Preparedness Expos in the 90's, never heard anything bad about them. FRUGALS STORE (advertiser link at bottom of page) is who I buy my Mountain House, mylar liners, etc. from.

Of course we always tell people that if you EAT AT THE TABLE HERE, HELP CLEAN UP THE KITCHEN. What does that mean? Simple and straightforward- support those that support this site- their names and advertisements are at the top and bottom of the page here.

That being said, I don't have a problem discussing the various types of food, etc. One thing people need to realize however is that IN GENERAL, dehydrated food is dehydrated food is dehydrated food. 95% of it comes from 2 or 3 places, almost NONE of the retailers actually pack their own food any more. So to be blunt, it's ridiculous to "compare" dehydrated apples from Emergency Essentials to dehydrated apples from JRH Enterprises or Nitro Pak, etc. Why? Cause they all probably came from TreeTop, they were all probably put in the same type of can at the same line at the same packing house, the only difference IS THE LABEL.....

[ibetiny]

Hey Bearman give me a call this week. I have some extra cash floating around, we could get together and order some and do a taste test and then do a proper report. Perhaps we could get some requests from other members who are curious about specific ones? I will be available for lunch after the 20th. I'm on day 16 of 23 days in a row of nights 12\on 12\off.

[EX121]

ibetiny....extra cash what's that????

I was given a Harmony House backpacker sampler pack. All I can say about the food is wow, it's great. While not really freeze dried like Mt. House etc, it's very simular. I have done several meals with zipper bags and hot water, let stand for 30 min and dinner is served. I have plans to do some experminting with it and thermos bottles this winter. I keep you posted.

To answer your first question the one I have used most is Mt. House and other than a high salt content, I like them. Just remember to drink lots of water if they are your main food source. I remember one time while on a 14 day trip without resupply my digestive system got very plugged up.

[xdpatriot]

We like Honeyvillegrain. They have a good selection and are also very reliable on the shipping end. I've ordered some stuff from campingsurvival as well. We were pretty squared away on the basics so we picked up some Wise buckets. The ones with the entrees. We'd never done that before but they're pretty good. As far as anything else goes, I've had nothing but good experiences with JRHEnterprises. They're by far the most honest bunch I've dealt with.

[Bearman202]

I just ordered a box of entree's from Wise Food Storage. I haven't received it yet, but they've got a promotion on from Coast To Coast Am. If you use the promo code George there is no shipping, and they give you 10% off on your order. I've heard a lot of good things about Mt. House, but they are a bit pricey for me. They work out to almost $6 per meal. The Wise stuff was about half that. Like I said, I haven't received it yet, but when I do I will post a review.

I did go to Cheaper Than Dirt and ordered a couple of things they have on sale right now. They have a box of 100 of the MRE Poppy Seed Lemon Pound cakes for $45. That's .45 per, and it's hard to beat that. The shipping was another $20, (I also ordered the blackberry/cherry strudel at 12 for $14 with it) so it really wasn't bad. I love those pound cakes, and you can't walk into a store and get a candy bar for .45 any more. Plus you actually get some shelf life on them.

A problem I have is that I live alone. A #10 can of entree's would last me a month, because I don't eat the same thing every single day. I worry, because once you open the can, the shelf life goes away. Is that accurate, or am I misreading that? The same problem holds for the other companies. I noticed AFTER I placed my order that the entree's from Wise Foods come in packets containing 4 servings. Now, it's possible that they're calling 4 oz. a serving, in which case their 40 servings is more like 20, but I'll see when they get here. THAT'S the kind of thing I want to know about. With the different companies, what do they call a serving, is it enough for one meal, will the rest of the package go bad while I'm waiting to get back to it, etc. Inquiring minds want to know! :-)

[610Alpha]

A problem I have is that I live alone. A #10 can of entree's would last me a month, because I don't eat the same thing every single day. I worry, because once you open the can, the shelf life goes away. Is that accurate, or am I misreading that?

The shelf life of an opened #10 can doesn't immediately expire...i.e. if you open the can and take out a serving or two the rest of the can doesn't immediately go bad. If you put the lid back on the can you will most likely be able to use the rest of the contents in the can before it truly goes bad. Even Dehydrated foods will remain good after the can has been opened. The key is to put the lid back on and not leave it open to the environment.

Wise Foods will send you samples, I had them send me a couple, they were ok, I think my thing with them was let the contents sit in the boiling water longer before eating. Same with Mountain House. You have to consider the possibility of not having water to add. So I would also consider have some Main Entree's of MRE's in your plan. Why? Well you don't have to add water to them and you can eat them as they are.

I know some people don't care for the presentation style of Analytical Survival on Youtube however he did a series on Bug Out Food and had a female do a taste test of some freeze dried entrees. It might be worth watching.

http://www.youtube.com/user/AnalyticalSurvival/videos?view=0

All the freeze dried meals I have tried were high in sodium, I hardly ever add salt to anything I eat (sacrilegious I know) so for me that was way too much and I had to dilute with more water. I don't remember the sodium content on MRE Entree's but I haven't had one of them in over a decade since I got out of the reserves.

