Menu C MREs for sale on eBay

[kidsluvmres]

Also, I'm not sure what the fascination is with a package with a "Not for Commercial Resale" indicia on it, if the non-labeled package contains the same components regardless of their packaging source.

My only fascination with these menu c items is whether or not the seller is being honest in describing them. For the same price you can buy GI issue MRE's from other sellers. And I agree, as long as the components are legit and not outdated, then it really doesn't matter in the end unless your point is to buy GI issue.

[kman]

Heh heh...oops...gotta spell check my copying and pasting a little better. Fixed it now. Sorry...no bacon caramel apple bars for you.

[Big Galloot]

Heh heh...oops...gotta spell check my copying and pasting a little better. Fixed it now. Sorry...no bacon caramel apple bars for you.

[bishopmarine]

what the hell is that. actually i do like bacon i do like caramel and apples so i would give them a shot. probably pretty darn good.

[MCIera]

I understand that there are collectors who have a preference for the "genuine article" for the sake of collecting, and there is another market also feels that a USGI MRE is a must-have item as part of their lifestyle. Personally, my focus on these and other retort or shelf stable items is more in the realm of practical application, so I guess it doesn't really matter to me what the markings are on the package.

I agree that the ones being marketed as "Menu C" tends to have more components than any of the MREs packaged for retail sale, and in some instances may even equal or exceed the DOD packages, however since MREdepot has now registered as a member of this site perhaps he might chime in to clarify the cloud that seems to hover over this particular variation.

But for someone looking for an MRE-type of product who's not interested in getting the real military thing, these appear to be just as good (and maybe even better) than the other civilian MREs out there - the Sure-Paks, aPacks, and MREStars.

[MREdepot]

Hi All;

This is Steven Cyros with MREwholesalers/MREdepot. Sorry, I didn't realize that there were so many questions around these. A customer of mine pointed me here yesterday, so after reading up a little it would appear as though I owe a few apologies to some and some more details/answers to many others. Sorry that I didn't think to join a lot sooner, I've just never been a real fan of advertising or commercializing a forum of this nature, although I have been a fan in general for a long time.

I did register yesterday specifically to see if I could clear up some confusion on these and some other issues, but I don't even know where to begin. Can someone give me the specifics you want me to address on these (and any other subjects;-)?

Thanks!

-Steve

[MREdepot]

In skimming through this thread, it looks like I owe a huge apology to BigMark. Sounds like you got a hold of some of our "baker's dozen" cases of MRE's 5 or 6 years ago, I'm really sorry about that!

I consider that to be kind of a low point for us in our history with MRE's. We actually started with those in 1998, and by 2003, when we stopped carrying them, we actually moved more than 40,000 cases (and I'm sure pissed a lot more people off too;-). During the beginning of them, they were actually a decent value; they had 6 different military menus, military sides or crackers and spreads and decent variety and with a retail price of $35/case, they were a decent value at the time.

Towards the end, they wound up being more like 3 or 4 different menus, and had nutrigrain bars instead of sides. If we hadn't contracted for them, we would have stopped long before. Needless to say the local food bank loved us, as we donated quite a few meals to their cause. Ironically I still see them being sold in cases of 12 by some folks out there, but you'll never see that from us again, I promise!!

BigMark - if you PM me your address and how many cases you got stuck with, I'll send you an equal number of these Menu C cases to try and make it up to you. Or if you prefer, I'll replace them case for case with 2006 USGI MREs (Menu A or B - your choice). Just let me know, as I'd like to sleep a little better knowing that even though it may have taken me 4 or 5 years I at least tried to right a wrong.

-Steve

[bishopmarine]

that is a very honorable thing to do steve. its good to see companies stand by there products. things happen and as long as you make it right that is great. do you have any idea who arc distributors or arc company is. or do you have any information on daniel lehr if that is his real name. he is the person i got my mre depot meals from. they are the ones you described with no sides just nutrigrain bar. he sold me six cases on ebay promising me several times that they were usgi mre's. i know that this was not your companies actions. looks like he had some of your product and just pushed them off on me. he closed his ebay account after. he also dumped six more cases on someone else. but if you have any info on arc or daniel lehr i would be grateful.

[kman]

Steve, thanks for joining in to the forums and welcome! I think our questions about the Menu C MREs boil down to this:

1. Who makes the Menu C MREs? If it's a private supplier, we'll understand that, but from the pictures we've seen, the cases are marked "Ameriqual". Are they really made by Ameriqual or is the marking on the case just part of the attempt to duplicate the look of the real military MREs? Since they changed the actual MRE logo on the bag, I don't think they're trying to fool anyone into thinking these are the real MREs (and your auction wording definitely doesn't say that) but we'd still be interested in hearing if these really were put together by Ameriqual.

2. You mentioned "USGI MREs" in your offer to BigMark (and thanks for that, by the way) and Oddball appears to be selling these same MREs on his website. I know we've gone back and forth on the issue here but maybe you can resolve it once and for all for us - are these actual surplused military MREs (menus A & B) and not the same Menu C MREs mentioned above?

[C-rats]

Steven: Welcome to our little part of the cyber world! I'm glad that you've decided to bring MREdepot ---and yourself personally--- onto our forums and become an active (and dare I say "Industry Leader") participant.

I would like to "piggy back" on the questions Kman has already presented to you and ask that you expand on your forthcomming answers to the best of your ability. Many of us here are true collectors of military (or other actual-manufactured-for-government use) rations and as such, are constantly in search of (and demand) AUTHENTIC military goods. And I've got to say that all of us are just plain tired of all the sales hype we're exposed to when dealing with potential suppliers of the goods we are looking for. You can just imagine the frustration (and outright anger) we experience when we pay for / receive products which were not as advertised and we were outright deceived about. The experiences of BigMark & bishopmarine are prime examples of the absolute "asshatery" going on out there in the online business world, and it's those types of business dealings that have us all skeptical of anything new or unusual being advertised as "original this, Special Forces that, blah-blah-blah"..... This is why we notice, and pick apart, such "minor" details as packaging, logos, label or nomenclature font styles, or even product weights and individual supplier recognition.

I'll give you an example of this, and it has to do with something as mundane as the logo in the upper left hand corner of the menue "C" bag.

As Kman has pointed out, it's different than the typical MRE logo. Where the logo on a menue A or B bag clearly indicates a soldier shouldering an M16 type weapon, this new logo indicates a weapon which seems somewhat of a cross between an MP5 submachine gun and a G-36 assault rifle ---- both of which are of German manufacture. Hmmmmmmmmm...... This would be like the US Government Printing Office producing a US Army Field Manual concerning the Abrams M1A1 main battle tank, but having a picture of a German Army Leopard II main battle tank on the cover ---- it's wrong, it's out of place, and it doesn't "add up".

Now I realize that's nit-picking, but it shows you the keen eye of not only a collector, but of a bullshit detector as well. These kinds of things do concern us, and I hope that you can in fact help to clear up our questions / suspicions about these unique rations.


Thanks again for coming here, and thanks for your Above and Beyond offer to help out our fellow member.


`rats