[camas]

C ration green beans were the first to go bad

[vetvetdoug]

Actually I inspected a significant lot of green beans and K and C rations in the early 1970's that were made in the 1940's and 1950's. They were still in wholesome edible condition. Acidic canned foods (orange juice, tomato juice, grapefruit juice) developed a "Tinny" taste that made them unwholesome and unpalatable. Class 9 inspections (storage inspections) by veterinary technicians (908's USAF and the 91S/T Army) are routinely done on storage foods kept by the military. K and C rations are obsolete now but if technology hadn't advanced I'd bet there would still be some canned foods out there that were greater than 50 years old still wholesome and edible.