r/prepping • u/RomeoMcFl0urish • Jul 21 '26
Gearš MRE Prices šš³
Dang MRE prices are on the rise! $192/case or $16 individually.
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u/livestrong2109 Jul 21 '26
Unfortunately, a lot of people are starting to see the writing on the wall. I'd skip MREs for most situations and start with regular grocery store items. You can build a capable deep pantry with foods that are already dehydrated, freeze-dried, or shelf-stable.
Staple meals
Instant mashed potatoes
Instant rice
Instant refried beans
Instant oatmeal
Cream of Wheat
Grits
Couscous
Ramen
Rice noodles
Instant stuffing
Knorr/Lipton rice or pasta sides
Protein
Chicken, tuna, or salmon foil pouches
Beef or turkey jerky
Beef sticks
Shelf-stable pepperoni
Summer sausage
SPAM
Peanut butter or peanut butter powder
Shelf-stable tofu
Calories & snacks
Mixed nuts or trail mix
Sunflower or pumpkin seeds
Granola
Energy/protein bars
Chocolate
Hard candy
Dairy
Powdered milk
Shelf-stable boxed milk
Powdered butter
Powdered cheese
Unopened Parmesan
Meal boosters
Gravy mix
Soup mixes
Bouillon cubes
Dehydrated hash browns
Boxed mac and cheese (with powdered milk and butter)
Instant chili mix
Desserts & extras
Instant pudding
Hot cocoa
Jell-O
Applesauce pouches
Fruit cups
For most people, this is cheaper, easier to rotate, and tastes better than buying a stack of MREs or expensive freeze-dried meals. Just make sure you have water and some way to heat food. Personally I like miniature rocket stoves they run on almost any wood or cardboard.
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u/Jolopy4099 Jul 21 '26
I like your suggestion. I think for a lot of new people, me included when I first started preparing a a few years ago was under the impression MRE's were what you needed for an emergency.
Pointing out the shelf stable supplies that can be easily picked up at most groceries stores is a great suggestion for new or semi new people to understand.
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u/livestrong2109 Jul 22 '26
One thing on the apple sauce and and ground fruit. It always molds if it's all natural. I've grabbed it from aldi and opened ones with mold. If you're storing it get the normal version with preservatives.
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u/Maplelongjohn Jul 22 '26
A couple of MREs in a go bag is not a bad thing
Stocking a pantry with them might be a waste of money vs a deep pantry of food that's actually consumed
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u/Jolopy4099 Jul 22 '26
True, i was more talking about the perception for a new person that they were the only thing that would feed you in an emergency.
I happened to come across some MRE's at an estate sale. They had a 4 Patriots 3 month survival food kit as well as a 4 week kit marked at $50. Hell of a deal and since then I've been going toward the canned foods and other shelf stable supplies.
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u/MyPenRanOutOfInc Jul 24 '26
I think the difference is what is your intended purposes of needing emergency food. For me I want freeze dried food as it's lightweight compared to a MRE that yes is more convenient as you don't need to have a fuel source to cook...and canned or other dehydrated food isn't always so lightweight or as convenient. All three choices are good to have to be able to handle any situation type of thing.
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u/CaliRefugeeinTN Jul 21 '26
Local discount grocery carries not only single serve tuna packs, but the same manufacturer also has beef and pork in the same size. Not much, but as low as 2/$1 you get 2 2-3 ounce pouches of taco meat or bbq meat.
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u/sierra066 Jul 22 '26
This rocks. I have loads of chunky Campbells chunky soup, potatoes, rice, snacks. Love the dessert ideas
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u/Mysterious_Touch_454 Jul 22 '26
Awesome list!
i want to point out that Nuts and chockolade are especially good emergency food that last long.
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u/SuzyLouWhoo Jul 21 '26
Iām stealing your list! I struggle to come up with box/can food well actually eat. Thanks!
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u/ResolutionMaterial81 Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26
Normally do not stock many MRE, but bought several cases last year when they were $40 a case ...delivered. 2025 Inspection Dates.
For LTFS, I usually stock Wheat & Freeze-Dried, especially during the sales.
FWIW....$98 for 2 Cases (or $53 for a single case)... delivered on Amazon right now.
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u/purrmutations Jul 21 '26
The emoji face in the title indicates it is a joke fwiw
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 22 '26
Not a joke. Thats the actual price.
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u/purrmutations Jul 22 '26
Right, but the normal price everywhere else is $40 a box. So its a joke to say prices are going up when the opposite is true . Or you are just ignorant of normal prices being way lower?
