I think I bought one of these already ...

Thanks to Science This Pizza Will Stay Good for Three Years

February 14, 2014 at 2:57PM by Zoe Bain 

 

Soldiers have been asking for pizza in their MREs (meals ready to eat) for years now, but it hasn't been possible because of the meal's high moisture content, which can lead to mold and bacteria growth. That may be about to change, though. According to the Associated Press, scientists at a U.S. military lab in Massachusetts have finally developed pizza that can stay good for up to three whole years. "You can basically take the pizza, leave it on the counter, packaged, for three years and it'd still be edible," said food scientist, Michelle Richardson.

The trick was figuring out how to stop moisture in the sauce and cheese from moving into the dough. Researchers used ingredients that bind to water, like sugar, salt, and syrups, along with changing the acidity of the cheese, sauce, and dough to prevent bacteria from forming. Iron fillings were also added to the packaging to keep air out of the pouch.

Soldiers haven't gotten a chance to taste the pies just yet, but Jill Bates, head of the tasting lab, was happy with the outcome. "It pretty much tastes just like a typical pan pizza that you would make at home and take out of the oven or the toaster oven. The only thing missing from that experience would be it's not hot when you eat it. It's room temperature," she explained. In the past spaghetti has been the most popular MRE, but since soldiers often crave familiar foods, pizza definitely has a shot at taking the top spot.

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 Thanks to science? Uh, no thanks, science, no thanks!

But now we know why we can't cut the military budget. After all, it costs money to keep those military labs operating so that they can come up with this stuff.