My knowledge is a little newer

by Miles , CIVITATES AMERICAE, Thursday, October 16, 2014, 14:46 (3696 days ago) @ Creeker

They have an extremely long shelf life if you can keep them in a place where the temp never gets higher than the mid 70s.

They are an adequate emergency meal if you can consume all the items packed.
They are made to be higher in carbohydrates than protein, or fat.
The problem is, I've never seen anyone actually eat, or drink ALL the items contained in one.

The crackers are OK.
The peanut butter is good too.
The soft bread products are ok, but take getting used to.
The fruits are no longer freeze dried (actually I liked them that way) but wet packed, and are ok
Some, not all, have different kinds of commercial candy (Charms/M&Ms/Tootsie Rolls) included, you take your pick and take your chances

Any cheese spread product has been too weird to me to use.
The drink mixes (past the instant tea or coffee) are also too weird to my taste.
The jellies are usually already separating in the pack so are useless as well.

These unused items account for a large part of the calories in a MRE

Some of the main meal items leave a lot to be desired, but Uncle changes about 1/2 of them out each year. What you may find is what is currently packed, if you buy new ones. Thank God that they started to include Tabasco sauce about 10 years ago!

Since Uncle doesn't allow the 'real deal' MRE to be sold on the open retail market, past some found in on base commissaries, what you get are 'made up' to look like MREs and supposedly have some real MRE items.
They may be ok, but do not have all the items packed in an actual MRE.

MREs are a good thing to have in limited quantity for emergency or short term use.
Uncle really doesn't want them used as the only food item for any length of time.
You could also use them for charity use if some starving person comes by looking for a handout or to 'work for a meal'.

I would have them in very limited quantity, maybe a case or two, if you are going to have to pay for them as they are very high cost per meal as compared to anything else.

Actually some people just buy the main meal and side dish packs alone.

If I'm getting them for free, I'll never pass one up, but if I'm paying for them, I'd save that money and stock up on your usual diet canned goods and other shelf stable items at the store.