RATIONS TO RICHES

THE RATION PACK TRADING MARKET AND THE MOST EFFICIENT WAY TO GET BANG FOR YOUR BUCK | D. PAYNE

As the school year begins, and we get back into the whirlwind of classes, cocurricular activities, and sports, I believe it’s the perfect time of the year to start looking forward to one of the founding pillars of the school: The King’s School Cadet Corps. As the oldest Cadet unit in the country, our Corps stands at a total of a whopping 850+ cadets, ready to conquer the challenges of the 2024 Cadet year.

With the Annual Field Exercise (AFX) just around the corner, the humble ration pack becomes an important matter to discuss. Better known as the ‘rat-pack’ to the seasoned veterans, this bundle of joy is something we all learn to cherish.

Handed out every night to all Cadets and Staff on camp, a ration pack is an MRE(‘Meal, Ready-to-Eat’) containing various types of shelf-stable foods. Each ‘rat-pack’ has the same snacks and food inside, with the main meal being the primary distinguishing feature of each ration pack

There are 6 types of main meals that can be found in the ration pack. These are: Beef Ragu, Butter Chicken, Chicken Italiano, Chunky Chicken, Spaghetti Bolognese, and Vegetable Curry

Additionally, each rat-pack also comes with:

Cream Crackers

Mixed Fruit Jam

Fruit Cereal Bar

Instant Mashed Potatoes

Instant Hot Chocolate Powder

Instant Coffee Powder

Teabags

Large M&M’s bag

Sweetened Condensed Milk

Museli Bar

Tube of Vegemite

Orange Drinking Powder

Instant Museli

Jam Sandwich Biscuits

Salt, Pepper, and Sugar Sachets

Compressed Fruit Bar

Fruit Puree

Te incredibly wide variety of snack and meal combinations to choose from Of course, with that comes the innate human desire to trade, swap, and barter, with the deals made after rat-pack distribution rivalling the trading sessions on Wall Street and as the Year 12 cohort of 2024 enters our final year in the TKSCC, there is plenty of wisdom and knowledge to go around regarding rat-packs. However, in the words of Robert Anthony, “Some drink from the fountain of knowledge, others just gargle”. And so, below I have shared my best tips and tricks for getting the most bang for your buck out of your rat-pack.

Every single item in a rat-pack has some degree of worth attached to it, even if it is a low-value item such as a salt or pepper sachet. Based on trends from previous years, the highest-value items are often M&Ms, tubes of fruit puree, hot chocolate powder, and the elusive spare main meal.

Now, like with real-life stocks, the value of each snack or food item fluctuates throughout the course of AFX. For example, at the start of camp, a tube of sweetened condensed milk can easily go for an M&M’s packet, or maybe even more However, by the end of camp, you would be lucky to get more than a salt and pepper for them!

Save your high-value items for the end of camp

As tempting as it may be to chow down on your M&M’s and fruit bars as soon as you get them, I think it is best to try and save them for the end of camp Your fellow cadets are more likely to trade items from their rat-packs for these high-value items You may even secure additional snacks that others have brought from home this way, granting you a greater return on your item.

Keep everything from the ration pack

Keep in mind, that not every person likes to eat muesli, mashed potato, or condensed milk. Personally, I absolutely hate coffee and wouldn’t be caught dead drinking the stuff. However, this doesn’t mean that there is not a market for that item

A packet of salt or pepper may be the difference in securing a trade for some jam biscuits, so don’t throw them out!

Try to avoid high risk investments

Throughout my time on AFX, I have seen this happen time and time again By about day 3 of camp, one member of your platoon sees that people are choosing to leave their orange powder or cream crackers to the side, and offers to take it off their hands for an incredibly low price Soon enough, they have 30 packets of this one item, and the demand that they were expecting just doesn’t materialise. Try and avoid this Instead, diversify your portfolio and be adaptable to the demands of the rat-pack market

Use the time of day to your advantage

Like with all things in life, the time of day dictates what we do, where we go, and most importantly, what we eat By utilising the time of day effectively, you can get the most out of your trading! For example, one of your fellow platoon members may need a little kick of energy in the morning to get them moving, which is where you can use your instant coffee powder to its advantage to try and get a bit more out of the trade

Make the most of insider trading

Instead of utilising your position as an executive at a government contracted consulting firm to benefit clients, you can instead use your connections with your rank to your advantage, in order to secure a better deal. Your fellow Cadets are more likely to trade with these rank members on camp, thinking that they can get a better deal. Instead, they often end up losing out in the long term, as these veterans skilfully play the market. This is where you can step in, offering to take spare items off their hands for low prices, increasing your quantity of items to allow for more trading.

Some of these techniques may seem unethical at first glance. However, by putting them out in the open, all cadets on AFX 2024 should be prepared for these techniques Most of all, I hope that this year’s AFX will produce an equitable, fair, and constructive ration pack trading market for all.

The most important thing to remember is that regardless of what you eat on AFX 2024, or how you eat it, it is important to always clean up after yourselves and to leave the Singleton Military Area in a better state than we found it.

Wishing you all the best for this new year, and I look forward to the upcoming training parades!