As others have commented, this is basically a big crumbly block of bland shortbread. The taste wasn't bad. I wanted to try one before I ever needed it to make sure it was edible and to test the packaging. I was favorably impressed. I wouldn't buy these for snacking, but they're plenty edible enough for survival purposes. I think even fussy kids would eat these if hungry.

These rations are mostly flour and oil for calories, but they also have some mild flavoring to improve the taste. They also contained a fair amount of vitamins and minerals. I think most people would use these rations to stave off hunger and provide energy needed to survive in a hostile climate or environment for a few days, and nobody is getting vitamin deficiencies in a few days, so I really didn't care about the supplemental vitamins and minerals, but they don't hurt, even if I suspect they're more for marketing, or possibly to meet some bogus government agency requirements. I particularly liked that these rations were make from naturally hydrogenated palm oil rather than artificially hydrogenated cottonseed oil. The verdict is finally in on the adverse health effects of artificial trans fats. If I was starving to death it wouldn't matter so much, but it's great that the manufacturer spent a little more on palm oil to make these a healthier product.

I washed these rations down with hot tea, which would be my preferred method if I needed them for their intended purpose. They're so crumbly that they're a bit difficult to eat. The bars are scored and mostly break along these score lines into six irregularly shaped chunky blocks, but attempting to nibble on these blocks resulted in crumbles that were difficult to control. If you were desperate for every calorie, you might want to nibble them in the bag to catch the crumbles.

Speaking of the bag... that's a large part of this product. The usefulness of these rations solidly hinges on the quality of the bag, and these ER emergency rations score big in this category. The bags are very heavy duty. I can't see any bugs getting into the bags, and I doubt rodents would randomly start chewing on these bags if they weren't already open and smelling like food. The corners of these heavy duty bags seem very unlikely to wear through when jostled in a pack for long durations. The vacuum seals on all four bags were intact. The built-in zip closure on these bags actually works, unlike most "resealable" food bags which are a bad joke. These emergency rations look and feel like the sort of quality you want in a product that you're relying on to help save your life or the lives of loved ones. Yes, most of us can live a month without food, but you'll be miserable, cold, prone to infection, not thinking clearly and you'll lack the energy needed to do what you'll probably need to do to survive once your body goes into starvation mode.

TASTE/TEXTURE:
I tried one, and it is basically a VERY DENSE, thick, mildly sweet short bread. It is very filling and the taste is very mild.

GOOD FOR EMERGENCY:
These rations would serve very well for an emergency situation, especially since they can probably withstand extreme temperatures, at least a lot better than many other foods would. Great food to keep in the car. Like the description says, they don't make you feel like you need a drink, amazingly enough.

EASY TO OPEN/ZIP CLOSE:
It has a top than you tear off, (no scissors or knife needed to open, and it opens very easily for me, who is a person who often has a hard time opening things), and it has a zip close.

SERVINGS/SIZE:
It's basically a brick that breaks into 6 pieces, each piece is a serving. Recommended at least 2 servings per day, I believe. I included a couple pics, next to a soda can for size reference (I had no clue how big they were gonna be before I bought them).

Finally had an opportunity to try this on a long hiking trip through the mountains. The ration comes vacuum packed in a resealable package, but it is rather difficult to get the food out of the package once opened. Once you get the brick of food out, you have to figure out how to break off a portion - each whole brick is six servings (and each serving is about 410 calories), but it is very difficult to make equal portions without a sharp knife or saw. The ration brick has the consistency of dried clay, and it can be difficult to break by hand.

As for taste, I don't think I can describe it as "tasty" - perhaps "palpable" would be a more accurate description. It's rather chalky and crumbly, and while it is not thirst-provoking, a mouthful of water definitely helps it go down a little easier. Still, I was not starving when I had it, and if I had been, I'm sure it would have tasted much better. I couldn't detect the lemon flavor very well, but that's probably due to my palette. As for filling the belly, it certainly filled me up - be prepared for some rather stinky flatulence after about an hour or two.

