Meals for 24/72 hour packs

[HGjunkie]

http://www.buzzfeed.com/bigcrush/introducing-the-candwich

The answer!

I might just be tempted to try one of those... 

[CadetProgramGuy]

I can get away from really having to worry about this because of where I live.  In the vast wilderness of Iowa, I can walk a mile in most places and find a road or a farmhouse or a vehicle.

What if you can't leave your AO to go foraging for food?

In my experience, thats hasn't happened yet.......usually even in the most ridgid of SAREX, someone always makes the dire starbucks or McD's Run.

[coolkites]

Our last SAREX (an earthquake scenario with all communications and power considered down) involved a run over to the local pizza joint in order to pick up a dozen pizzas for everyone back at base. glad to see that Pizza hut is still operational even when the freeway has collapsed and there is no power in the city lol

[Gung Ho]

Last big exercise I was on ( non_CAP) the training area we were set up at had a small pizza/burger shop there. It was very busy all the time. Funny thing also at this federal drill was it was setup to run for 5 days. The military flew the press in on CH-47's and gave them all the planned tour and had all the little shows set up for them to see. FEMA had a big show there with all the big trailers and commo gear. Within 3 hours of the press leaving ALL of FEMA's stuff was gone. Once the press had been there they were done playing. Kind of the same thing on this same type of exercise the year before, our state had it's big trailer setup. Problem was even with this drill running 24/7 for 5 days NOBODY from the state was there after 5 on week days and nobody there at all on the weekends. How do they figure this is training them to operate in a true emergency?

[coolkites]

Last big exercise I was on ( non_CAP) the training area we were set up at had a small pizza/burger shop there. It was very busy all the time. Funny thing also at this federal drill was it was setup to run for 5 days. The military flew the press in on CH-47's and gave them all the planned tour and had all the little shows set up for them to see. FEMA had a big show there with all the big trailers and commo gear. Within 3 hours of the press leaving ALL of FEMA's stuff was gone. Once the press had been there they were done playing. Kind of the same thing on this same type of exercise the year before, our state had it's big trailer setup. Problem was even with this drill running 24/7 for 5 days NOBODY from the state was there after 5 on week days and nobody there at all on the weekends. How do they figure this is training them to operate in a true emergency?

Simple. They don't

[Mustang]

^^^ WHAT?! I am hoping that this was facetious. If not, not only are you carrying far too much bulk, but what you are carrying is completely unhealthy and could land you in a hurt locker if you really needed that "sustenance" during a mission. I'm not saying that MRE's, ramen, or canned goods are the most healthy thing for you, but they are far superior to candy, chips and PBJ.

YMMV, but if you were on my ground team with that and we couldn't scrounge up enough real food from the rest of the team to make your loadout correct, you would be sitting on the curb waving good bye to us as we pulled out of mission base.

You're a lot nicer than I am. I wouldn't even scrounge food. I'd just leave him.

Guys, these are not helpful answers.  The poster in question is obviously a cadet, and it's our job as SMs to train and educate them. 

Seriously, this is one of CAP-Talk's biggest problems. 

[Dad2-4]

Having spent many years in Scouting and teaching backpacking, there are lots of options for lightweight, packable, nutritious foods available at your local grocery store if you know what to look for. Do some searching online for things like no-cook trail meals, backpacking foods, etc. Mind you packaged freeze-dried or dehydrated backpacking meals can be pricey. And pack water! Many people don't pack enough water.
Like many CAPTalkers, I agree that if we're doing a "realistic" SAREX, then we should avoid the fast food runs. In all my years of taking kids into the woods, I've NEVER had anyone come close to starving. A bit hungry based on what they normally consume at home, but never starve or even have lack of food health issues.

[Krapenhoeffer]

What I've done is I've pooled cash from my ground team to buy MREs from http://www.longlifefood.com/default.asp

I don't carry any of them in my 24-hr pack, just in my 72. I carry PowerBars in my 24, because I never go out of walking distance of civilization without my 72.

And if you're ever in a situation where you have to take the 72 out into the field, you need the calories that an MRE packs.

[GTCommando]

No matter what your opinion may be on this topic, we can all agree that there are five main qualities that make a good GT food: light, cheap, little trash, plenty of calories, bearable taste. Here's that I pack that usually meets all four requirements:
Jack Link's jack packs. They're light (I can carry at least five in my 24 hour pack), cheap ($1 apiece at most places), little trash, plenty of calories (230 calories apiece), not to mention they taste way better than most MREs. Throw in some crackers, candy, fiber bars (Nobody will bunk with me. Can anyone tell me why?) and a few of the tastier MREs (Because I can!), and you've got enough food for at least a weekend, if not longer. Stay away from canned goods of any kind. Trust me, they're not worth the hassle.

[Short Field]

Guys, these are not helpful answers.  The poster in question is obviously a cadet, and it's our job as SMs to train and educate them. 
Seriously, this is one of CAP-Talk's biggest problems.

The poster in question may still be a cadet, but he talks about his time spent in BMT.