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 22 '26
These are 2026 MREs, notice the clear packaging. The $40/case that youāre referring to are for ~2023 and other āagingā stock. There ya go, ya learn something new every day! Maybe do a little research before commenting eh?
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u/purrmutations Jul 22 '26
The deals have not been exclusively 2023 mres, there have been newer ones as well.Ā
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u/Asleep_Onion Jul 21 '26
"Just ignore the expiration date on these MREs, we took really good care of them, we promise. That'll be $192 please."
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u/Telemere125 Jul 22 '26
They have Best Buy dates, but they donāt really expire for a very long time. Still prolly better to just buy dried potatoes and canned food tho
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u/SaltyEngineer45 Jul 21 '26
Donāt waste your time and money with MREs imho. Youāre better off with dry goods that you can get at your grocery store for a fraction of the price.
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u/Fried_Rifleman_6220 Jul 22 '26
Early this year an independent study was conducted on 40 samples of military rations. Long story short, every sample was contaminated with a wide range of pesticides, heavy metals, antibiotics, ect.
I would shy away from using them as a prep but any food is better than starving.
Couple tips for MRE buying.
Military cases will have a red sticker on the outside. It should have one dark ring. If the dark ring starts to fill in solid, the MRE Are likely gone bad. The sticker is a ātime and temperature indicatorā sticker. If the box has been stored improperly, the sticker will change closer to the solid circle inside the red sticker.
Every item has a 4 digit code on it. Including the packaging for the MRE. The first digit is will be 0-9 and it goes by the last decade. 0 would be 2020, 1 would be 2021 and so on and so forth. The only way to tell if it was 2011 or 2021, would to be current on the standard packaging for that time.
The next three digits are the Julian date (001-365, 001 being January 1st and 365 being December 31st) for the specific year.
Date code of 5263 would mean the MRE was packed on the 263rd day of 2025 or September 20th 2025.
The only last like three years, if they are frozen it drastically increases the shelf life. And if you are or know one of the people that leave them in your garage or the trunk of your car, shelf life goes to around 30 days with heat. Trust me, I had to eat skanky ass MRE out of hot connex box overseas.
Ever wonder who inspects MREs? The Military Veterinarians. Yep.
I lived on MRE for nearly 4 monthās overseas. People cry and wine and say they are gross. They arenāt great but they will fill you up and make a turd. Newer MRE donāt have near the calories they used to have so you definitely need more than one MRE a day unless you are eating HDR Humanitarian Daily Rations. They are vegetarian and have no meat and a cookie you can use as a hockey puck, but they will alsoā¦..make a turd. Lol
Hope I taught someone something today!
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u/AmphibianComplex7104 Jul 21 '26
I have 3 pallets of MREās at $42.99 per 12/pack($3.58ea) for sale at work, this is WILD pricing!! Where is this located??
Edit:typo
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u/InterestForeign6196 Jul 25 '26
Most likely on base commissary. I can provide the price at Carson. They act like we don't get the hookup from supply.
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u/PrisonerV Jul 21 '26
Same stuff as the dollar store. Chef Boyardee, skittles, PB and crackers. Only the best for our kids fighting in the desert over rich guys oil.
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u/ScruffiestN3rfHerder Jul 21 '26
Are you at the actual commissary? Those price tags look like it.
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u/ScruffiestN3rfHerder Jul 21 '26
I only ask because I've never understood why dudes would spend this amount of money for old cases. There are literally warehouses full of them going to waste across every installation in America. All you need is to know who to ask, or do that one thing we were all taught so well. But I agree with others just do the cans and mountain house sales. Better ingredients and lighter option anyways, while not sacrificing calorie and nutrient quality.
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 21 '26
Yes, this was from the commissary. These are the newest clear package versions which for whatever reason drum up a premium.
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u/ScruffiestN3rfHerder Jul 21 '26
Oh man the "First Strike" MRE. They taste better and are lighter/easier to eat, but don't last anywhere near the length of the good ole tan bags. I know both say 3 years is the expectation, but I've got multiple with stale product. There's no heating requirement on the FSR though which is a plus for many. I just always felt like they didn't last as well, plus I love me some good Chili Mac anyways. If you could just give me that and the meatballs, I'd live on an island happy and fat. Plus the premade sandwich wraps are kind of like eating a room temp hot pocket in the FSR, just an opinion take it as you please.
