Kirk - where do you get your MRE's? Every one I've tried tasted like, well, let's not go there. They're great if you like them, though.
Not having to heat or add water is an advantage, the weight is more than freeze dried if camping, assuming you find local water and filter it, otherwise it would be less weight to go with the MRE's. For home, I think MRE's + heaters would be a bit more expensive than freeze dry + water, but maybe not. Storage compared to freeze dry + water should be about the same, but you are saving a big hassle with the cooking gear and cleaning items. One of the reason I like to keep some commercial canned food. Heavy, but no cooking, water, or other supplies needed. You can eat right out of the can.
Charles - I've run into a similar thing, except with little bugs that came with the rice. That's the primary reason I've put a vaccum packer on my wish list. I plan to pack into smaller bags, and hope that the lack of air keeps the bugs from growing. Now I'm adding "big metal cans" to the list... Probably those big things they put popcorn in around holiday time...
