To be clear: It costs approx $12 or so for ONE bar! In the product description it states that a case contains 30 bars, making one think that they might be buying a case. Also the PICTURE NEXT TO THE PRICE AND TITLE OF THE PRODUCT has THREE bars in the picture, leading one to believe you are buying multiple bars with this price. In fact, you are paying for just ONE bar! Each ONE bar can be eaten over 3 days. There are NOT 3 bars per order, as is possibly suggested by the THREE BARS in the picture. I wish they were more clear, but learn from my review!!! HAPPY CAMPING! Datrex 2400 Emergency Food Bar - 3 Day/72 Hour Bar
Here are the possible sources of food during an emergency. You should decide for yourself what is most reliable and cost effective. A normal person needs about 2,000 calories per day, and someone who is exerting themselves (eg, survival, search, and rescue operations) may need 3,000 - 4,000 calories per day.
1. The regular canned food in your pantry. Regular canned food, such as Hormel Chili, is cheap, tasty, easy to get, and will last a very long time. It's manufactured from reliable sources. You can buy what you would normally eat, and nothing will go to waste if you rotate your stock. Additionally, most canned food is packed in WATER, so you get a safe supply of fresh water with each meal. Almost all canned food is cooked as part of the canning process, so you normally can eat it straight from the can (without heating). Canned food also has a shelf life far beyond MREs or Emergency Rations (for example, according to Hormel, "the shelf life of [canned Hormel Chili] is indefinite as long as the seal remains intact", although the flavor may decrease). COST PER 2,000 CALORIES: about $2 - 6.
2. MREs. MREs are hard to get (due to ongoing military and recent civilian needs) and relatively expensive (between $6 - 8 per meal). Each MRE contains about 1200 calories and is relatively tasty. They also contain vital ingredients you need during heavy exercise (search and rescue ops), such as salt. Despite some claims by competitors, you DO NOT require water to eat an MRE. Only a small, non-essential portion of the meal requires water (the drink mixes). MREs will last 5 years only if stored at less than 50 degrees Fahrenheit. At 60 degrees, the shelf life is 4 years, and at 80 degrees, the shelf life is 3 years. At 100 degrees, the shelf life is only 6 months. COST PER 2,000 CALORIES: about $10 - 14.
3. Energy bars. Energy bars, such as Clif Bars or PowerBars are carbohydrate laden and sugar laden supplements that are intended to give you a boost after exercise and not intended to be real food. They are inexpensive (about $1.50 for 240 calories) but have a very short shelf life. Also, they normally lack fiber. You'll want some dietary fiber in a sustained emergency. COST PER 2,000 CALORIES: N/A - these are not meal replacements.
4. Emergency ration bars. Ration bars, such as Datrex or Mainstay, are relatively light weight and are able to accept temperature changes. However, they are moderately expensive. It is difficult to assess the nutritional facts about Datrex bars, because I have not seen the complete Nutrition Facts even though I've search for them. They appear to be flour, water, sugar, and fat, although there is no indication of how much of the carbohydrates are simple sugars vs. fiber (see above about Energy Bars, such as PowerBars). Additionally, although a 2400 calorie bar may keep you alive for 3 days, that's only 800 calories per day. If you have to rely on these bars for an extended time, 800 calories per day is not sufficient to sustain heavy activity, such as survival, search and rescue activities. Since you are not likely to eat these for the taste, after 5 years you'll throw these away and need to buy replacements - a real waste. Nevertheless, these bars definitely have their place in a go bag, in order to sustain you until you get to your main food supply (eg, your pantry). COST PER 2,000 CALORIES: about $7.
5. Dried fruits and nuts. Dried fruit is very expensive, full of sugar, and may be treated with preservatives. I know a lot of people who have had reactions to eating dried fruit (eg, skin flush, nausea), and that's something you don't want in an emergency. Nuts are great sources of calories and delicious, but a lot of people have life-threatening allergies to nuts - and even people who have never had allergies can develop them suddenly. Nuts are not a good source of carbohydrates. Additionally, even canned or sealed nuts have very short shelf lives (between 6 - 18 months, max, according to Planters' website). COST PER 2,000 CALORIES: about $14 - 20 for fruit, and about $8 for nuts.
Only you can decide what you will need and what is best for you. I have a lot of pantry food, with some MREs and emergency ration bars for the go packs and car.
I bought some of these and some of the Mainstay bars. As people noted for the Mainstays, these are emergency rations that are meant to keep you going on a short term basis when the alternative is eating dirt, and they're made for long shelf life and compact footprint - as you'd expect given that, they are not great for you. To keep them shelf stable and to achieve the calorie density that you need to keep them small, they have a lot of oil, and as a result are high in fat (about 110 grams in 2400 calories of bars, which is actually less than the Mainstays wih about 138 for the same calorie size) and relatively lacking in nutrition, pretty much no vitamins other than some B vitamins. They also have 36 grams of protein, which is probably good given the size of the package, but not a lot for an active person. The Mainstays, by comparison, have more nutrients (basically an added multivitamin) but even less protein - 18 grams. I'm sure these alone would keep you going, but they're probably best as an extender to a small emergency supply of bigger, less shelf stable food like canned tuna, canned beans or hash/stew like mentioned by the other reviewer. A couple of boxes of these with a six pack of tuna and a six pack of beans would keep you going pretty well for a week in a box not much bigger than a shoe box.
As for the expirations, it's really a crapshoot depending on who you get them from. The Datrex bars that I bought were manufactured last month and so have a full 5 year lifespan. The Mainstays were manufactured 10 months ago and so have just over 4 years...
I haven't tried these and so can't comment on their taste, but as the other reviewer said, coconut is a main ingredient. - Survival Kit - Survival - Emergency Food - Emergency Preparedness'
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