US army food… just add urine

	Tweet

The US military has devised a way to ensure its troops in battle need never go hungry - with dried food that can be rehydrated using dirty water or urine.

The meal comes in a pouch that filters out 99.9% of bacteria and most toxic chemicals, says New Scientist magazine.

The aim is to reduce the amount of water soldiers need to carry.

The firm behind it says soldiers should only use urine as last resort - as the membrane can not filter out urea, which in the long term causes kidney damage.

“The pouch - containing chicken and rice - relies on osmosis to filter the water or urine,” the New Scientist Magazine reported.

The liquid passes through a membrane, thin sheets of a cellulose-based plastic with gaps just 0.5 nanometres wide.

It means only clean water can reach the food, and the bacteria is left behind.

‘Indestructible sandwich’

The idea has come from the Combat Feeding Directorate, part of the US Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick, Massachusetts.

The organisation is also the brains behind the “indestructible sandwich”, which can stay fresh for three years.

A spokeswoman said the dehydrated pouches would reduce the current weight of 3.5kg for a day’s food supply of three meals, to 0.4kg.

But Hydration Technology Inc, in Albany, Oregon, which made the membrane, warned it is too coarse to filter out urea so soldiers should only use urine in an absolute emergency.

Engineer Ed Beaudry was quoted by the New Scientist as saying that the body would not find using urine to rehydrate food toxic in the short term, but in the long term it would cause kidney damage.

RELATED STORIES:
Food safety in Canada is lax and needs better oversight, says CMAJ   Peanut-allergic kids can build tolerance   Restaurant customers willing to pay more for local food   The Top 10 Functional Food Trends in America   Tea contains more fluoride than once thought   Some seafood can harm nervous system   U.S. Senate votes to increase child nutrition funds   Nice but naughty—our addiction to chocolate   Flow of empty calories into children’s food supply must be reduced   Anti-cancer function of green tea explained   Processed food diet in early childhood may lower subsequent IQ   Too much vitamin C not good for diabetics’ hearts

Comments

[ + Post Your Own ]

Now you're in the public comment zone. What follows is not Armenian Medical Network's stuff; it comes from other people and we don't vouch for it. A reminder: By using this Web site you agree to accept our Terms of Service. Click here to read the Rules of Engagement.

There are no comments for this entry yet. [ + Comment here + ]