MREInfo.com

When I was in the military it was rumored that the MREs outer plastic pouches were designed to protect the contents from the oily and acidic properties of many chemical warfare agents, and that the lead paint in the MCI cans (not c-rats, I'm not THAT old, ) was a barrier to shield the contents from radioactive dust. Does anyone want to share their thoughts on this? It would make sense to a degree for the military to do this (although some liquid chemical agents are so nasty that using water to decon them can cause them to ignite).

I have always been under the impression that MREs, certainly the outer bag, was fully NBC proof.

Maybe thats just wishful thinking.

Considering the pouches inside are actually fragile in that they are easily punctured, the rubber-like out pouch provides an additional layer of protection during rough handling/ transport. It also helps to contain the contents when these meals are dropped from a certain height while going a certain forward speed. The same 'drop' would most likely caused a C-ration or MCI tin to explode on impact. The outer bag does prevent radioactive dust from getting inside if it remains sealed. The individual pouches will also provide a layer of protection from dust entering the food. But once any pouch or tinned food is opened the radioactive dust in the air will contaminate the food and enter the body to begin wreaking havoc. I wouldn't be surprised if the thickness of the rubber-like material and/ or its composition is designed to provide some protection from the caustic liquids used in chemical warfare. One of the procedures stressed if one survives an NBC incident is to get clean as quickly as possible and once clean to stay that way as best as possible. Clothes need to be washed repeatedly and tested for residual contamination. Likewise, when you find tinned food you need to wipe/ wash the outer surfaces thoroughly and then clean yourself thoroughly to ensure you ingest as little radioactive matter as possible. You can't do anything about the radioactivity that occurs at detonation which invisibly bombards and showers everything. If you survive, its the fall-out that kills you as you eat foods covered in dust causing heavy radioactive elements to settle in the stomach. If you don't seek shelter or get clean you will inhale the radioactive dust which in turn causes heavy radioactive elements to settle in the lungs.

So I guess the short answer is 'no', the MRE packaging doesn't shield from radiation nor does the lead-content in the older rations. It will shield from dust, like any packaging that protects something. But once opened it is exposed to the elements and upon ingestion, so is the consumer.

There is no use in making rations NBC proof. There NBC contaminated areas can not be used to feed in with normal rats. The simple reason; in area's where NBC warfare is used, you will need to wear full protection gear (gasmask, suite, boots).
Even after a while, you will not be able to put those off, because all "normal" agents, like nerve gas, anthrax, nucleaer warfare etc will last for a long while.

You will need to evacuate the area and decontaminate your(self)/group. Decontaminating will mean leaving all your clothes at the decontimating location, showering with special stuff.. and getting in fresh gear. They will never let you eat your rations that were contaminated.

And if you are not able to decontaminate?
Well.. your screwed, and an NBC proof mre won't help you. You will simply breath in the nbc agents when you get your mask of to feed. Therefore, they have special NBC rations, that feed through special straws into your mask.

Some explanations:

The MRE bag is very sturdy, protects from rough handling etc. It also makes a watertight seal.
The older lead paint is very simple. Look at houses, sheds, cars from that era. Most of the "high protection" laquer contained lead (and a heck load of solvents). It was simply old good quality paint. They also didn't know all the dangers of lead.

thanks for the imput guys! i was not sure because we were told many things in the military and well, those of us in this forum who served in any military know that about 10% of what we were told was factual! i could not imagine trying to de-contaminate an MRE outer pouch, as the older kits were nearly as toxic as the agents themselves, and i doubt the outer pouch would resist anything highly acidic.