ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

1

SECTION C

The Food Packet, Survival, General Purpose provides an operational supplement for the 

individual.

C-1 ITEM DESCRIPTION

ACR-G-001, FOOD PACKET, SURVIVAL, GENERAL PURPOSE, ASSEMBLY 

REQUIREMENTS

C-2 ASSEMBLY REQUIREMENTS

A. Components. The components required in each packet assembly shall be as specified in 

table I.

TABLE I. Components

Component Reference Quantity in Ration

Compressed Bars PCR-C-084

Chocolate Chip Dessert Bar Type I 1 bar

Shortbread Bar Type II 2 bars

Granola Bar Type III 1 bar

Corn Flakes Cereal Bar Type IV 1 bar

Wintergreen Tablets PCR-W-002 1 package

Bouillon (Soup and Gravy Bases) A-A-20202B 1 envelope

Beef Flavor, Regular, Powdered Type I, Class 1, Style A

Chicken Flavor, Regular, Powdered Type II, Class 1, Style A

Tea, Instant A-A-20183C 1 envelope

SECTION D

D-1 PACKAGING

A. Components.

(1) Paperboard box. Folding paperboard boxes used to contain the individually 

packaged food packet component shall be constructed of nominal 0.026 inch thick, full 

bending chipboard in accordance with variety 2, style I, type A, class a of PPP-B-566. The 

inside dimensions of the paperboard box shall be 4-1/8 inches in length, 2 inches in width,
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

2

and 3-3/4 inches in depth. The exterior of the box shall be poly-coated, or coated in 

accordance with process I of PPP-B-566, except the resistant surface shall be on the exterior 

of the box. The complete exterior of the box shall be uniformly colored in either a natural tan 

(unbleached) kraft paper, or in the range of 34087 through 34102, or 30045 through 30118 

(excluding 30109) of FED-STD-595, Colors Used in Government Procurement. The box 

manufacturer's joint and full overlap end flaps shall be glued with a hot or cold waterresistant adhesive. The band of adhesive shall be continuous and water-resistant to the extent 

that there shall be not more than 5 percent failure of the bonded area when tested in 

accordance with PPP-B-566 for water resistance of waterproof adhesive. There shall be no 

unglued area exceeding 1/2 inch from the end on either of the flaps.

B. Assembly.

(1) Food packet assembly. The food packet components indicated in table I shall be 

inserted into the paperboard box specified in D-1,A(1) without damaging any of the 

components of the paperboard box. The food packet components shall be inserted in a 

manner which does not cause the box to bulge. The tea envelope and the bouillon (soup and 

gravy base) envelope shall be inserted along opposite sides of the box's inside length panels. 

The paperboard box shall be sealed closed with hot melt or cold water-resistant adhesive. 

The adhesive shall be water-resistant to the extent that there shall be not more than 5 percent 

failure of the bonded area when tested in accordance with PPP-B-566 for water resistance of 

waterproof adhesive.

D-2 LABELING

A. Food packet. Paperboard boxes shall be marked in accordance with DLA Troop Support 

Form 3556 and shall include the following information:
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

3

FOOD PACKET SURVIVAL GENERAL PURPOSE 

INSTRUCTIONS

The food in this packet is especially designed for survival use. All of the bars can 

be eaten as is. If desired, the corn flakes cereal and granola bars can be rehydrated 

with a small amount of water. The food can be eaten even when water supply is 

limited. The soup base may be made into a broth by adding hot water. All food 

packet components should be eaten. Swapping or discarding components could 

result in adverse health effects. Eating food bars slowly will give more 

satisfaction.

CAUTION

If you are exposed to salt water spray or have swallowed salt water, do not use the 

soup and gravy base.

Contractor's name and address 

Date 1/

1/ Each food packet shall have the date of pack noted by using a four digit code beginning 

with the final digit of the current year followed by the three digit Julian day code. For 

example, 14 February 2015 would be coded as 5045. The Julian day code shall represent the 

day the product was packaged into the paperboard box.

D-3 PACKING

A. Packing. Twenty-four food packets shall be packed in a fiberboard box constructed in 

accordance with style RSC, grade V3c of ASTM D5118/D5118M, Standard Practice for 

Fabrication of Fiberboard Shipping Boxes. The component boxes shall be arranged 3 in 

length, 4 in width and 2 in depth. The inside dimensions of the box shall be 13 inches in 

length, 8-1/2 inches in width and 8-1/2 inches in depth. The box shall be closed and sealed in 

accordance of ASTM D1974/D1974M, Standard Practice for Methods of Closing, Sealing, 

and Reinforcing Fiberboard Boxes. Stapling shall be excluded.
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

4

D-4 UNITIZATION

A. Unit loads. Sixty boxes shall be arranged in unit loads in accordance with Type I, Class 

A or B of DLA Troop Support Form 3507, Loads, Unit: Preparation of Semiperishable 

Subsistence Items.

D-5 MARKING

A. Shipping containers. Shipping containers shall be marked in accordance with DLA 

Troop Support Form 3556, Marking Instructions for Boxes, Sacks and Unit Loads of 

Perishable and Semiperishable Subsistence and as specified in the contract, and with the 

following additional markings:

1. Identification markings:

FOOD PACKET, SURVIVAL, GP

Contract data and other required markings

Date of pack

Lot number

U.S. GOVERNMENT PROPERTY – COMMERCIAL RESALE IS UNLAWFUL

B. Unit loads. Unit loads shall be marked in accordance with DLA Troop Support Form 

3556.

