A Socially Distanced Alternative?

'This ration is not to be opened by order of an Officer, or in extremity.'

When wandering through the galleries last week, looking for inspiration and ideas for virtual activities and social media posts, I came across these. With the current obsession over food, panic buying in the shops and restrictions when purchasing essentials foodstuffs I wondered, if in desperation, whether I would break into one of these to get me through the next few weeks.

These emergency rations, sometimes known as 'iron rations', were issued during the Second Boer War between 1899 and 1902. These portable tins replaced the loose food items issued to soldiers which were often difficult to keep edible. In the 1880s, the British Army began to look for alternative options to provide a sustainable individual ration for soldiers should they become cut off from the main supply of food.  

The early metal tins, partitioned in the middle, were often made by Bovril and contained two different contents.  One end was marked 'dinner' and contained 4oz of concentrated beef.  The opposite end was marked 'cocoa' and held 5oz cocoa paste.  These rations were designed to sustain a soldier for 36 hours if eaten 'in small quantities.'

I'm not sure whether I would be brave enough to feast on these delicacies (plus, as a vegetarian, I would leave the end marked dinner) although I am aware that youtube contains a video of someone who undertook this challenge.  I may have to live off odd combinations of food from my freezer over the next few weeks but I'm certainly not brave enough to tackle these rations, even in times of need.