Good luck on your taste test....condiments help :)

[Matt In Oklahoma]

A problem I have is that I live alone. A #10 can of entree's would last me a month, because I don't eat the same thing every single day.

I'll send sharpshooter over when the shtf then he will take care of that issue:)

[Lowdown3]

On the opened up can issue-

This is a problem with products in more of a POWDERED form- this includes dry milk powder, cheese mix, tomato sauce blend, egg mix, flour, etc. All of these products are going to need to be used up within a few months of opening. Put the lid back on, keep it in a dry place and use it up within a couple months.

Other products such as dehydrated veggies, fruits, freeze dried meats, etc. in the #10 can- we have found some OPENED and "forgotten" cans in the pantry marked 2008 that we finished up this year- sweet green garden peas IIRC. They were fine in the opened #10 with the plastic lid snapped back on.

The powdered type products mentioned above will begin to clump a little bit after a long period of time of being opened. Some milk in #10's (Ready Reserve Brand from the mid 90's) that we opened that was in the pantry for a long while with just the lid on, simply had a few clumps to break up after mixing.

Keep in mind, I live in a very hot, very humid (year round) environment. Very little of our food storage is in climate controlled areas. By the time it's rotated it's been sitting in the high heat and high humidity for decades.

Short story- properly packaged food is going to store a LOT LONGER than you think it would or anyone acts like it will.

[610Alpha]

On the opened up can issue-

This is a problem with products in more of a POWDERED form- this includes dry milk powder, cheese mix, tomato sauce blend, egg mix, flour, etc. All of these products are going to need to be used up within a few months of opening. Put the lid back on, keep it in a dry place and use it up within a couple months.

Other products such as dehydrated veggies, fruits, freeze dried meats, etc. in the #10 can- we have found some OPENED and "forgotten" cans in the pantry marked 2008 that we finished up this year- sweet green garden peas IIRC. They were fine in the opened #10 with the plastic lid snapped back on.

The powdered type products mentioned above will begin to clump a little bit after a long period of time of being opened. Some milk in #10's (Ready Reserve Brand from the mid 90's) that we opened that was in the pantry for a long while with just the lid on, simply had a few clumps to break up after mixing.

Keep in mind, I live in a very hot, very humid (year round) environment. Very little of our food storage is in climate controlled areas. By the time it's rotated it's been sitting in the high heat and high humidity for decades.

Short story- properly packaged food is going to store a LOT LONGER than you think it would or anyone acts like it will.

AMEN and AMEN!!! I remember you teaching me this not so long ago...so grateful that I found S & P and the reliable information that you have shared with all of us. Its also why I and many others here support the forum.

[Bama]

Thanks, Lowdown for clearing up the opened can issue. It is my understanding that ,say a properly packaged mylar bag stops the shelf life of an item untill opened. Once opened the normal shelf life will apply to said item. Is this correct?

[miked2345]

So my question is.... say you open a can of powdered what-ever, use part of it, and drop the rest into a mylar bag with an oxy-absorber? Would it still have a long shelf life??

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Once you get in shtf or operational status and you open this stuff its a matter of eating what is opened rather than what ya want so you dont run outta food, done this a few times on remote sites in the Army. Might eat the same thing for a week, it stinks and it messes with the system on the change but its doable

[Bearman202]

I got the shipment from Wise foods today. I opened one of the buckets and grabbed one of the packages. It was a 1.7 oz. package of Terriyaki Chicken. I made it according to the directions, and ended up with enough chicken to make a decent sized sandwich. I ate it on bread, and am happy to report that the taste was excellent. According to the directions, you bring 2/3 cup of water to boil, empty the package into the water, (after removing the O2 absorber) and stir. Cover for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. After the ten minutes, you're supposed to uncover and wait two or three minutes, but it wasn't scorching hot at that point. The chicken had absorbed nearly all of the water. It made about as much chicken as a small can of tuna.

Total calories in the chicken: 60 That's not enough. With the two pieces of bread it was 200 calories. Okay for me, because I'm a couch potato, but not for someone working hard or running. You would need to eat 10 sandwiches per day to meet the minimum requirement of 2000 calories. Total carbs for the chicken was 1 gram. That's great for me, as a diet-controlled diabetic. The bread (Oat Bran bread) added 26 grams.

All of the meat packages had about the same calorie content. This relegates these "Freeze-dried meals" to the snack category, or as the possible entree for a meal.

Again, the taste was excellent, and would provide for variety, but with the low calorie content, you couldn't live on them.

Wise Foods did deliver what they said they would. It took them a bit, but on one of the packages it said the production date was 12/14/12, which means they're probably shipping them as fast as they make them.

Again, they do provide variety, which is important, but I wouldn't expect to live on these alone.