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Nutritional Info | Q&A Hot Pack Meals | Q&A Food Pouches | Q&A Heater Sleeves

• HOT PACK® meals are manufactured in a government approved food processing plant in Canada.

How long can I keep HOT PACK® meals before I use them?

• HOT PACK® meal pouches have a minimum five (5) year dating, but can be eaten long after this providing the pouch is still sealed and has not been damaged. The process compares to a can of food. As in all canned foods, the meal pouches must not be preforated, bent or abused in any way..

A can of food can be kept good for 10 years. Are you implying that this is the same?

• Yes, but like anything else, while the safety of the product is maintained, there will be certain flavour losses over a long time.

If the meal pouch is bloated but appears undamaged, is the food edible?

• No, do not eat it. On very rare occasions, a pouch could be damaged with a minute pinhole. This would allow air to contaminate the food. We will replace the meal.

How can the food keep for so long without spoiling?

• The food pouch is filled and sterilized with super heated steam. Each pouch is foil lined with a special tri-laminate polypropylene material which acts as an occulsive barrier to elements or bacteria.

Food in a can takes on a metallic taste. Is this the same for the food in the pouch?

• No.

There are some concerns that contact between food and aluminum (foil) is related to Alzheimer?

• The food never comes in contact with the aluminum. The pouch is made up of three (3) layers. The inside one is polypropylene, not aluminium. No aluminium contamination is possible.

What happens if the food freezes?

• Because the food is contained in a flexible aluminum foil pouch HOT PACK® meals can be defrosted and used normally with the heater sleeve. If it should burst do not use it. Like all freezing cycles, the structural integrity of some foods may be somewhat affected. Generally avoid freeze/thaw/freeze/thaw cycles as much as possible.

Is the food good?

• Very! Before introducing HOT PACK® self-heating meals, the recipes were tried and tested by many people. The taste is excellent. Tasting is believing! In 1997 3 million pouched meals were eaten.

Is the food manufactured by a reputable company?

• The Canadian manufacturer of this food has a federal government seal of approval (see the Crown and the number 119 on the pack). This seal means that an Agriculture Canada inspector is on site and inspects the premises to insure that the meals are prepared to a specific recipe and standard.

Are these balanced meals?

• The recipes have been designed to meet the standards of today's health conscious individual. They were submitted to Agriculture Canada which carefully reviewed all the ingredients, recipe and nutritional profiles before giving their seal of approval. Without this approval number, the meals could not be produced and sold.

Are there any additives or preservatives in the food?

• HOT PACK® meals are not made safe with additives or preservatives. All menus contain wholesome ingredients. No additives or preservatives are added to make up the recipe.
• Sulfites are sometimes added by processors of potatoes to keep these white and are cosidered to be preservatives. In some cases, the potatoes that are bought have sulfites in them. We do not add these to the recipes.
• Nitrates are considered to be additives. Tomatoes produce their own nitric acid and could be considered an additive. We do not add additional amounts to the recipes.
• MSG naturally occurs in soya. We do use soya products but never add MSG to any of our recipes.

How do HOT PACK® meals compare to the (Freddy Chef) Canadian Forces Individual Meal Packs (IMPs)?

• HOT PACK® meals are larger. They contain a minimum of 265g of food. The military meals contain only between 200g and 240g depending on the recipe.
• The taste of HOT PACK® meals has been rated very highly. The major difference is that HOT PACK® meals have a better balance of protein/carbohydrates/fats. They contain additional vegetables/fiber/etc. The military meals have a very high meat content that is sometimes difficult to digest.

How do HOT PACK® meals compare to MREs?

• MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) are produced by a number of companies in the United States for the American military. MRE entrées contain approximately 7oz. of food. HOT PACK® meals have a minimum of 9.3oz. HOT PACK® meals have no added preservatives, no MSG, and have a balance nutritional profile. There is no retort pouched meal on the market in North America comparable to HOT PACK® meals in taste or flavour. Tasting is Believing!