![KRation Breakfast](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/KRation_Breakfast.JPG)
![KRation Dinner](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/KRation_Dinner.JPG)
![KRation Supper](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/KRation_Supper.jpg)
The K-ration was an individual daily
combat food ration which was introduced by the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. It was originally intended as an individually packaged daily ration for issue to
airborne troops
Airborne forces, airborne troops, or airborne infantry are ground combat units carried by aircraft and airdropped into battle zones, typically by parachute drop or air assault. Parachute-qualified infantry and support personnel serving in a ...
, tank crews,
motorcycle courier
A motorcycle courier, also known as a despatch rider or motorcycle messenger, is a courier using a motorcycle.
Motorcycle couriers are common in the major urban centres of Europe, South America (especially Brazil), Asia and North America.
...
s, and other mobile forces for short durations.
[U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum, ''Rations: The History of Rations'', Conference Notes prepared for the Quartermaster General, The Quartermaster School (January 1949) http://old.qmfound.com/history_of_rations.htm ] The K-ration provided three separately boxed meal units:
breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night.Anderson, Heather Arndt (2013)''Breakfast: A History'' AltaMira Press. Various "typical" or "t ...
,
lunch
Lunch is a meal eaten around the middle of the day. It is commonly the second meal of the day, after breakfast, and varies in size by culture and region.
Etymology
According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED''), the etymology ...
and
dinner
Dinner usually refers to what is in many Western cultures the largest and most formal meal of the day, which is eaten in the evening. Historically, the largest meal used to be eaten around midday, and called dinner. Especially among the elite, ...
.
History
In 1941,
Ancel Keys
Ancel Benjamin Keys (January 26, 1904 – November 20, 2004) was an American physiologist who studied the influence of diet on health. In particular, he hypothesized that replacing dietary saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat reduces card ...
, a
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
physiologist
Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical a ...
, was assigned by the
U.S. War Department
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, a ...
to design a non-perishable, ready-to-eat meal that could fit in a soldier's pocket as a short-duration, individual ration. Keys went to a local
supermarket
A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earli ...
to choose foods that would be inexpensive, but still be enough to provide energy. He purchased
hard biscuits,
dry sausages,
hard candy
A hard candy (American English), or boiled sweet (British English), is a sugar candy prepared from one or more sugar-based syrups that is heated to a temperature of 160 °C (320 °F) to make candy. Among the many hard candy varietie ...
, and
chocolate bar
A chocolate bar (Commonwealth English) or candy bar (some dialects of American English) is a confection containing chocolate, which may also contain layerings or mixtures that include nuts, fruit, caramel, nougat, and wafers. A flat, easily brea ...
s. He then tested his , meals on six soldiers in a nearby army base. The meals only gained "palatable" and "better than nothing" ratings from the soldiers, but were successful in relieving hunger and providing sufficient energy. The new rations were initially intended as individual rations suitable for short durations only, to be used for a maximum of fifteen meals before supplementation or replacement with '
A-ration
A-ration is a term used in the United States Armed Forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space ...
' or '
B-ration
The B ration (or Type B Ration) was a type of field ration used in the United States military. Field rations such as the A ration, B ration, and emergency rations consisted of food items issued to troops operating in the field.Ration Breakdown P ...
' field rations. They were soon called the "paratrooper ration", since paratroopers were the first to be issued the ration on an experimental basis.
The actual prototype of the K-ration was a pocket ration for paratroopers developed by the
Subsistence Research Laboratory (SRL) at the request of the
U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) early in the war.
