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I am currently making a batch of Field Expedient Meals (FEM).  These are often called DIY MREs (Meals Ready to Eat).  Because these meals are not strictly ready to eat, I am calling them FEMs or Field Expedient Meals.

I think it important that we be on the same page with what I am talking about.   A MRE is a military term for a “Meal, Ready to Eat”.  These started in 1981 and since have become popular even in civilian circles.  They require little preparation, at most heating, and are water-proof and bug-proof sealed food rations that usually have a 3-5 year shelf life.  These are battlefield rations, but also work well for camping and for bug out bags or in emergencies.My meals are not ready to eat, heat and serve meals.  Some items are ready to eat, some items require the addition of water (only) and often heat.  Military heater packs can be used to heat most if not all of the items that I use, which are flameless heaters which work by way of a chemical reaction with water (or salt water depending on the type).

I am making my own because I can do it for about 1/3 of the cost per day.  A military MRE is about 1200-1400 calories, which is about half of what you need if you are active and doing physical work.  Hiking, especially with a pack, digging in, etc can  cause you to require many more calories than you would need sitting on your couch watching television.  I am making mine for a full day or about 2500-3000 calories with 3 meals and 2 snacks.  I can do this for about $4, which makes this cheaper than my normal food I consume for a full day.

When I make my own meal I can select each and every item that is contained within it.  While I omit a couple of items that come in the military MREs I do not think it will matter that much.  They include a small amount of toilet tissue, the problem is that it is such a small amount that its basically useless.  I will stuff a full roll in a coffee can (to keep it clean & dry) and stash that in my pack instead.  They also include matches, which I will omit, and instead just have multiple lighters.  These packs are for me not for distribution to others, if I were making them for others I might stick a book of matches in them.

My meals are not perfect though, it is a trade off.  My meals require water, which means that you have to be able to either transport water with you or acquire it and make it potable on the move.  As I carry multiple canteens and always have purification tablets with me in the canteen covers this is not as much of a problem for me.  I can also boil the water, especially if it is filtered through a cloth to remove solids.  This will not get rid of heavy metals, environmental toxins such as pesticides or chemical weapon residue, for that I would need a better filtration system.  The sand/charcoal filter system works well for that, but requires time to prepare.  That however is another post for another day, but the intarweb is full of info on this filter system.

You will want to consider is variety.  Menu fatigue can occur if you eat the same thing every day for extended durations.  This can get to the point where you just do not want to eat.  While my meals contain many of the same items, I have different flavors so that each day is not exactly like the one before.   When possible I will select a variety pack of something small that I am going to stick in, such as individual serving bags of chips.  I then more or less randomly place each of the variety items in a pile, one pile per meal.  This ensures the greatest amount of variety I care to do.

There is also a bit of math that must be done on the meals in order to make sure that you are getting everything you need to stay on top of your game.  Eating is more than just removing hunger it is about nutrition.  You do need a certain quantity of calories, but you also need certain items within those calories.  You need protein, sodium, potassium, and some other things to remain healthy.  This will influence your menu selection, assuming you want to stay on top of your game.  While you can get some things from vitamins, you do need to choose good food items to get everything you need.

Based on your gender, age, body type, activity level, and other factors you will have to adjust from the standard, however for a 2000 calorie diet you will need:

Total fat: 65g
Saturated fat: 20g
Sodium: 2400mg
Carbohydrates: 300g
Fiber: 25g
Protein: 50g

If you sweat a lot during the day, you will want to replenish the electrolytes that you used up.  Electrolytes are ions, or charged molecules.  They carry electrical signals throughout the body, and if you are low of them it can result in a medical condition.  The primary electrolytes are sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, chloride, hydrogen phospate, and hydrogen carbonate.

Sometimes you take in multiple electrolytes at the same time, sodium chloride or table salt contains two electrolytes.   This is something to consider when planning your meals, however you do not want too many electrolytes or it will signal your body to retain water which can actually be unhealthy.

Looking for food items you will want to get things that require only water.  Sometimes this is unavoidable, you may need butter which you can get in powdered form  and potentially pre-add to the mix.  You can buy bulk items and vacuum seal them yourself in the portion sizes that you desire.

I vacuum seal all my meals.  This helps to make them waterproof and bug proof.  It also makes it take less space.  If you choose to do this do not place anything ‘wet’ like moist towelettes, jams, etc that is not fully and completely sealed.  The liquid may get pulled out and get all over the contents of your bag.  If you include hard candies that are individually wrapped they may be harder to unwrap.  You will want to remove any excess packaging as this just adds bulk and weight.  Presealed bags like from chips or cookies contain some air, this makes it harder to remove the size and pack things tightly.  Pricking the bag with a tack or other small object lets the air out which lets the entire package reduce in size.

The last and final advice I can give is to make labels.  They do not have to be anything special, just something handwritten or printed off your computer that contains information on what is contained in the bag.  Once it is sealed it is difficult to see everything that is inside, especially if you have removed some of the packaging to save space.