Food

Low-Tech

Foodstuff

Alcohol: A bottle of wine (5 drinks) or liquor (16 drinks of rotgut, schnapps, vodka, etc.), or a couple of bottles of beer, ale, etc. (2 drinks). See Drinking and Intoxication. $5, 2.5 lbs.

Tea or Coffee: A daily serving for a month is $5, 1 lb.

Traveler's Rations (TL0). One meal of dried meat, cheese, etc. $2, 0.5 lb.

Utensils and Equipment

TODO

High-Tech

Foodstuff

Canned Food (TL5). One meal of canned provisions: $1, 1 lb. A case of 24 cans (8 man-days) in a wooden crate: $24, 30 lbs.

Candy: A bag of "hard candy" or half a dozen candy bars is $3, 0.5 lb.

Dehydrated Food (TL5). One meal of dehydrated soup or vegetables. Requires a pint of hot water. $5, 0.75 lb.

Desiccated Vegetables (TL5). A block of chopped, dehydrated, and compressed mixed vegetables. Makes 3 meals. $3, 2 lbs.

Fresh Food* (TL5). A meal of ready-to-prepare food: vegetables, seafood, meat, fruits, etc. Shelf life is limited without refrigeration. $3, 2 lbs.

Hardtack* (TL5). A dried cracker, 3"×3" by U.S. Army regulations, made from flour, salt, and water. Keeps indefinitely. Per meal (10 crackers): $0.50, 1 lb. Per crate (16 man-days): $25, 50 lbs.

Jerky or Pemmican* (TL5). A meal of well-seasoned and salted meat, reduced to only 4 oz. by drying. Pemmican mixes animal fat and dried fruit with the meat, adding important nutrients (and making it taste like dog food). It was a favorite of trappers and Indians throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, and the staple of Arctic explorers up to the 1930s. $2, 0.25 lb.

Portable Soup (TL5). A dehydrated and concentrated soup made by boiling beef broth until only a gelatin-like substance remains. One meal: $1.50, 1 lb.

Trail Food* (TL5). A minimalist meal for travelers: jerky, pemmican, hardtack, parched corn, dried fruit, etc. Today, backpackers carry GORP: "good old raisins and peanuts." $2, 0.5 lb.

Freeze-Dried Food (TL7). A generous meal of freeze-dried potatoes, lasagna, bacon and eggs, etc. Requires a pint of hot water. $4, 0.25 lb.

Snack (TL7). A high-carbohydrate snack such as an "energy bar" counts as a "decent meal" when resting, restoring +1 FP; see Recovering from Fatigue. The GM may let those who don't rest regain 1 FP but dock them 2 FP two hours later. $2, 0.25 lb.

Sports Drink (TL7). A 32-ounce drink formulated to increase hydration and energy levels. It functions like a snack (above) and counts as a quart of water for hydration purposes (see Dehydration). $2, 2 lbs.

Survivalist Food Cache (TL7). A full year's supply of freeze-dried food for one person. $2,500, 600 lbs.

Compressed Rations (TL8). A single, highly compressed, retort-packaged meal. No water needed. $6, 0.75 lb.

Military Rations (TL8). A retort-packaged MRE or similar, with entree, side-dish, condiment pack, dessert, and meal heater (p. 57). Per meal: $5, 1.5 lbs. Twelve meals in a cardboard box: $60, 22 lbs.

Survival Tablets (TL8). These chewable tablets provide the minimum nutrients to survive for a short period. One quart-sized bottle (which can be used as canteen when empty) provides sufficient calories and nutrients for 6 meals. Shelf life is 10 years. $25, 1.5 lbs.

An asterisk (*) indicates a TL0-1 item manufactured at and priced for TL5-8.

Utensils and Equipment

Can Opener (TL5). The first can opener is a large, hand-cranked device often found bolted to a table. Canned food manufacturers recommend using a hammer and chisel! At TL6, a can opener costs $0.50 and fits on a key ring, or is built into pocketknife or a multi-tool. $5, 0.5 lb. LC4.

Lunch Box (TL6). A metal box with space for a large lunch and a thermos bottle. DR 1. $10, 1 lb. LC4.

Thermos Bottle (TL6). A glass-lined flask fitted with a cork stopper. A plastic drinking cup attaches to the top. A dropped thermos usually means a shattered liner – but at TL7, the all-steel thermos solves this problem. Keeps one pint hot (24 hrs.) or cold (72 hrs.). $10, 2 lbs. LC4.

Miscellaneous Appliances (TL6)

Halve the weight of these appliances at TL7-8.

