Everyone who ever has eaten MREs has their own opinion. They actually are not too bad… at least the ones I’ve eaten. They are not dehydrated nor freeze-dried. They are just packaged (and likely irradiated) to extend shelf life and not require refrigeration. (You can eat them right out of the package since they are already cooked). The package is heavy (water weight of the contents) and bulky. Most who ever have to carry them strip them down, tossing the packaging, and just carry the items they want or like. A MRE provides over 3,000 calories per meal. It sounds like a lot except when you consider that who those MREs were designed for (military) are under heavy mental and physical stressors from combat. Much like those who might experience an acute SHTF event. Most of the advertised “emergency” long-term storage foods are only about 1200 to 1500 calories per day, which likely could be a slow starvation diet without adding other foods during a SHTF event.
Not sure how one would go about duplicating MREs. At about $6 per MRE with its 3,000+ calories doesn’t seem like a lot of $ for a days nourishment.