adding commercial candies to 4 more menus, adding hot sauce to 4 menus, and adding a cold beverage base to all 12 menus.

The process of MRE improvement has continued based on surveys of troop feedback from the field, including early feedback from Operation Desert Shield/Storm (ODS); from focus groups; and from individual interviews with soldiers. As a result starting with MRE X, commercial freeze-dried coffee replaced the old military specification spray-dried coffee, hot sauce was added to all 12 menus, wet pack fruit was provided in place of dehydrated fruits, and commercial candy was included in four more menus for a total of 8 menus with candy.

During ODS, MREs were eaten by many troops for periods far in excess of their design. The surgeon general had endorsed the use of MREs as the sole source of food for periods of 10 days or less; however, during ODS troops had to subsist on MREs for periods of up to 60 days or longer. As a consequence during the operations, three changes were quickly made either to supplement the MRE or to enhance its acceptability. All three items were procured in bulk and provided to members of the Armed Forces during ODS. First, a shelf-stable bread in a standard MRE pouch was developed. Through the innovations of water activity control, new ingredients, and intrapackage atmosphere management, this bread can remain in a fresh-list state for up to 3 years (Brandler and Darsch, 1993). Second, a high-heat-stable chocolate was developed, in coordination with industry, that would not melt in the heat of the desert environment, and that would be highly palatable. While a high-heat-stable chocolate had been developed in the past, its waxy taste and nature precluded its high acceptance. A third development was the flameless ration heater, which uses an exothermic chemical reaction to produce heat rather than a flame (Brandler and Darsch, 1993). This device provided a quick and easy method for troops to heat the MRE entree, which increased both its acceptance and consumption rate.

Despite these innovations and the earlier improvements made to the MRE, the ration was not without criticism during ODS. Because it was necessary to use prepositioned was reserves, some rations provided to soldiers during ODS were 4 to 5 years old or even older, and many had been subjected to cycles of temperature that had accelerated the degradation process. In some cases difficulty in maintaining the logistics chain for A, B, or T Rations, specifically the inability to provide foodservice equipment to prepare bulk food, precluded the use of group feeding options. As a result, soldiers had to subsist on MREs for extended periods of time. This problem was further exacerbated by command decisions in some divisions whereby MREs had to be eaten by all division members if even one soldier had to eat it by virtue of his tactical situation. As a result, opportunities to provide variety in food options to troops (e.g., group meals) were ignored. An after-action analysis conducted during a Joint Service MRE Forum established in 1991 to review the performance of the MRE during ODS concluded, however, that the MRE was not problematic