[U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum, ''Army Operational Rations – Historical Background'', http://old.qmfound.com/army_rations_historical_background.htm] Two original samples (one version used
pemmican
Pemmican (also pemican in older sources) is a mixture of tallow, dried meat, and sometimes dried berries. A calorie-rich food, it can be used as a key component in prepared meals or eaten raw. Historically, it was an important part of indigenou ...
biscuits, a peanut bar, raisins, and bouillon paste; the other used pemmican biscuits, a small
D ration
Military chocolate has been a part of the standard United States military ration since the original Ration D or D ration bar of 1937. Today, military chocolate is issued to troops as part of basic field rations and sundry packs. Chocolate rat ...
bar, canned processed meat, and lemon beverage powder) evolved into the one-package breakfast-dinner-supper combination later adopted as standard.
[ The Quartermaster Command's Subsistence Branch altered some components and renamed the ration the Field Ration, Type K, or "K-ration"; the final version totaled .][Tucker, Todd, ''The Great Starvation Experiment: The Heroic Men Who Starved So That Millions Could Live'', Simon and Schuster (2006), , pp. 30–31.] The first procurement of K-rations was made in May 1942.[ Some believed the K-ration was named after Dr. Keys or was short for "Commando" (as elite troops were the first to receive it). However, the letter "K" was selected because it was phonetically distinct from other letter-name rations.][
The K-ration first saw use in 1942, when it was issued to U.S. ]Airborne
Airborne or Airborn may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Films
* ''Airborne'' (1962 film), a 1962 American film directed by James Landis
* ''Airborne'' (1993 film), a comedy–drama film
* ''Airborne'' (1998 film), an action film sta ...
troops on an experimental basis. Initial reports praised it for the variety of the foods incorporated, as well as the light weight. However, testing in extreme climatic and operating environments was extremely limited: in jungle testing, for example, the K-ration was evaluated in Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
by paratroopers and the Panama Jungle Test Platoon in an experiment lasting only three days.[Kearny, Cresson H. (Major), ''Jungle Snafus...And Remedies'', Oregon Institute (1996), pp. 292–293. ] Marching was done not through jungle, as might be expected, but only on flat or gently rolling terrain on cleared roads, for an average of only per day. The test platoons carried one K-ration, weapon, poncho, shelter half, and a single filled one-quart canteen. No testing was done of men on extended patrols or with heavier individual loads of ammunition and water. At the end of the three days, the men were weighed, and as no abnormal weight loss was noted, the K-ration was deemed successful. These findings were later used in 1943 to support a decision to discontinue production of the Mountain ration
The Mountain Ration (or "M-Ration") was a United States military ration developed for use by U.S. troops operating in high-altitude or mountainous regions of the European theater of operations (ETO) during World War II.
Origin, development, and u ...
and the Jungle ration
The Jungle Ration (or "J-Ration") was a dry, lightweight United States military ration developed by the U.S. Army in World War II for soldiers on extended missions in tropical regions.
Origins, development, and use
Prior to World War II, during f ...
.[Kearny, Cresson H. (Major), ''Jungle Snafus...And Remedies'', Oregon Institute (1996), pp. 291–293. ] Both of these specialized rations had proved costlier to produce in their original form, and were intensely disliked by the Army's Subsistence Branch staff of the Quartermaster Corps, who had to secure additional supply contracts and storage facilities for the new rations. Though the K-ration was designed to be an emergency ration, Quartermaster Corps officials would continue to insist until the end of the war that the K-ration would satisfy all requirements for a lightweight complete field ration for all front-line troops at a scale of one K-ration per man per day, using the prior experiments with airborne forces as evidence. The ration's intended use as a short-term assault ration would soon fall by the wayside once U.S. forces entered combat.
One major criticism of the K-ration was its caloric and vitamin content, judged as inadequate based on evaluations made during and after World War II of the ration's actual use by Army forces.[Youmans, John B. (Dr.), ''Preventive Medicine in World War II, Vol III: Personal Health Measures and Immunization''. Chapter IV "Nutrition", U.S. Army Medical Publications, U.S. Government Printing Office (1969), p. 129.] There was also a danger of over-reliance, which could cause the three meals to become monotonous if issued for long periods of time. The K-ration allowance was one ration per man per day (breakfast, dinner and supper), because of the short duration and hasty nature of experimental testing of the K-ration before adoption. Ration planners did not realize that soldiers fighting, digging, and marching in extreme conditions would require many more calories per day than a soldier marching over cleared roads in temperate climates. Nevertheless, one K-ration per man per day would remain the basis of issue, even for mountain troops fighting at high altitudes and infantrymen fighting in the thick jungles of Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
. Military personnel also supplemented with various other rations throughout the war such as with the C-ration when needed.