Blender (TL6). A blender can make margaritas and quickly mince a hand (1d-3 cut per second). $50, 4 lbs., external power. LC4.

Coffee Maker (TL6). A pot of scalding coffee does 1d-3 burn. $10, 5 lbs., external power. LC4.

Hotplate (TL6). Does 1d-3 burn to a hand pressed to it. Useful for lab experiments! $20, 8 lbs., external power. LC4.

Toaster (TL6). Does 1d-3 burn to a hand trapped in it. Later models pop up and automatically switch off (rigging one as a time-delay trigger requires a Traps roll). $30, 10 lbs., external power. LC4.

Vacuum Cleaner (TL6). Helpful for collecting specimens, cleaning up alien spores, etc. $200, 20 lbs., external power. LC4.

Waffle Iron (TL6). Damage is as for a hotplate. Handy for making soles for athletic shoes, too. $30, 5 lbs., external power. LC4.

Washing Machine (TL6).]] Scrubs 10 outfits an hour. Gadgeteers often scavenge the useful motor. $1,000, 250 lbs., external power. LC4.

Bio-Tech

Foodstuff

Besides traditional crops, biotech can produce many cheap alternatives:

Algae (TL7) are easily cultured in natural or artificial ponds or lakes, and require only very simple chemicals, as they get most of their energy from sunlight. Genemod algae could produce yields several times greater than wheat at very low costs, and could be easily harvested and flavored.

Mycoprotein (TL7) is a high-protein, high-fiber "synthetic food" manufactured by the ton from mold cultures. Much cheaper than meat, but just as nutritious, mycoprotein can be grown using simple starches, or even nutrients derived from the waste products of pulp and paper, cheesemaking, and other industries. Raw mycoprotein is safe to eat but utterly bland. It can be modified to look and taste like a variety of foodstuffs, such as meat or fish.

High production start-up costs and consumer resistance in favor of "real food" have limited algae’s and mycoprotein's acceptance as human staples, but both are in use as animal feed and food additives. If future overpopulation makes raising cereals, fish, or animals too expensive, they may take over, forming a staple diet to feed the hungry masses. Mycoprotein may also be a good choice for spacecraft "food vats."

One problem with these foods is that they do not contain the full range of dietary nutrients required to maintain health. If they are eaten without other food such as fruit and vegetables, consumers will develop vitamin or mineral deficiency diseases like scurvy or beriberi. This can be overcome with vitamin supplements or hydroponic vegetables.

Utensils and Equipment

TODO

Ultra-Tech

Foodstuff

Meal Pack (TL9)

These packaged meals have little weight or volume, yet supply the nutrition and calories needed to keep a person active for extended periods. Although long-term use could cause some discomfort or weight gain, they are usually tasty and provide enough variation for almost everyone to have a favorite. Stored meal packs have a safe shelf-life of 10 years. They come in dozens of variations, with randomly selected main courses, side dishes, and dessert. The packages can heat or cool themselves, and are sealed against the outside environment. $2, 1 lb. per meal.

Higher-TL meal packs have the same weight, but possess a longer shelf-life: 20 years (TL10), 50 years (TL11), or 100 years (TL12).

Survival Rations (TL9)

These are designed to put the maximum amount of nutrients into the smallest sealed package; the flavors are limited. They have a safe shelf-life of 15 years, provided the package is not tampered with. Each meal is $5, 0.5 lbs. Higher-TL rations taste somewhat better (but do not match the flavor of meal packs), and possess an extended shelf-life: duration is 30 years (TL10), 70 years (TL11), or 150 years (TL12).

Food Tablets or Paste (TL9)

These tablets or paste-filled tubes provide all the vitamins and calories that an active person requires. They also incorporate appetite suppressants. A one-day supply (usually split into six to 12 individual meals) is $10, 0.75 lbs.

Cyborg paste is a nutrient formula designed for cyborgs that still require some sustenance for their organic parts. It comes in a feeding tube that is inserted into the cyborg.

Utensils and Equipment

Food Vats (TL10)

These create an endless supply of imitation vegetables, lean meat, fish or other foodstuffs. Gengineered cells from plant or livestock tissue are cultured in growth tanks and supplied with nutrients. This creates a continuously growing biomass, which is harvested whenever food is required or it gets too big for its vat. In some societies vat-grown food may replace other animal or plant products, which might be considered unhealthy or even barbaric.

Careful control of the growth process allows for tailored products (for example, combining different types of cells), and additives can be usd to alter the taste.