Meal, Combat, Individual ration
Encyclopedia
Combat ration
A field ration, or combat ration, is a canned or pre-packaged meal, easily prepared and eaten, transported by military troops on the battlefield...
s issued by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Armed Forces from 1958 to 1980.
Development and Packaging
Despite the new name, the MCI was still popularly referred to by the troops as "C-Rations"C-ration
The C-Ration, or Type C ration, was an individual canned, pre-cooked, or prepared wet ration intended to be issued to U.S. military land forces when fresh food or packaged unprepared food prepared in mess halls or field kitchens was impractical or not available, and when a survival ration was...
(or "Charlie rats"), which it resembled in nearly all respects. The MCI was intended as a modest improvement over the earlier canned Type C or C ration, with inclusion of additional menu items to reduce monotony and encourage adequate daily feeding and nutrition. Heavy for their content, they were eventually phased out in favor of the Meal, Ready-to-Eat (MRE). Although the MRE
MRE
The Meal, Ready-to-Eat — commonly known as the MRE — is a self-contained, individual field ration in lightweight packaging bought by the United States military for its service members for use in combat or other field conditions where organized food facilities are not available...
was formally adopted as the Department of Defense combat ration in 1975, the first large-scale production test of the MRE did not occur until in 1978, with the first MRE I rations packed and delivered to Army stores in 1981. MCI rations continued to be issued from Army stocks until depleted, when the MRI was issued.
The MCI consisted of a rectangular cardboard carton containing 1 small flat can, 1 large can, and two small cans. It consisted of an "M"-unit can (meat-based entree item), a "B"-unit (bread item) composed of the Crackers & Candy Can and the flat Spread Can, and a "D"-unit can (dessert item). The M-1, M-3, B-1, B2, D-2, and D-3 unit cans were small and the M-2, B-3, and D-1 unit cans were large. The ration cans were packed upright, with the flat Spread can over the large can on the left side and the two small cans were stacked one over the other on the right side (the lighter one over the heavier one). On top was the brown foil Accessory Pack and a plastic spoon wrapped in clear plastic. Each carton contained a single complete meal
Meal
A meal is an instance of eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes specific, prepared food.Meals occur primarily at homes, restaurants, and cafeterias, but may occur anywhere. Regular meals occur on a daily basis, typically several times a day...
providing approximately 1,200 calorie
Calorie
The calorie is a pre-SI metric unit of energy. It was first defined by Nicolas Clément in 1824 as a unit of heat, entering French and English dictionaries between 1841 and 1867. In most fields its use is archaic, having been replaced by the SI unit of energy, the joule...
s (1200 kcal or 5,000 kJ), with a packaged weight of 2.7 pounds (1.2 kg) and volume of 0.052 cubic feet (1.5 l).
The label of the ration carton was printed across the lid of the rectangular box in three rows. The first row always read "MEAL, COMBAT, INDIVIDUAL". The second row indicated the name of the meat unit in bold capital block letters (e.g., "TURKEY LOAF") and the third row indicated the "B"-unit number (either B-1, B-2 or B-3 Unit) in bold capital block letters. Sometimes there was a smaller fourth line of type at the very bottom of the cover that either indicated the contractor who made the ration or the manufacturer that made the cardboard box itself.
The ration boxes were shipped in a rectangular cardboard packing case. Each packing case contained 12 ration cartons (containing one of each meal) packed in 2 rows of 6 rations. They were grouped in 3 menus of 4 meals each, organized by their "B"-unit (B-1, B-2, & B-3). It also contained 4 paper-wrapped P-38 can opener
P-38 can opener
The P-38, developed in 1942, is a small can opener issued in the canned field rations of the United States Armed Forces from World War II to the 1980s. Originally designed for and distributed in the K-ration, it was later included in the C-ration.- Design :...
s to open the cans. Each packing case weighed 25 to 26 lb (11.3 to 11.8 kg) and had a volume of 0.8713 cubic feet (24.7 l). Early cases were bound with bailing wire, but late Vietnam War and post-war cases were bound in plastic strapping.
Menus
The "M" unit came in 12 basic varieties grouped in 3 menus of 4 different entrees (later supplemented by "Alternate" variant entrees):- M-1: Beefsteak, Chicken or Turkey Loaf, Chopped Ham & Eggs, or Ham Slices (Cooked in Juices or Fried). M-1A: Tuna Fish.
- M-2: Meat Chunks w/. Beans in Tomato Sauce, Ham & Lima Beans, Beef Slices w/. Potatoes in Gravy, or Beans w/. Frankfurter Chunks in Tomato Sauce. M-2A: Spaghetti w/. Meatballs in Tomato Sauce.