Evaluation and field reports
The C-ration was the only ration comparable to the K-ration in widespread issue, with six cans comprising one full ration. Introduced in 1938 it was significantly heavier, with less variety in meals, but had more protein.
While fighting in the European Theater of Operations
The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It commanded Army Ground For ...
, the US Army discovered that troops also quickly got tired of the K-ration, some being forced to eat it for days, or rarely, in excess of a week on end. As it was based on an emergency ration, a complete K-ration was for the ration (breakfast, dinner and supper), fewer than required by highly active men, especially those working in extreme heat or bitter cold, and malnutrition
Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is "a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients" which adversely affects the body's tissues a ...
became evident. The packaging of the K-ration into separately described daily meals may have intensified this problem by leading commanders to assume that daily caloric intake was sufficient. An extensive 1943 field report from the European theater noted that none of the packaged rations were recommended for continued use by active troops for periods in excess of 10 days. A survey of troops in the forward areas and evacuation hospitals of the Fifth U.S. Army serving in the Italian campaign noted that almost all soldiers questioned in infantry, engineer, and other mobile forward units said they had lost weight since the beginning of the Italian campaign. Surgeons commented upon a noticeable decrease in body fat and wasting of muscle, requiring copious feeding and rest, as well as ascorbic acid
Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dietary supplement and as a topical 'serum' ingredient to treat melasma (dark pigment spots) an ...
(Vitamin C).
The K-ration was also criticized for its performance in the China-Burma-India (CBI) theater of operations, where difficulties in supply from bases in India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
had resulted in widespread and monotonous use of the K-ration for light infantry forces of the United States, as well as Nationalist China and the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. Many soldiers, including the U.S. unit known as Merrill's Marauders
Merrill’s Marauders (named after Frank Merrill) or Unit ''Galahad'', officially named the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), was a United States Army long range penetration special operations jungle warfare unit, which fought in the Southe ...
and British Chindit
The Chindits, officially as Long Range Penetration Groups, were special operations units of the British and Indian armies which saw action in 1943–1944 during the Burma Campaign of World War II.
The British Army Brigadier Orde Wingate form ...
forces in Burma, had for five months lived primarily[Hopkins, James (M.D.), Stelling, Henry (M.D.), and Voorhees, Tracy S., "The Marauders and The Microbes: A Record of Righteous Indignation", ''Infantry Journal'' 64 (March 1949) p. 302: http://history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/wwii/CrisisFleeting/bookfive.htm] on K-rations, supplemented by rice, tea, sugar, jam, bread, and canned meat rations, which were dropped to them by air. In the case of the Marauders, whose diet consisted of 80% K-rations, severe weight loss (an average of per man) and vitamin deficiency were noted, which may have also contributed to a decline in resistance to various tropical diseases.[ A British medical officer reported that, of 209 Chindits examined at the end of this time, 182 had lost up to and 27 had lost from . Deficiency diseases such as ]pellagra
Pellagra is a disease caused by a lack of the vitamin niacin (vitamin B3). Symptoms include inflamed skin, diarrhea, dementia, and sores in the mouth. Areas of the skin exposed to either sunlight or friction are typically affected first. Over t ...
and beriberi
Thiamine deficiency is a medical condition of low levels of thiamine (Vitamin B1). A severe and chronic form is known as beriberi. The two main types in adults are wet beriberi and dry beriberi. Wet beriberi affects the cardiovascular system, r ...
were diagnosed. One of British General Orde Wingate
Major General Orde Charles Wingate, (26 February 1903 – 24 March 1944) was a senior British Army officer known for his creation of the Chindit deep-penetration missions in Japanese-held territory during the Burma Campaign of the Second World ...