SECTION E INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

The following quality assurance criteria, utilizing ANSI/ASQ Z1.4, Sampling Procedures and 

Tables for Inspection by Attributes, are required. Unless otherwise specified, single sampling 

plans indicated in ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 will be utilized. When required, the manufacturer shall 

provide the Certificate(s) of Conformance to the appropriate inspection activity.

Certificate(s) of Conformance not provided shall be cause for rejection of the lot.

A. Definitions.

(1) Critical defect. A critical defect is a defect that judgment and experience indicate 

would result in hazardous or unsafe conditions for individuals using, maintaining, or 

depending on the item; or a defect that judgment and experience indicate is likely to prevent 

the performance of the major end item, i.e., the consumption of the ration.
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

(2) Major defect. A major defect is a defect, other than critical, that is likely to result 

in failure, or to reduce materially the usability of the unit of product for its intended purpose.

(3) Minor defect. A minor defect is a defect that is not likely to reduce materially the 

usability of the unit of product for its intended purpose, or is a departure from established 

standards having little bearing on the effective use or operation of the unit.

B. Conformance inspection. Conformance inspection shall include the examinations/tests 

and the methods of inspection cited in this section.

C. Packaging examination.

(1) Paperboard box material certification. Material listed below may be accepted on 

the basis of a contractor's certification of conformance to the indicated requirements. In 

addition, compliance to the requirements for inside box dimensions may be verified by a 

Certificate of Conformance (CoC).

Requirement Requirement paragraph Test procedure

Material variety, style, type, 

and class

PPP-B-566 1/

Material thickness D-1,A(1) Micrometer may be used to 

determine thickness

Color D-1,A(1) FED-STD-595 2/

Water resistance PPP-B-566 1/

1/ PPP-B-566 Boxes, Folding, Paperboard

2/ Colors Used in Government Procurement

(2) Assembled food packet examination. The filled and sealed food packets shall be 

examined for the defects listed in table II. The lot size shall be expressed in food packets. 

The sample unit shall be one food packet. The inspection level shall be S-4 and the 

acceptable quality level (AQL), expressed in terms of defects per hundred units, shall be 2.5 

for major defects and 4.0 for minor defects.

5
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

6

TABLE II. Assembled food packet defects

Category Defect

Major Minor

101 Box dimensions not as specified.

102 Component missing or not proper assortment as specified.

103 Box label missing or incorrect or illegible.

104 Crushed or torn paperboard box.

105 Tear or hole or puncture or open seal in any component pouch or 

envelope.

201 Band of adhesive between inner and outer flaps of box is not continuous 

or either end of the flaps has an unglued area exceeding 1/2 inch from the 

end.

202 Adhesive smears in places other than at closure.

203 Misshapen box (bulged).

204 Paperboard box or any component not clean. 1/

1/ Outer packaging shall be free from foreign matter which is unwholesome, has the potential 

to cause package damage (i.e. glass, metal filings, etc.), or generally detracts from the clean 

appearance of the package. The following examples shall not be scored as defects for 

unclean:

a. Foreign matter which presents no health hazard or potential package damage and 

which can be readily removed by gently shaking the package or by gently brushing the 

package with a clean dry cloth.

b. Localized dried product which affects less than 1/8 of the total surface area of one 

package face, or an aggregate of scattered dried product which affects less than 1/4 of the 

total surface area of one package face.

D. Packing.
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

7

(1) Shipping container and marking examination. The filled and sealed shipping 

containers shall be examined for the defects listed in table III. The lot size shall be expressed 

in shipping containers. The sample unit shall be one shipping container fully packed. The 

inspection level shall be S-3 and the AQL, expressed in terms of defects per hundred units, 

shall be 4.0 for major defects and 10.0 for total defects.

TABLE III. Shipping container and marking defects

Category Defect

Major Minor

101 Marking omitted, incorrect, illegible, or improper size, location 

sequence or method of application.

102 Inadequate workmanship. 1/

201 Not 24 food packets per box.

202 Presence of staples.

1/ Inadequate workmanship is defined as, but not limited to, incomplete closure of container 

flaps, loose strapping, improper taping, or bulged or distorted container.

E. Unit load examination. The unit load shall be examined in accordance with the 

requirements of DLA Troop Support Form 3507, Loads, Unit: Preparation of Semiperishable 

Items. Any nonconformance shall be classified as a major defect.
ACR-G-001 

26 June 2014

SUPERSEDES 

MIL-F-43231D

30 September 1992

8

SECTION J REFERENCE DOCUMENTS

Unless otherwise specified, the applicable version of these documents is that which is active 

on the date of the solicitation or contract.

DLA Troop Support Forms

Form 3507 Loads, Unit: Preparation of Semiperishable Subsistence Item

Form 3556 Marking Instructions for Boxes, Sacks, and Unit Loads of 

Perishable and Semiperishable Subsistence

MILITARY SPECIFICATIONS

PPP-B-566 Boxes, Folding, Paperboard

FEDERAL STANDARDS

FED-STD-595 Colors Used in Government Procurement

NON-GOVERNMENTAL STANDARDS

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR QUALITY (ASQ) www.asq.org

ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 Sampling Procedures and Tables for Inspection by Attributes

ASTM INTERNATIONAL www.astm.org

D1974/D1974M Standard Practice for Methods of Closing, Sealing, and 

Reinforcing Fiberboard Boxes

D5118/D5118M Standard Practice for Fabrication of Fiberboard Shipping Boxes