The major selling point is, of course, the incredible shelf life. Mine expire in 2019 - a full five years from the date of manufacture. Additionally, extreme heat or cold have no effect - it tastes equally bland no matter the temperature! It should last an incredibly long time in the trunk of my car, so it provides peace of mind that I won't starve if trapped in my vehicle for a couple of days (remember the carmageddon snowstorm in D.C. back in 2011?). It also has a mix of nutrition, including protein (7g), fat (19g), and carbohydrate (52g). The saturated fat content is rather high (9g or 45% RDA), but it is survival food designed to keep you alive, not skinny. The amount of vitamins and minerals certainly makes up for the high saturated fat.

So, aside from the bland taste (rather like what I'd expect drywall to taste like), it's a good survival food.

Fresh stock, so it's a good 5 year shelf life. I keep a couple in the car, work, as well as home.

I just got my case today (5/1/13) and had a challenge bringing it into the house. The outer packing box actually broke from the weight. Perhaps I should have known this but I had NO IDEA how heavy these were. They take up very little room but they are truly like BRICKS of food. A case of these doesn't take up much space, but the case weighs 37LBS!!! (and yes--everything was factory sealed and ready to go for long term storage)

I called my teenagers down and told them the rations had arrived--we had a family meeting and promised to test any food products or equipment that I purchase for bug out bags so this was a moment of truth. Everyone agreed that we should open a pack so that we would know what we were in for should we ever need them. So I sacrificed a bar--each of us consumed one full 410 calorie serving.

-- Many people wrote that the food bar crumbled like dust. This was NOT my experience. While they were crumbly, we had no problem breaking them into the pre-sized serving portions, right on the lines. They were crumbly, but not unmanageable. They were not hard, but they were very, very dense. I didn't fear breaking my teeth or anything like that, but if you still had to break it into smaller pieces for a young child or elderly person, that would be very easy to do.

-- The taste reminded all of us of the following combined: a mild flavor fig newton (the cookie part only), shortbread cookie and cornbread. That is literally what they tasted like. I didn't find it to be super gritty or anything. Not sweet, not memorable but not unpleasant.

-- It was not unpleasant, but it also wasn't something we would ever eat again if we didn't have to. I would never worry about somebody eating them endlessly like potato chips--nobody in their right mind would do that. We all agreed, we would only eat these rations if we had to, because there seriously was no other reason to want to consume it. You didn't want seconds--it was purely food for fuel. The idea of eating this for more than 3 days---we would no doubt work like hell to find something else because this, although not unpleasant, is the most boring food ever. But hey, it's not meant for pleasure, it is emergency food to sustain a person until help arrives. I strongly recommend that you have other emergency food available so that folks do not become depressed. It is not meant to be a person's sole food for long term anyway....

-- While we were eating it, it seemed endless--like we would never finish the serving. It seemed like so much. We all finished our serving only because we promised each other we would and wanted to be sure nobody developed some unpleasant side effect (like gas and bloating). There was no way in hell we were going to "waste another moment of potential pleasure" as my son put it by replacing our next meal with these, so my son is bringing the rest of the pack to school to share with a few interested teachers. Note: These are not meant for pets, but we gave the dog a little as a treat and he loved it. (But he loves anything.....so I am digressing)

-- If you end up needing to travel on foot, this is a VERY HEAVY food supply to carry even though it takes up little space, so be mindful of that.

-- If you put a few of these in a bag and swing it, you could probably disable a person if you hit them in the head with the bag. I'm serious...its like rolls of quarters in a purse.

-- There are no nuts, but it does contain soy and wheat. Below is info from the label.
Vitamin A (40%)
Vitamin C (40%)
Iron (50%)
Vitamin E (15%)
Thiamin (60%)
Niacin (50%)
Vitamin B12 (40%)
Pantothenic Acid (40%)
Zinc (40%)
Calcium (8%)
Vitamin D (0%)
Vitamin K (40%)
Vitamin B6 (40%)
Biotin (40%)
Iodine (40%)
Copper (50%)

Total Fat 19grams/Sat Fat is 9g/trans fat 0. (Calories from fat 170/calories per serving 410)
Cholesterol (0 mg)
Sodium (5mg)
Dietary fiber (2g)
Protein (7g)

-- It will do the job and if I were starving, I do not think I would have any complaints. For what it is, I like it. I will do my best NEVER to need to eat these rations by having more enjoyable alternatives.

Info from the package:
For more information 1-800-2-Prepare
Vita-Lifeindustries.com