's units in the Dehra Dun area was visited by quartermaster logistics officers some months after they had last eaten K-rations. At the sight of a box of K-rations carried by the visitors, two of Wingate's men vomited.
The unpalatable nature of some of the K-ration's components, such as the fatty pork loaf or the highly acidic lemon powder, caused many users to throw them away, further reducing actual consumed calorific content. Often, a secondary food source was issued, such as a D-ration bar, or fresh oranges
An orange is a fruit of various citrus species in the family Rutaceae (see list of plants known as orange); it primarily refers to ''Citrus'' × ''sinensis'', which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related ''Citrus × ...
, in an attempt to bring up the calorie and vitamin content.
In 1943, a ration board headed by the chief of the Nutrition Branch, Office of the Chief Surgeon, was appointed and directed to conduct comprehensive field tests on rations which would be used later in combat. In the first of these field tests it was noted that troops remained in reasonably good physical condition during a 10-day period on C, K, and five-in-one rations but that the rations were deficient in calories, especially for large men. The report listed the following recommendations: The use of the D ration as a supplement only; the further restriction of the use of C and K-rations to five-day periods unless supplemented; and the replacement of the wholly unsatisfactory dextrose
Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using ...
and malted tablets of the K-ration with a more acceptable substitute. Additionally, replacement of the fruit powder component of C- and K-rations with a source of ascorbic acid that would guarantee the utilization of this nutrient was recommended, as the current diet of troops operating on individual rations in the field was almost wholly devoid of ascorbic acid.[
By war's end, millions of K-rations had been produced, but the army had lost interest in them. Postwar Army supply plans for field rations relied solely on heavier canned wet rations, initially the C-ration, later by similar canned rations such as the MCI, primarily to save additional cost of procurement and storage. In 1948, after introduction of improvements in the C-ration, the K-ration was declared obsolete; production contracts had long since terminated. Most existing K-ration stocks were declared surplus, and distributed to civilian feeding programs overseas.][
]
Packaging
The K-ration originally came packed in an unbleached tan-colored rectangular cardstock box with black lettering. The outer box was printed on its top in bold capital sans serif
In typography and lettering, a sans-serif, sans serif, gothic, or simply sans letterform is one that does not have extending features called "serifs" at the end of strokes. Sans-serif typefaces tend to have less stroke width variation than ser ...
block letter type with the text: "US ARMY FIELD RATION K", with the meal unit type (BREAKFAST, DINNER, or SUPPER UNIT) printed underneath it and a capital letter on each end (B, D, or S). While it was intended that the three meals be eaten in their named order, they were not always consumed in this manner. The inner box had the meal unit type printed across its top and a capital letter on each end (B, D, or S).
The later "Morale Series" had unique packaging designs that were color-coded and letter-coded on the ends for quick identification. The breakfast ration box had brown printing and was marked with a brown capital letter "B" on the ends, the dinner ration box had blue printing and was marked with a blue capital letter "D" on the ends, and the supper ration box had olive drab printing and was marked with an olive drab capital "S" on the ends. The packaging commencing with the earliest version of the ration consisted of a chemically-treated cardboard outer carton and a waterproofed waxed-cardboard inner carton to protect the contents from contamination or damage. The waxed carton was found useful by soldiers to start small fires in which to boil water for coffee or cocoa.
The entrée came in a small, round metal can painted green with black lettering, with a metal key (dubbed a "twist key") to open it, packaged in a roughly square cardboard box.
