MREInfo.com

Hey guys, I seem to be not quite functioning on all cylinders this morning and I have a question about the date codes on some MRE entrees and sides that I found while inventorying and rotating my rainy day/decade stuff. Please bear with me as I'm putting them in a list form more or less, here goes: Mexican Rice 9069A, White Rice 8328A, Black Bean & Rice Burrito 9095 7, Beef w/Mushrooms in Sauce 8350 3, Chunked and Formed Turkey Breast in Gravy w/Potatoes 8320C, Chicken Breast Strips w/Chunky Salsa 9075A, Chili and Macaroni 9077. And as you may have guessed-----I need help deciphering these codes because they don't seem to go along with the info on the date codes section here at mreinfo.com; of course it might just be that I have not had enough coffee yet today, but.....

I ran a couple of them through the calculator. Seemed to work fine. Just leave off the letter or extra number in the code. Just use the four numbers preceding.

I.E: 9075 instead of 9075a.

Though I could be wrong. As I am no expert on these type of things.

Yup. I may be wrong, but I have always assumed that the letter (if any) stands for the batch number on that day. If they made more than one "run" of that item on a given day, they'd get A, B, C, ... tagged on the end. As with the date code, it's a tracking procedure to narrow down which packages of (for example) Sardine and Banana Chili were later found to have mouse tails in the mix - instead of mouse ears.

Thanks for reply RockyRaab! So does that mean that the 9 being the first number means that the entree was manufactured in 2009, and the 8 being the first number means that the entree was manufactured in 2008? Unfortunately I had to throw out a bunch of stuff with 3 as the first number because it was made in 2003 and did not smell even a little bit appetizing! :oops

rationtin440 wrote:So does that mean that the 9 being the first number means that the entree was manufactured in 2009, and the 8 being the first number means that the entree was manufactured in 2008?

That´s how it´s works. But could also be 1999, 1998...

Unfortunately I had to throw out a bunch of stuff with 3 as the first number because it was made in 2003 and did not smell even a little bit appetizing! :oops

Don´t worry about the age, it´s just 10 years!
But if they are swollen or smell bad, you are right to dump them.

Since they've been around for 30 years, you could theoretically have a "9xxx" item made in 1989, 1999 or 2009. But the early ones didn't have date codes, so it's likely to be no older than 1999.

There are other clues, such as package color and labeling styles, but you can probably assume that any MRE in a tan-colored outer bag is still safe to eat. I have a few individual items in dark brown bags that I've eaten with no ill effects, but I wouldn't give a blanket "go ahead" if anybody else has such things. I recently tossed a dark brown package of peanut butter that was leaking, for example. Not worth the risk.