It's surprisingly difficult to produce combat rations that can provide enough calories for wartime activities. The (civilian) 2000 calorie diet on the side of

It's surprisingly difficult to produce combat rations that can provide enough calories for wartime activities. The (civilian) 2000 calorie diet on the side of the box now is already a joke for anybody reasonably active, but when you're humping a third to half your bodyweight through rough terrain, it's downright ridiculous. WW2 K-Rations (approx 3000 kcals daily), when not supplemented with anything better, frequently led to malnutrition, scurvy and other similar ailments, not to mention that troops on them for extended periods of time in a warzone lost so much weight and muscle mass that they were ineffective for months afterwards.