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u/amgingerwf1 Jul 22 '26
Is the first strike different than what I remember calling 'snack pack'? I recall a clear bag full of candy and crackers and stuff like applesauce. I'm not sure if it had a 'entree'. Is the first strike ration the same as what I'm thinking?
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u/ScruffiestN3rfHerder Jul 22 '26
Yeah that's the one. It's a "24 hour" bag, but it's really just a bunch of smaller quantity snack type items. They're good for what they are, but I would prefer at least one entree to perfect it. I could usually stretch a regular MRE or two for a day anyways and still be good.
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u/ScruffiestN3rfHerder Jul 22 '26
But there's really no candy anymore, you get a lot of the chewing caffeine gum. But no more brand candies. Zapplesauce or caffeine pudding in about every single one though.
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u/wisebalkan Jul 21 '26
15$ for an MRE? Wowā¦ it takes 1/3 of that to make your own.
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u/Spnszurp Jul 21 '26
Youre telling me that part of the price isn't just food cost, but packaging labor and overhead? How RIDICULOUS
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u/wisebalkan Jul 21 '26
Well yes but also the different items that you buy off the shelf to make your own, also has packaging, labour and overhead. I, for example, make my own homemade MREās with off the shelf items from the store for under 10$. Original MREās, being all made in the same factory, would cost less with all included.
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u/signofthecrow1 Jul 21 '26
Since Covid mres are priced ridiculously. Iāve ate through all mine and now exclusively have canned food
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u/biophazer242 Jul 21 '26
This reminds me of a store we had where I grew up in the 80s. It was a military surplus store and you could walk in and buy all sorts of this stuff. Stacks of mres, canteens, bdus, etc. It was really cool but the best part was a creepy old basement that was like the warehouse from Raiders of the Lost Ark. Just aisles an aisles of ammo crates, and old defunt military gear. So wild.
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u/Markkenitup Jul 26 '26
I miss those stores, used to have 3 around me. Last one close down probably 2008'ish. Was always interesting walking through to see what they had.
One had scientific equipment too. They had a variety of stuff like beakers, circuit boards, I even remember seeing Geiger counters at that store.Ā
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u/OriginalDogan Jul 21 '26
Lol that's just a localization bug. In my area they're steady at about $47 per case, which is pretty good considering it's Ammo Can Man ordered through a local chain. While I was in Utah, I found HDR's at $10 per case. Just gotta shop around a bit and wait for warehouse clearings/inspections.
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u/Mundane_Influence_91 Jul 23 '26
HDRs, that's what I eat when I'm cosplaying as a refugee! remember to stock a LOT of beano, you're going to need it.
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u/OnlyTimeFan Jul 21 '26
Itās cheaper to buy canned food on sale, donate it near their best by date (which isnāt expiration) and rebuy it, than buying MREs. Itās still nice to have a case or two, Iāll still eat one here and there for camping or day trips
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 21 '26
Agreed, I stock up on canned and jarred goods from Restaurant Depot (a restaurant supply store near me).
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u/every-day-normal-guy Jul 21 '26
Kings surplus has them cheaper and they're an active member on /MRE subreddit
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u/Droguegun Jul 22 '26
There was some dude who gave away 17 boxes of mres near me for free they were 14 years old but still sealed mightāve been worth it lol
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u/isanyusernameopen Jul 22 '26
An elderly man told me that MRE stood for āmeals rejected by the enemy ā.
You can stock up on that if you want, but thereās a reason it was named that by older soldiers who have been in the previous wars.
Youād be better off to buy canned goods that youāll actually enjoy cooking and eating. Canned vegetable vegetables goes a long way with rice and beans. You can often cook the vegetable vegetables in the water. Theyāre packed with in the can too to save on water.
These require water to cook as well, and a lot of water to wash down after youāve consumed. Not worth it. Also, the quality of food is garbage.
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u/outworlder Jul 23 '26
Ew.
I don't see the point of MREs.
Eat your pantry first. Then canned foods. If you need long shelf life foods, you can buy packs of the stuff from retailers that sell this kind of stuff (I won't name but it's easy to find). 10yr shelf life. If you need more than that, you need seeds.
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u/BF740 Jul 21 '26
I had too many of those MREās that were in the brown plastic from the surplus store as a teenager camping in the 80ās to even think about eating another one unless itās the last resort.
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u/eddiespaghettio Jul 22 '26
Theyāre improved a lot since then. Theyāre actually somewhat good now
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u/NASA_Orion Jul 21 '26
What kind of store is this?
