Military Food Then and Now: A Missed Aspect of History

A Glimpse of History

Do you know that military food has significantly evolved and changed over time? Military food has been an essential aspect of history that is often overlooked. Rations during ancient times were just a meager share of grains and dried meat with hardtack or “pilot bread” that could last for months without spoiling.

The US had their first standardized food provision back in the 1600s, which typically consisted of salted meat, peas, and rice. But it wasn’t until the US Civil War that the first set military caloric guidelines were developed. The concern was raised not about health but about economy – combatants have to be supplied with food enough for them to run, climb, and shoot for hours but still remain efficient in performing tasks. Later in World War I, the US Army invented a portable and practical ration used on long expeditions consisting of pork and beans, three emergency biscuits, and “hardtack,” which became popular for decades.

The Evolution of Military Food

Believe it or not, our military rations have greatly evolved since those times, thanks to the collective efforts of the chefs of the Armed Forces. Just like McDonald’s replaced their deep-fried “Fry-O-Lator” potatoes with what we now know as “Fast food fries.” Innovators also revolutionized the traditional government recipes to make them more appetizing and nutritional.

In times past, Meals, Ready-to-Eat (MREs) used to include canned tuna, vegetable and potato hash. As time has gone on, the variety continued to rise giving wider options to military troops who were deployed overseas for years. Soldiers now have access to portable sandwich-making kits with mayo, mustard, and ketchup; energy-heated daily servings of Ramen noodles; power bars made of tough gluten-free energy and granola mixtures; and Red Bull-like Berry Spark supplement to balance out consumption.

The Importance of Military Cuisine

Despite serving only as fuel to assist soldier’s fitness in times of war, Cuisine is important to military in terms of logistical strategy, finance, and health surveillance. From packaged meals to high nutritional content, calories combine, and portion control, the FOOD analyst plays an essential function in training troops, managing morale overseas, and monitoring dietary health.

Many US nutritionists nowadays say that contemporaneous forces’ diets tend to be savorless or spiced with few options that often lead to diet glitches on-field activities. New advances in culinary science have provided more hygienic packaging, tastier recipes, reduced sodium content, and a wide variety of energy fused fruits and vegetables.

The Bottom Line

While army food history struggles to be informed comprehensively, the meals and nutrition offered throughout history were a testament of America’s strength, vigor, and harmony. Nowadays, military food has reached great heights packed in 40 calories of an MRE bar serving with portability, performance, convenience, and taste improvements. So we can be somewhat grateful for that. Cheers to our forces – beign fed just makes aiming towards patriotism so much easy.