New Battlefield Kitchen in the Works

Researchers at the Natick (Mass.) Soldier Systems Center are developing a self-contained battlefield kitchen, aimed at providing three hot meals daily to 300 soldiers. The project is a joint effort between the Natick Soldier Research, Development and engineering Center and the Product Manager Force Sustainment Systems. Once perfected, the kitchen will be able to be moved by truck, sea, rail or air. It will use appliances capable of cleaner and quieter cooking processes than its predecessor, the Mobile Kitchen Trailer. The combustion system will be closed entirely, and should consume 20 percent less energy than the Mobile Kitchen Trailer as well. In time, the Army wants to acquire as many as 1,500 of the new units. Development will take place between 2016 and 2018, with production beginning in 2019.