Mersey troops denied fresh rations in Afghanistan

Oct 12 2007 By Lewis May, Liverpool Daily Post

FRONTLINE Merseyside troops fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan have not been provided with any fresh rations for 40 days.

The Daily Post can reveal that 100 service personnel at one Forward Operating Base (FOB), in Helmand, have spent over a month surviving on freeze-dried ration packs without any fresh fruit, bread or milk.

A source who has visited troops, many from Merseyside and the North West, at the FOB said he felt compelled to speak out at their treatment – warning morale was low and the troops’ ability to do their job was suffering.

The revelation sparked anger, with former defence minister and Liverpool Walton MP Peter Kilfoyle describing the situation as “deplorable” and demanding it be rectified immediately.

He last night vowed to raise the issue at next Tuesday’s Defence Debate in Parliament, and said he was tired of being misled about the conditions troops were facing in war zones.

Mr Kilfoyle said this also raised serious concerns about the logistics of transferring essential equipment to frontline bases, saying if fresh food could not get through, then neither could ammunition and medical supplies.

Last night, a Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said they would launch an investigation into claims made by soldiers on Operation Herrick and confirmed troops were supposed to be provided with fresh rations whenever possible.

She said Operational Ration Packs (ORPs) were designed to give soldiers a balanced diet until they could be provided with fresh rations and added: “We say that we will provide fresh rations within our operational capability.

“If all our helicopters are engaged operationally, then they are simply not available to deliver fresh food to the front line.”

Speaking from southern Afghanistan, the source told the Daily Post: “There are close to 100 people in one FOB serving in Afghanistan that have not had any fresh rations in over 40 days.

“Soldiers do get fed well in the main camps, but what about the troops in the FOBs who are out on the front line?

“These are the people who are putting their lives on the line for their country day in day out, and the forces are repaying these people by not even sending them something as simple as bread and fresh fruit.

“These guys are working so hard in difficult, stressful and physically demanding conditions.

“They need fresh food to sustain this level of work and to keep them fit and healthy and also to keep up morale.

“To not feed the troops properly is a disgrace.”

Mr Kilfoyle said: “I will be raising this as a matter of urgency in the defence debate in Parliament on Tuesday.

“For troops to go so long without fresh food is deplorable, and something must be done to rectify that immediately.

“We are being misled about the true nature of what is facing our troops serving on the front line.

“Of course, at the air base Camp Bastion, food will be fine as it can be brought in easily but it needs to be just as good for those on the front line. The idea that soldiers can operate effectively without fresh food on the front line is nonsense and could hamper their ability to do their job.

“If they can’t get essential food to the FOB, then I am concerned that they will also struggle to get equipment and ammunition out to out troops also.”

The MoD spokesman said: “For most of the time, the majority of service personnel on operations eat freshly-prepared hot and cold meals, cooked by professional chefs, who are supplied with a wide range of fresh fruit and vegetables.

“ORPs are readily available in Iraq and Afghanistan with full availability across all menu variants. This ensures that troops are provided with a variety of choices.

“However, as you would expect in an extreme environment, movement of fresh rations in theatre can be challenging.

“We say that we will provide fresh rations within our operational capability and will now contact our personnel in Afghanistan to see whether there has been a problem getting fresh rations out to troops at this FOB.”

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