- M-3: Beef in Spiced Sauce, Boned Chicken or Turkey, Chicken w/. Noodles in Broth, or Pork Steak Cooked in Juices. M-3A: Meat Loaf.
The "B" unit came in three different varieties:
- B-1: 7 Crackers and 2 Chocolate Discs (Types: Solid Chocolate, Chocolate Creme, or Chocolate Coconut).
- Peanut Butter Spread.
- B-2: 4 Hardtack BiscuitsHardtackHardtack is a simple type of cracker or biscuit, made from flour, water, and sometimes salt. Inexpensive and long-lasting, it was and is used for sustenance in the absence of perishable foods, commonly during long sea voyages and military campaigns. The name derives from the British sailor slang...
(often referred to by troops as "John Wayne cookies") and a cookie sandwich or fudge discFudgeFudge is a type of Western confectionery which is usually very sweet, and extremely rich. It is made by mixing sugar, butter, and milk and heating it to the soft-ball stage at , and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, creamy consistency...
.- Cheese SpreadCheese spreadCheese spread is a soft, spreadable, cheese or product containing cheese. Many commercial cheese spreads are in the form of cheese slices or cheese triangles.-See also:*Velveeta*Dairylea*Laughing Cow*Cheez Whiz*Easy Cheese*Cream cheese*Liptauer...
(Types: Processed CheeseProcessed cheeseProcessed cheese, process cheese, cheese slice, prepared cheese, cheese singles or cheese food is a food product made from normal cheese and sometimes other unfermented dairy ingredients, plus emulsifiers, extra salt, food colorings, or whey...
w/. PimentoPimentoA pimento or cherry pepper is a variety of large, red, heart-shaped chili pepper that measures 3 to 4 inches long and 2 to 3 inches wide . The flesh of the pimento is sweet, succulent and more aromatic than that of the red bell pepper...
s, or Processed Cheese w/. Caraway SeedsCarawayCaraway also known as meridian fennel, or Persian cumin is a biennial plant in the family Apiaceae, native to western Asia, Europe and Northern Africa....
). Spread Alternate: Plain CheddarCheddar cheeseCheddar cheese is a relatively hard, yellow to off-white, and sometimes sharp-tasting cheese, produced in several countries around the world. It has its origins in the English village of Cheddar in Somerset....
Cheese.
- Cheese Spread
- B-3: 4 CookieCookieIn the United States and Canada, a cookie is a small, flat, baked treat, usually containing fat, flour, eggs and sugar. In most English-speaking countries outside North America, the most common word for this is biscuit; in many regions both terms are used, while in others the two words have...
s and a packet of Cocoa powderHot chocolateHot chocolate is a heated beverage typically consisting of shaved chocolate, melted chocolate or cocoa powder, heated milk or water, and sugar...
.- Jam Spread (Types: Apple, Mixed Berry, Seedless Blackberry, Mixed Fruit, Grape, or Strawberry) .
The "D" unit came in three different types:
- D-1 (Fruit): Halved Apricots, Sliced Peaches, Quartered Pears, Fruit Cocktail. D-1A (Fruit): Applesauce.
- D-2 (Cake): Pound Cake, FruitcakeFruitcakeFruitcake is a cake made with chopped candied fruit and/or dried fruit, nuts, and spices, and soaked in spirits. A cake that simply has fruit in it as an ingredient can also be colloquially called a fruitcake. In the United Kingdom, certain rich versions may be iced and decorated...
, CinnamonCinnamonCinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods...
NutPecanThe pecan , Carya illinoinensis, is a species of hickory, native to south-central North America, in Mexico from Coahuila south to Jalisco and Veracruz, in the United States from southern Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana east to western Kentucky, southwestern Ohio, North Carolina, South...
RollCinnamon rollA cinnamon roll is a sweet pastry served commonly in Northern Europe and North America. It consists of a rolled sheet of yeast dough onto which a cinnamon and sugar mixture is sprinkled over a thin coat of butter...
. D-2A (Cake): Date Pudding and OrangeMarmaladeMarmalade is a fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits, boiled with sugar and water. The benchmark citrus fruit for marmalade production in Britain is the "Seville orange" from Spain, Citrus aurantium var...
NutAlmondThe almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...
RollMuffinA muffin is an American English name for a type of quick bread that is baked in small portions. Many forms are somewhat like small cakes or cupcakes in shape, although they usually are not as sweet as cupcakes and generally lack frosting. Savory varieties, such as cornbread muffins, also exist...
. - D-3 (Bread): White Bread. (There were no alternates).