The rest of the meal came packed neatly in a waxed paper or laminated cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria, and liquid water makes it useful for food packaging. Cellophane is highly permeable to water vapour, but may be coated w ...
pack. The pack always contained two packages of 8 rectangular K-1 or 4 square K-2 calorie
The calorie is a unit of energy. For historical reasons, two main definitions of "calorie" are in wide use. The large calorie, food calorie, or kilogram calorie was originally defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of on ...
-dense cracker biscuits each, a 4-pack of commercial-grade cigarettes, and either a flat rectangular stick of chewing gum or a square piece of candy-coated gum. Special items (like matches or Halazone tablets) were packed in one unit but not the others due to space limitations. Late production meals added a paper-wrapped paddle-like disposable wooden spoon and used the standard P-38 can opener
The P-38, developed in 1942, is a small can opener that was issued in the canned field rations of the United States Armed Forces from World War II to the 1980s. Originally designed for and distributed in the K-ration, it was later included in th ...
instead of the "twist key".
Menu
*Breakfast Unit: canned entrée veal
Veal is the meat of calves, in contrast to the beef from older cattle. Veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, however most veal comes from young male calves of dairy breeds which are not used for breeding. Generally, v ...
(early version), canned chopped ham
Ham is pork from a leg cut of pork, cut that has been food preservation, preserved by wet or dry Curing (food preservation), curing, with or without smoking (cooking), smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. Lo ...
and eggs
Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...
(all subsequent versions), biscuits, dextrose
Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using ...
or malted milk
Malted milk or malt powder is a powdered gruel made from a mixture of malted barley, wheat flour, and evaporated whole milk powder. The powder is used to add its distinctive flavor to beverages and other foods, but it is also used in baking ...
tablets (early version), dried fruit bar, pre-mixed oatmeal
Oatmeal is a preparation of oats that have been de-husked, steamed, and flattened, or a coarse flour of hulled oat grains (groats) that have either been milled (ground) or steel-cut. Ground oats are also called white oats. Steel-cut oats are ...
cereal
A cereal is any Poaceae, grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, Cereal germ, germ, and bran. Cereal Grain, grain crops are grown in greater quantit ...
(late version), halazone water purification tablets, a four-pack of cigarettes, Dentyne
Dentyne () is a brand of chewing gum available in several countries globally. It is owned by Mondelēz International.
In 1899, a New York City druggist Franklin V. Canning formulated a chewing gum which he promoted as an aid to oral hygiene. " ...
or Wrigley chewing gum, instant coffee
Instant coffee is a beverage derived from brewed coffee beans that enables people to quickly prepare hot coffee by adding hot water or milk to coffee solids in powdered or crystallized form and stirring. Instant coffee solids (also called sol ...
, a packet of toilet paper
Toilet paper (sometimes called toilet tissue or bathroom tissue) is a tissue paper product primarily used to clean the anus and surrounding anal region of feces after defecation, and to clean the perineal area and external genitalia of u ...
tissues, and sugar (granulated, cubed, or compressed).
*Dinner Unit: canned entrée pork luncheon meat (early version), canned processed American cheese, Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
and American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
cheese, or bacon
Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central ingredient (e.g., the bacon, lettuce, and tomato sand ...
and cheese (cheese entrée all subsequent versions), biscuits, 15 dextrose
Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using ...
or malted milk
Malted milk or malt powder is a powdered gruel made from a mixture of malted barley, wheat flour, and evaporated whole milk powder. The powder is used to add its distinctive flavor to beverages and other foods, but it is also used in baking ...
(diastatic malt) tablets (early) or five caramels (late), sugar (granulated, cubed, or compressed), salt packet, a four-pack of cigarettes and a matchbook, chewing gum, and a powdered beverage packet (lemon (c. 1940), orange (c. 1943), or grape (c. 1945) flavor).
