Food ration bar

A cross between a hardtack and an energy bar, these shelf-stable products provide a high caloric density and are generally made of grain flour, sugar, and vegetable oil.

Food ration bars may be consumed directly or broken up and mixed with water for a porridge.

The composition depends on usage: humanitarian versions place a focus on protein content and nutrition fortification,[2] while naval products place the emphasis on it being non-thirst-provoking.

[3] Some example ration bars are: Food bar standards are issued by maritime agencies such as the U.S. Coast Guard[3] and humanitarian agencies such as the World Food Program,[1] each for their respective use cases.

[5] The experimental Close Combat Assault Ration for the US Army features several food bars,[6] produced using vacuum microwave drying and a new "sonic agglomeration" technology (a combination of ultrasonic welding and molding)[7] that removes the need of binding agents.