Sponsor Unveiling: Meal Kit Supply - Delivery Review

I am happy to reveal that our new sponsor for my humble blog is Meal Kit Supply. They have generously provided our family with a full case of their premium MREs in which to do reviews. In exchange, we'll be doing full MRE reviews for our readers. I'll also be placing an ad space onto our blog so that anyone can quickly and easily click onto their website.

Our order was shipped late Saturday evening and it arrived at our house on Thursday evening in good shape.

The twenty-two pound package arrived well packaged with two bands around the box for added strength. The corrugated cardboard box could take a lot of abuse during the entire transportation cycle.

You'll also notice that each box is dated with a Julian Date Code on the bottom for easy food rotation. The first number, the one in the thousands place, corresponds to the last digit of the year that it was manufactured. So, the "3" means 2013. The remaining 3 digits correspond to the day of the year that it was manufactured. These were manufactured on Jan. 18, 2013.

This box of MREs, if stored at 70 degrees F, will have a shelf life until July 18, 2018. The shelf life can be extended beyond that date by lowering the storage temperature. The side of the MRE box gives you a chart based on shelf life versus storage temperatures. I would not recommend storage temperatures below freezing.

These MREs are fully self-contained meals that provide around 1300 calories per package. It is a generally accepted rule that people need at least 1200 calories per day to survive on a starvation diet. Theoretically, this case could feed our family of four for three days in a long term disaster scenario. While I hope to never test this theory, it is nice to know that this case can easily be tossed into the vehicle for an evacuation. The individual meals can also be taken out of the box and stored in small spaces like under the seats and other small areas typically neglected when packing.

I've also provided a link about the recommended daily caloric intake allowance from the USDA for those wanting more information.

These MREs are self contained meals that don't require any additional equipment, but you will need water for the flameless heater and drinks.

There is no wasted space in this box of 12 different meals.

Each MRE menu plan is packaged in a sealed pouch.

Each individual MRE is also date coded like the outside of the box. These were manufactured on Jan. 17, 2013.

The ingredients and nutritional information are also listed on the back of each MRE pouch.

Final Thoughts:

First and foremost, the cost for a case of 12 full MREs is $129.95. I know that it sounds steep, but I'll give you my thoughts. I regularly order MREs from various sources and they are usually about 2 years old when I receive them. I don't know the storage conditions that they were stored, so I really have no idea as to the shelf life that I can expect. Under ideal conditions, I've already lost two-fifths, or 40%, of their shelf life. With this company, I have an excellent idea as to the expected shelf life of my MREs rather than an uncertain two years of storage with another company.

Now for my mathematical breakdown: The entree ($2.75),side dish ($1.80), dessert ($1.50), bread ($1.25), spread ($.60), 2 drink mixes ($1.20), and heater ($1.10) have a combined retail of $10.20 on average. These prices are on the lower end to account for sales and bulk purchases.

Each MRE meal from Meal Kit Supply cost $10.83. So for an added 63 cents you get a prepackaged MRE in a waterproof container with an extra 40%, or two years of added shelf life. Upon closer examination of the pricing, and adding the freshness factor, the Meal Kit Supply is a bargain. But what about the shipping cost? It's already included in the price.

If the $129.95 is still too rich for you, they also have a six meal case that includes an entree, dessert, and drink for $39.95 (free shipping too!) and has around 600 calories per pouch.

Keep Right On Prepping - K