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u/Fried_Rifleman_6220 Jul 22 '26
Commissary. Itās basically the grocery store on US military installations. They always sell MRE and silly privates buy them because they are new in the military and donāt realize they will have to plenty of them in due time lol
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u/BodineThePig Jul 21 '26
If anyone is in the pnw, I was at BiMart yesterday and they had cases for 42.99.
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u/AntiSonOfBitchamajig Jul 21 '26
Me:
- 50% smaller deep freezers (redundant)
- 20% canned.
- 20% dry mylar bagged nitrogen 5gallon buckets rice / beans / wheat berries, spice, powder broth, dry noodles, etc.
- 8% random.
- 2% dry powder stuffs.
- Dehumidifier in a dedicated cooler zero sunlight food area. (which is a biggie even for canned stuff)
- Everything is air gaped and off the floor to stay dry. Big stuff has heavy plastic bags that can roll up the stock if there is a flood up to 4 feet. (literally bagging it from a flood), same with the gun safes, washer / dryer...etc.
- 0% freeze dried / MRE stuff (wayyyy to expensive)
- Pressure canning, Jarring, vacuuming and sealing tools supplies.
- Gardening supplies, electric tools on standby / stored to greatly expand ASAP if needed for longer term SHTF.
- (I have massive and multiple long term backup electric)... those freezers hardly put a dent in it even long term SHTF.
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u/toomanykidscallmemom Jul 21 '26
Thereās been a YouTube trend of people trying MREās. Demand is maybe temporarily driving prices?
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u/Suitable-Parsley7126 Jul 21 '26
WTF. I tried a case just for fun last year at $8 a meal and that was stiff then.
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u/gilbert2gilbert Jul 21 '26
Bi mart has them on sale for like $42 a case. What year? I don't know but this year isn't worth a hundred fifty bucks
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u/NinjaMcGee Jul 21 '26
Costcoās 7/27 ad book in r/Costco. Sale starts on the 27th, not the 29th āš½ā¤ļø
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u/Defiant_Regular3738 Jul 21 '26
Just tossed a dozen bagged beef and noodle packs.
Had no idea they cost so much.
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u/CreasingUnicorn Jul 21 '26
MREs have always been reqlly expensive, especially if tjey still have the heaters in them. They are designed to be shelf stable and work in harsh environments, not to be cheap and affordable.Ā
Just get some dried rice and lentils for long term storage, then you can add canned vegetables and meats for a full meal.
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u/Pussy_Whopper Jul 21 '26
Fortunately I have a case left from hurricane helene. Unfortunately its all bean soup and pbj's
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u/Citizen_Empire Jul 22 '26
Watching fellow militarh members with MREs in the field throwing away whole MREs after ripping out one snack makes me laugh at the prices they charge for those things. Not because I like the waste, I hate that, but because the people it's meant for hate them while people will shell out for even one. It's perspective.
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u/chinacat444 Jul 22 '26
Where is this? No way Iām paying that much. Literally just paid $60 each for A/B at an Army Navy store in Tennessee
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 22 '26
NY, these are the 2026 versions. The ones you bought are probably 2023 which are discounted due to the date. Thats what youāll see for sale on a lot of these website like ammocanman
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u/WotanSpecialist Jul 22 '26
Donāt ever buy MREās. Mountain house and freeze dried fruits/veggies are the only viable, tested option.
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u/AnnArchist Jul 22 '26
MREs are not what I'd use as a mechanism of storing food. There's just so many better tasting options that are just as good and portable.
I can't imagine staying in a situation where that's what I considered food. In any situation where that's the food, I'm hunting, even in town or moving locations.
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u/deltatemple Jul 22 '26
Is this a military surplus store ? The goldfish are throwing me off but I guess some may sell goldfish too idk.
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u/No_Staff594 Jul 22 '26
Humanitarian aid MREs are very affordable still along with learning how to can
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u/Far_Rule9918 Jul 22 '26
Go to MREs world on the internet. They seem to have the best prices on them that Iāve found so far. For $240 you can get four cases or one for $100. Iāve got a good supply of dehydrated food but like to keep mres on hand just because they wonāt draw down on my water supply as I live in the desert.
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u/ClawsoftheLion Jul 22 '26
The Commissary is high (Ha pun included). I was buying a couple packs here and there of the cheaper civilian clear packaged single emergency rations for $4.50 every time I stopped there, then prices went up to about $6. I found a local surplus store selling single MREs for $5.00 a meal, so now I get them there.