Each menu was grouped by their unit number (i.e., M-1, B-1 and D-1 items were grouped together). As an example, the jam in the B-3 unit was meant to be spread on the White Bread in the D-3 unit. Alternate items (designated with an "A" suffix) were introduced to provide variety and reduce the monotony. For variety, the M-1 and M-3 units (since they both used small cans) were often switched.
The "B"-unit's Crackers & Candy can was lined with a piece of corrugated cardboard to protect the contents from damage. In the "D"-unit, the white bread came in one solid cylindrical piece wrapped in wax paper, while the pound cake, fruitcake, Orange Nut Roll, and Cinnamon Roll came wrapped in paper wrappers like cupcakes.
The Accessory Pack came with salt, pepper, sugar, instant coffee, non-dairy creamer, 2 pieces of candy-coated
Chiclets
Chiclets is a brand of candy coated chewing gum made by Cadbury Adams. The colors of chiclets are: yellow, green, orange, red, white, and pink. The product's name is derived from Nahuatl word tziktli, in English chicle, the substance from which chewing gum was traditionally made...
chewing gum
Chewing gum
Chewing gum is a type of gum traditionally made of chicle, a natural latex product, or synthetic rubber known as polyisobutylene. For economical and quality reasons, many modern chewing gums use rubber instead of chicle...
, a packet of toilet paper, a 4-pack of commercial-grade cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
s, and a book of 20 cardboard moisture-proof matches.
Typical commercial brands issued in the cigarette ration were: Camel
Camel (cigarette)
Camel is a brand of cigarettes that was introduced by American company R.J. Reynolds Tobacco in the summer of 1913. Most current Camel cigarettes contain a blend of Turkish tobacco and Virginia tobacco. Early in 2008 the blend was changed as was the package design.-History:In 1913, R.J...
, Chesterfield
Chesterfield (cigarette)
Chesterfield is a brand of cigarette made by Altria. It was one of the most recognized brands of the early 20th century, but sales have declined steadily over the years. It was named for Chesterfield County, Virginia. Chesterfield is still being made today; it is still popular in Europe, but has...
, Kent
Kent (cigarette)
Kent is a brand of cigarettes. Kent's Micronite filter was introduced shortly after the publication of a series of articles in Reader's Digest in 1952 entitled "Cancer by the Carton", that scared American consumers into seeking out a filter brand at a time when most brands were filterless...
, Kool
KOOL (cigarette)
KOOL is a brand of menthol cigarette currently produced by the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, introduced in 1933, that has marketed itself towards the "sophisticated man". Originally introduced as an unfiltered "regular" size cigarette, filtered 85 mm king-size versions were later added to...
, Lucky Strike
Lucky Strike
Lucky Strike is a brand of cigarette owned by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company and British American Tobacco groups. Often referred to as "Luckies", Lucky Strike was the top selling cigarette in the United States during the 1930s.- History :...
, Marlboro, Pall Mall
Pall Mall (cigarette)
Pall Mall cigarettes are a brand of cigarettes produced by R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and internationally by British American Tobacco at multiple sites.- History :...
, Salem
Salem (cigarette)
Salem is a brand of cigarettes introduced in 1956 by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company as the first filter-tipped menthol cigarette. Its name derives from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the city where RJR was founded and headquartered...
, or Winston
Winston (cigarette)
Winston cigarettes are manufactured by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company or its newer incarnation as RJR Nabisco and/or its affiliates.The brand was introduced in 1954, and became the best-selling brand of cigarettes in the United States...
. Due to health concerns, cigarettes were eliminated from the accessory packs in 1975.
Postwar additions
The B-1 unit added Chocolate-Toffee, Chocolate-Vanilla, and Chocolate with Peanuts discs. The B-2 unit added a Vanilla Fudge disc and Hickory-Smoked Processed Cheese Spread. The B-3 unit jam spreads were expanded with the addition of Blackberry Jam, Peach Jam, and Pineapple Jam. The D-2 units added a CherryCherry
The cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy stone fruit. The cherry fruits of commerce are usually obtained from a limited number of species, including especially cultivars of the wild cherry, Prunus avium....
Nut Roll and a Chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
Nut
Hazelnut
A hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and is also known as a cob nut or filbert nut according to species. A cob is roughly spherical to oval, about 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm in diameter, with an outer fibrous husk surrounding a smooth shell. A filbert is more elongated, being about twice...
Roll.