*Supper Unit: canned meat, consisting of cervelat sausage (early version), either pork luncheon meat
Lunch meats—also known as cold cuts, luncheon meats, cooked meats, sliced meats, cold meats, sandwich meats, and deli meats—are precooked or cured meats that are sliced and served cold or hot. They are typically served in sandwiches or on ...
with carrot or apple (first issue), beef and pork loaf
A loaf ( : loaves) is a (usually) rounded or oblong mass of food, typically and originally of bread. It is common to bake bread in a rectangular bread pan, also called a loaf pan, because some kinds of bread dough tend to collapse and spread ...
(second issue); biscuits; a 2-ounce (57 g) D ration emergency chocolate bar (early version), Tropical bar, or (in temperate climates) commercial sweet chocolate bar (late version), a packet of toilet paper tissues; a four-pack of cigarettes, chewing gum, and a bouillon
Bouillon can refer to:
Food
* Bouillon (broth), a simple broth
** Court-bouillon, a quick broth
* Bouillon (soup), a Haitian soup
* Bouillon (restaurant), a traditional type of French restaurant
**Bouillon Chartier, a bouillon restaurant foun ...
packet (cube or powder).
In total three meals provided of food energy
Food energy is chemical energy that animals (including humans) derive from their food to sustain their metabolism, including their muscle, muscular activity.
Most animals derive most of their energy from aerobic respiration, namely combining the ...
and 79 grams of protein, depending upon components. As it was originally intended as an "assault" ration to be issued for short durations, the K-ration was designed to be used for a maximum of 15 meals. The K-ration was mass-produced by several major U.S. food production companies, including H. J. Heinz
Henry John Heinz (October 11, 1844 – May 14, 1919) was an American entrepreneur of Palatine descent who, at the age of 25, co-founded a small horseradish concern in Sharpsburg, Pennsylvania. This business failed, but his second business exp ...
, Patten Food Products Company and The Cracker Jack
Cracker Jack is an American brand of snack food that consists of molasses-flavored, caramel-coated popcorn, and peanuts, well known for being packaged with a prize of trivial value inside. The Cracker Jack name and slogan, "The More You Eat The ...
Company.
K-ration crates were either wood ( each) or fiberboard ( each) and had a volume of . Each crate contained 12 daily rations (each daily ration consisting of one Breakfast unit, one Dinner unit, and one Supper unit) for a total of 36 units per crate. They were packed one unit deep, three units wide (one of each unit), and twelve units long (all of the same unit type).
The U.S. Army M-1943 field uniform had simplified, but large, pockets that were designed to hold a K-ration box.
See also
*5-in-1 ration
The 5-in-1 ration was a United States military ration issued from 1942 to the end of World War II. Procurement ended with the war, though remaining stocks were issued to troops after the war, as well as distributed as surplus in civilian feeding p ...
* 10-in-1 food parcel
* C-ration
*Jungle ration
The Jungle Ration (or "J-Ration") was a dry, lightweight United States military ration developed by the U.S. Army in World War II for soldiers on extended missions in tropical regions.
Origins, development, and use
Prior to World War II, during f ...
*Mountain ration
The Mountain Ration (or "M-Ration") was a United States military ration developed for use by U.S. troops operating in high-altitude or mountainous regions of the European theater of operations (ETO) during World War II.
Origin, development, and u ...
*United States military chocolate
Military chocolate has been a part of the standard United States military ration since the original Ration D or D ration bar of 1937. Today, military chocolate is issued to troops as part of basic field rations and sundry packs. Chocolate ratio ...
(D ration)
*United States military ration
United States military ration refers to various preparations and packages of food provided to feed members of the armed forces. U.S. military rations are often made for quick distribution, preparation, and eating in the field and tend to have lo ...
References
Further reading
*Arnold, Bruce Makoto. Your Money Ain't No Good O'er There': Food as Real and Social Currency in the Pacific Theater of World War II". Special Issue: "Food on the Home Front, Food on the Warfront: World War II and the American Diet", ''Food and Foodways''. 25, No. 2 (2017).
External links
*
*
U.S. Army Models K-ration page
{{USmilitaryrations
Military food of the United States
World War II military equipment of the United States