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with items displayed. Note that the Old Gold cigarettes and vanilla Caramel were not part of the C-ration.]]The C-ration (officially Field Ration, Type C) was a United States military ration consisting of prepared, Canning wet foods. They were intended to be served when fresh or packaged unprepared food was unavailable, and survival rations were insufficient. It was replaced by the similarly canned Meal, Combat, Individual (MCI) in 1958; its modern successor is the retort pouch-based Meal, Ready-to-Eat (MRE), introduced in 1980.
Development of the C-ration began in 1938. The first rations were field-tested in 1940, and wide-scale adoption followed soon after. Operational conditions often caused the C-ration to be standardized for field issue regardless of environmental suitability or weight limitations. Though the C-ration was replaced in 1958, the new MCI was very similar to the C-ration, and was indeed still nicknamed the "C-ration" until its replacement by the MRE in the late 1970s.Meyer, A.I. and Mary Klicka, M.V., Operational Rations, Current and Future of the Department of Defense, Technical Report Natick TR-82/031 (September 1982)
The C-ration differs from other American alphabetized rations such as the A-ration, consisting of fresh food; B-ration, consisting of packaged, unprepared food; D-ration, consisting of military chocolate; K-ration, consisting of three balanced meals; and emergency rations, intended for emergencies when other food or rations are unavailable.
After the war, there were attempts to improve the ration based on input from the field. In 1922, the ration was reorganized to consist of of meat (usually beef jerky), of canned corned beef or chocolate, of hard bread or hardtack biscuits, coffee and sugar. In 1925, the meat ration was replaced with canned pork and beans. In 1936, there was an attempt at variety by having an "A"-menu of corned beef and a "B"-menu of pork and beans. This was cancelled upon introduction of the new C-ration in 1938.
Development of a replacement for the Reserve Ration was undertaken by the newly formed Quartermaster Subsistence Research and Development Laboratory in Chicago in 1938 with the aim of producing a ration that was more palatable, nutritionally balanced, and had better keeping qualities.Moran, Barbara, Dinner Goes to War: The long battle for edible combat rations is finally being won , American Heritage XIV:1 (Summer, 1998). Retrieved April 14, 2009.
The first C-ration consisted of a 'meat' unit (M-unit) (reduced to after being field tested during the 1941 Louisiana maneuvers). In the initial C-ration, there were only three variations of the main course: meat and beans, meat and potato hash, or meat and vegetable stew. Also issued was one bread-and-dessert can, or B-unit. Each daily ration (i.e. enough food for one soldier for one day) consisted of six cans (three M-units and three B-units), while an individual meal consisted of one M-unit and one B-unit. The original oblong can was replaced with the more common cylindrical design in June 1939 due to mass production problems with the former shape of can.
The C-ration can was about tall and in diameter. It was made of non-corrugated tinplate, had a visible tin solder seam, and incorporated an opening strip. A key for use on the opening strip was soldered to the base of every B unit can.
The first C-ration cans had an aluminized finish, but in late 1940, this was changed to a gold lacquer finish to improve corrosion resistance. There was noticeable variation in the depth of gold color in World War II vintage cans, because of the large number of suppliers involved. Late in the war this was changed to drab green paint, which remained standard through the remainder of the C-ration's service life, as well as that of the MCI.
During the war, soldiers frequently requested that the cylindrical cans be replaced with flat, rectangular ones (similar to a sardine can), comparable to those used in the earliest versions of contemporary , because of their compactness and packability; but this was deemed impractical because of the shortage of commercial machinery available to produce rectangular cans. After 1942 the K ration too, reverted to the use of small round cans.Longino, James C. (Col.), Rations in Review, The Quartermaster Review, May–June 1946.
Initially, C-ration cans were marked only with paper labels, which soon fell off and made a guessing game out of evening meals; US Soldiers and Marines receiving an unpopular menu item several nights in a row often found themselves powerless to bargain for a more palatable one.Henry, Mark R. and Chappell, Mike, The US Army in World War II (1): The Pacific, Osprey Publishing (2000), , pp. 20–21
The C-ration was, in general, not well liked by U.S. Army or Marine forces in World War II, who found the cans heavy and cumbersome, and the menu monotonous after a short period of time.The Doctor's Lounge, Goodbye to the C Ration, Bulletin of the Muscogee County (Georgia) Medical Society, March 1979, Vol. XXVI No. 3, p. 14Koehler, Franz A., Special Rations for the Armed Forces: Army Operational Rations – A Historical Background, QMC Historical Studies, Historical Branch, Office of the Quartermaster General, Washington, D.C. (1958) There were also inevitable problems with product consistency given the large number of suppliers involved and the pressures of wartime production. When issued to British or other Commonwealth forces formerly issued hardtack and bully beef-type rations, the C-ration was initially accepted, but monotony also became a chief complaint after a few days of consumption.Bean, William B, Field Test of Acceptability and Adequacy of U.S. Army C, K, 10-In-1, and Canadian Army Mess Tin Rations, Final Report Classification No. AD0658648, Army Medical Research Lab, Fort Knox, KY (22 November 1944) Australian forces tended to dislike the C-ration, finding the canned food items generally bland, overly soft in texture, and unappealing. Originally intended only for infrequent use, the exigencies of combat sometimes forced supply authorities to make the C-ration the only source of sustenance for several weeks in succession. In 1943, a ration board reviewing medical examinations of soldiers after long-term use of C-rations recommended that they be restricted to a maximum of five continuous days in the absence of supplementation with other rations.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
