Service members have asked for it. Soon they will get it: to wit, a pepperoni pizza MRE (Meal Ready to Eat). The Natick (Mass.) Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center-based Combat Feeding Directorate displayed the pizza, and several other new rations, in the Pentagon courtyard May 24-25.
Officials said the not-so-secret ingredient that finally made the pizza ration possible is high-heat-tolerant mozzarella cheese. Pizza MREs, as a result, have a shelf life of about three years — comparable to other such rations. The pizza MRE also will contain: cherry blueberry cobbler; cheese spread with cheddar and jalapeno cheese; Italian bread sticks; cookies; and chocolate protein drink powder. Troops downrange should expect to see the new MRE within the next 18 months to two years.