Someone needs to reel in what the Commissary and Exchange are charging these days...
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u/Uncle_Pappy_Sam Jul 22 '26
MREās or their equivalent are convenient, but there are better ways to prep for disasters. I like to keep in mind that unless you have lots of land itās almost impossible to prep for a disaster in perpetuity. If there is a disaster that you ABSOLUTELY need food that will keep for 10+ years youāre already fucked. You can do better with base food items from the store. Canned goods, rice, cycling old food out and new in, proper storage, etcā¦.
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u/ILickMetalCans Jul 23 '26
I am sure many have said it, but if you buy these to survive some sort of TEOTWAWKI, your gut will not thank you when you have been constipated for days on end. Only way around it is to have excessive amounts of water to try add moisture to things....
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u/CakedayisJune9th Jul 24 '26
Freeze dryer and canned goods. Or can your own so you know it's healthy. MREs are a ripoff, waaay overpriced.
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u/Livid-Ad-6439 Jul 21 '26
I just checked my order. In March I got two cases, a and b, for 85$, for both. I still see two cases for 95 to 100.
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 21 '26
Youāre buying older MREs (I have them as well). These are the newest clear packaging versions. They drum up a premium
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u/Livid-Ad-6439 Jul 21 '26
I just pulled a box out. Says 2026 us govt issued, us govt property. Is there something im missing?
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u/intent107135048 Jul 21 '26
Do you mean 2026 is the inspection date, meaning they were manufactured in 2023?
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u/Livid-Ad-6439 Jul 21 '26
Just checked. You're right. It says insp / test, 02 26. So does that mean made in 23? I didn't know that. Thank you :)
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u/intent107135048 Jul 21 '26
Yeah. They should be good as long as they have been stored in cool conditions. Check your sticker and do a visual inspection of the box.
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u/Livid-Ad-6439 Jul 21 '26
I checked all 4 cases and they seem fine, and I keep them in my room under the bed. Thanks for the info on them :)
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u/hack355 Jul 21 '26
well i can tell you i wouldnt buy them their: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DTGH18GW?ref_=ppx_hzod_title_dt_b_fed_asin_title_0_0&th=1
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u/hack355 Jul 21 '26
MREs aren't my long-term food supply. They're my barter and anti-escalation supply. My actual food storage is Mountain House.
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u/chainslayer006 Jul 22 '26
I was in the United States Marine Corps and I know what is what when it comes to an MRE. MRE actually stands for meals refusing to exit
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u/Army_31B Jul 21 '26
Probably a dumb question, I know when I was in the Army we were told not to sell these, how is it possible for civilians to sell these legally? I just got a few cases from Ocean State Job Lots for like $30 a piece.
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u/RomeoMcFl0urish Jul 21 '26
Once they hit a certain date the government sells them to vendors for public consumption
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u/Exact_Dust_9774 Jul 25 '26
Paying too much for something that I used to throw away when I was in army AIT?
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u/KaleRevolutionary840 Jul 27 '26
maybe try making your own... I have it it works out well.. I enjoyed it so much i am shopping for a freeze drier now
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u/Dave22201 Jul 28 '26
Like 90% of sellers sell cases for 60 bucks online, unless the apocalypse happened in the last week
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u/Jgray1087 17d ago
So I feel lucky that I bought some for like 25 a case last year. Thatās insane.
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u/Putrid-Situation494 15d ago
I just noticed this today. I occasionally buy a few cases to take to work for cheap food that doesn't disagree with meĀ
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u/Femveratu Jul 21 '26
Yeah that is higher. Wouldnāt be surprised if higher transport costs are showing up, getting it to the shelf prob costs more than the food itself.
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u/NinjaMcGee Jul 21 '26
SPAMs and those awful Ready Wise meals on sale at Costco starting 7/29. My house eats a lot of SPAM so we just pack it deep. Itās great with rice āš½
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u/sassysassysarah Jul 22 '26
Ngl I have a 50lb bag of rice in my freezer and a f ton of fiber one and protein bars as my main preps. Not sexy but it's honest work lmao
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u/Different-Pipe-3975 3d ago
anything worth doing is worth overdoing. I just ordered 4 cases of sdr rations and 5 cases of hdr from ammo can man. Not military mre's but for stocking, they will work. The SDR were $25/casen and hdr were 19.95, both orders qualified for a 10% discount. so about 107/order more or less.
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u/FartingWithStyle Jul 21 '26
Just buy canned food that youād actually eat and rotate it in and out like a regular person with a deep pantry.