The dreaded MRE (Meal, Ready to Eat) has been dubbed everything from "Meals Rejected by Everyone," and "Meals, Rarely Edible," to the more vulgar "Meal Ready to Expel." But there soon may be a reason to celebrate where MREs are concerned. Pizza may finally become an MRE dining option for the U.S. military.
Stars and Stripes reports there's been a scientific breakthrough of sorts concerning converting pizza into a Meal, Ready to Eat. Researchers at the Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center are cautiously optimistic they can recreate the magic of a piping hot pizza with gooey cheese and a crispy crust in an MRE.
Paul DellaRocca, program integrator at the Defense Department’s Combat Feeding Directorate, tells Stars and Stripes:
“We’re looking at new shelf-stable bread formulations to form a crust that’s recognizable to what a soldier would expect a pizza to taste like. We have to look at formulations that maintain texture, flavor, appearance, odor, so that after three years, when they open it up, it’s going to have the same qualities as it did on Day 1.”
According to DellaRocca, pizza is what's known as the "holy grail" in the MRE biz. Indeed, Natick Labs food technologist Jeanette Kennedy told Military.com earlier this year that pizza is the most requested food option for an MRE.
No word yet on when pizza will be coming to an MRE near you...