While the initial specification was officially declared obsolete in 1945, and production of all Type C rations ended in 1958, existing stockpiles of both original and revised Type C rations continued to be issued to troops serving in Korean War and even as late as the Vietnam War. C-Rations: Meal, Combat Individual, Article A Marine tank commander serving in Vietnam in 1968 noted his unit was frequently supplied with older stocks of C-rations, complete with early 1950s dates on the cans.Peavey, Robert E., Praying for Slack: A Marine Corps Tank Commander in Vietnam, Zenith Imprint Press (2004), , p. 190:
Another new menu item, "Meat & Spaghetti in Tomato Sauce", was added in 1943. In late 1944 "Chopped Ham, Egg, and Potato", "Meat and Noodles", "Pork and Rice", "Frankfurters and Beans", "Pork and Beans", "Ham and ", and "Chicken and Vegetables" were introduced in an attempt to increase the C-rations' period of continuous use. The unpopular Meat Hash and equally unpopular experimental "Mutton Stew with Vegetables" meal were dropped. In the final revision, "Beef Stew with Vegetables" was added in 1945. By all accounts, after the meat hash and mutton stew, the Ham and Lima Beans entrée was the most unpopular; despite continued negative field reports, it inexplicably remained a standard entrée item not only during World War II, but also during the Korean War and Vietnam War.Granfield, Linda, I Remember Korea: Veterans Tell Their Stories of the Korean War, 1950–53, Clarion Books, 2003. , p. 48: Troops often gave away the Ham and Lima Beans cans to starving civilians, who after recognizing the contents, sometimes threw them back at the soldiers.
Another B-unit, consisting of pre-mixed oatmeal Breakfast cereal, was introduced in 1944 as a breakfast ration that was usually paired with the "Ham, Egg, and Potato" Meal.
The brown butcher paper accessory pack contained sugar tablets, halazone water purification tablets (for a brief period in 1945), a flat spoon, a piece of Chiclets chewing gum, 3 "short" sample 3-packs or one "long" sample 9-pack of commercial-grade and a book of 20 cardboard moisture-resistant matches, a paper-wrapped P-38 can opener printed with instructions for its proper use, and typically 22.5 sheets of toilet paper (compared to 3 sheets for the British Army).Kennedy, David M.,[5] "The American People in World War II: Freedom from Fear: Part Two", Oxford University Press, 2003, p. 288 The P-38 can openers were generally worn on the GI's "dog tag" chain for convenience.
In 1945, the accessory pack was modified. Per the order of the Surgeon General, the halazone tablets were removed and salt tablets were added. Also, feedback from the field revealed that some soldiers opened up accessory packs just to get the cigarettes and threw away the rest of the items. To reduce waste, the accessory pack was now divided into the short pack with cigarettes and matches, and the long pack containing the other accessories.
Cigarette brands issued included Camel Cigarettes, Chelsea, Chesterfield, Craven A, Lucky Strike, Old Gold, Philip Morris, Player's, Raleigh, and Wings.
Early rations came with a variety of 8 Meat and Beans, 8 Meat & Vegetable Hash, and 8 Meat & Vegetable Stew M-units and 24 B-units. Later rations (c. 1944–1945) added a breakfast meal of 8 Chopped Ham, Egg, & Potato M-units and 8 Compressed Cereal B-units in place of the Meat and Vegetable Hash. Alternate M-unit menu items came packed in cases of 24 M-units (and 24 B-units) rather than a mixed 8-8-8 menu like the main items.
Each menu included an accessory packet which consisted of essential toilet articles, tobacco, and confections.
Field cooking equipment was not required for the preparation of this ration. The C-3 ration was more adequate than the original C-ration in respect to its nutritional value.
A sample C-4 ration (stamped March 1954) contained:
Instead, the C-ration, still designated as a packaged ration intended for infrequent or short-term use, went through a series of largely unsuccessful minor revisions.U. S. Army Quartermaster Museum, Army Operational Rations – Historical Background This decision resulted in limiting troops in the field to a single class of packaged ration that despite meal variances was neither suited to varied field environments nor for long-term use. Troops continued to complain of the monotony of a single class of field ration with one or more unpalatable menu items, especially where A and B rations were not available for extended periods.
Primarily implemented due to cost concerns, the selection of a heavy canned wet ration resulted in a severe weight penalty for troops marching on foot and forced to carry a multi-day supply of rations. The overuse of the canned wet ration reached an extreme during the Vietnam War, where American troops resorted to placing stacked ration cans in socks to save bulk and reduce noise on patrol, while their enemy increased their mobility by carrying lightweight rations of dry rice.Kearny, Cresson H. (Maj), Jungle Snafus...And Remedies, Oregon Institute (1996), pp. 286–288 The Quartermaster Branch's insistence on canned wet rations for all postwar field issue and the failure to develop a suitable lightweight dehydrated or other dry ration for jungle and other extreme environments led directly to the hurried development of the LRP ration or Long Range Patrol ration in 1966.
Starting in 1958, C-rations were slowly replaced by the nearly identical canned Meal, Combat, Individual ration. These rations were issued for most of the next two plus decades, until they were replaced by Meal Ready to Eat or MREs in the Mid 1980s.
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