Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Production Date of the MREs?
The Production Date of the MRE can be located on the information label placed on the side of the MRE case, on the back of the MRE bag or on the MRE entree itself (the entree is packaged within the MRE bag and is the green pouch sealed within the entree box).
The production date will be represented by a 5 digit number an example of which would be 25001. The first two digits of this number designate the year of production (here it would be “25” = 2025 production year). The next three numbers signify the day of the year the MRE was produced (in the example, “001” indicates the day of production was the first day of the year, 001 = January 1). Therefore the production date number 25001 means the MRE would have been produced on January 1, 2025.
Another example of a production date number is 24365 and indicates the MRE was made on December 31, 2024.
MRE STAR stores all MRE ingredients, materials and components in our climate controlled facilities until the MREs are packaged and shipped. Any small date differences within entree varieties will not affect shelf life as the entrees are the heartiest of all of the MRE components. The entrees are packaged in high barrier tri-laminate aluminum film and level of production insures a long shelf life.
MRE STAR produces MREs on a daily basis and always sends brand new MREs for each order so the entire shelf life will be available to you. You must then store the MREs properly in order to reach the desired shelf life.
The packaging date will be shown on the information label, which is on the outside of every case of MRE STAR meals. This label/date enables you to easily track the shelf life of your MREs.
Q. Shelf Life of the MREs?
The shelf life of the MRE (how long they are going to last) primarily depends upon their storage temperature. The higher the storage temperature of the MREs, the lower the shelf life. The lower the storage temperature of the MREs, the higher the shelf life.
The United States military purchases the most MREs in the world and therefore their Shelf Life Requirement for MREs has become the industry standard. The US military spec sheet indicates MREs need to have a Shelf Life of 36 months (3 years) if stored at 80 degrees F/26.7 C degrees or cooler.
MRE STAR rations have been independently lab tested to determine if they meet the US military’s Shelf Life Requirement. According to the third party laboratory analysis (as well as the testimonials of our customers) MRE STAR rations meet and even exceed the US military’s Shelf Life Requirement.
If your MREs are over the shelf life date, then they cannot be thoroughly relied upon to taste “fresh”, but not all of the MRE components within the MRE meal may be expired.
MRE components do not all expire at the same time. A typical single complete meal MRE contains 15+ MRE components, everything from the entree to the spoon. There are many instances where an MRE component(s) within an MRE meal are expired while some of the other MRE components within the same MRE meal may still have shelf life remaining.
For example, the MRE entree is the heartiest of all of the food items within the MRE and although there may be a degradation of taste and flavor, the nutritional content and basic product safety of the MRE entree could extend well beyond the US military’s Shelf Life Requirement for the MRE as a whole.