Field Reports
Although the MCI had been designed as improvement over the earlier Type C or C ration of World War II and Korea, with the inclusion of additional menu items, it was still designed for infrequent use, to be regularly supplemented with fresh Type A (Garrison) and canned Type B (Field Kitchen) rations. Predictably, this goal was rarely achieved in the field, and some Army and Marine forces in Vietnam would operate for two weeks or more while consuming only the MCI ration or other processed, canned foods.The new ration had some curious superstitions attached to it during the Vietnam War. The "Ham & Lima Beans" entree, a perennial unfavorite since World War II and Korea, was detested by U.S. soldiers and Marines, who considered even pronouncing the correct name brought bad luck, instead calling it "Ham and Motherfuckers". US Marines, Paratroops, Infantry Soldiers, and Armored Vehicle Crewmen, particularly AMTRAC
LVT-5
The LVTP-5 was a family of amphibious armored fighting vehicles used by the United States Marine Corps. It was designed by the BorgWarner company and built by FMC along with a few other companies. It was first accepted into service in 1956...
(Amphibious Tractor) personnel, believed that Halved Apricots were bad luck to eat during combat operations. The Peanut Butter issued in the B-1 unit was unappetizing to some and was often discarded, but was consumed by those with dysentery, as it was certain to stop a case of 'the runs.' Soldiers in Special Operations units used to hoard B-1 peanut butter in empty ration cans to make improvised smoke candles while on long patrols. Being extremely oily, the peanut butter burned with ease, and could be used to boil water for coffee, although it left a greasy black stain on the bottom of the canteen cup.
Other menu items were more popular, such as the pound cake, canned pears, and the spaghetti & meatballs. In 1973, Army Colonel Henry Moak was issued a MCI ration during his stay in Vietnam. Included in the MCI ration was a can of pound cake, manufactured in 1969. He hung onto the unopened can and vowed to eat the pound cake when he retired from the Army. On July 24, 2009, Moak opened the forty-year old can and ate the contents. He noted that the pound cake still looked and smelled like fresh pound cake.
The "C-Rat" Boonie Stove
The small "B"-unit can was often made into an improvised field stove that could be carried in the cargo pockets of a set of combat fatigues. This was done by making a series of diagonal cuts around the top and bottom edges of the can with a P-38 can openerP-38 can opener
The P-38, developed in 1942, is a small can opener issued in the canned field rations of the United States Armed Forces from World War II to the 1980s. Originally designed for and distributed in the K-ration, it was later included in the C-ration.- Design :...
or a church key to allow the trioxide fuel tablet to burn evenly and warm the entrée. Small chunks of C-4 plastic explosive
C-4 (explosive)
C4 or Composition C4 is a common variety of the plastic explosive known as Composition C.-Composition and manufacture:C4 is made up of explosives, plastic binder, plasticizer and usually marker or odorizing taggant chemicals such as 2,3-dimethyl-2,3-dinitrobutane to help detect the explosive and...
were often substituted for the fuel tablet, as it produced a hotter flame. Heating of canned meat items was often accomplished by inserting the can into the exhaust of a running truck where it would jam into the curved exhaust pipe end, warming it to a palatable temperature and de-congealing the grease.
End of the Meal, Combat, Individual Ration
Though it had been given a new name, the MCI was in essence still the canned C ration of prior years. Selecting the MCI ration for all field issue resulted in limiting troops in the field to a single class of heavy wet packaged ration that despite meal variances, was simply not suitable for extended consumption. As they had in World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and Korea
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, soldiers and Marines regularly complained of the monotony of a single class of field ration, especially where field mess A and B rations were not available for extended periods of time. Despite the inclusion of additional menu items, the MCI was still designed only for "infrequent use" (unlike later individual rations, which would be required to pass a new field test of seven consecutive days of consumption as the sole diet without complaints of monotony).
The overuse of the canned ration culminated during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, where American troops frequently resorted to the extreme of placing stacked ration cans in empty G.I. socks to save bulk and reduce noise on patrol, while enemy forces improved mobility by carrying lightweight rations of dry rice in scarves. Primarily implemented due to cost concerns, the decision to standardize on a single canned wet individual ration resulted in a severe weight penalty for troops marching on foot through the jungles of Vietnam while carrying a multi-day supply of MCI cans, adversely affecting combat readiness and increasing soldier fatigue (a typical complete individual ration of cans for one day weighed five and a half pounds). Many combat soldiers and Marines, already overburdened, carried the minimum amount to save weight on operations until the next resupply drop; when the drop was delayed, they went hungry.
The failure of the Quartermaster Command and its Subsistence Branch to develop a suitable lightweight general-purpose ration after World War II, combined with the absence of a dehydrated, very lightweight dry ration for jungle environments led directly to the hurried development of the Long Range Patrol, or LRP ration
LRP ration
The Food Packet, Long Range Patrol or "LRP ration" was a U.S. Army special field ration. It was developed in 1964 during the Vietnam War for use by Special Operations troops on long patrols deep in enemy territory, where the bulky canned MCI ration proved too heavy for extended missions while...
in 1966.