Just add swamp water — then eat

Hungry soldiers with limited water supplies and only dried food rations to eat could soon be using dirty swamp water or even urine to hydrate their food, New Scientist magazine reported Wednesday.

In a new technique, the dried rations are packed in a pouch with a special filter that removes 99.9999 percent of the bacteria and toxic chemicals from whatever liquid is used.

“The pouch — containing chicken and rice initially — relies on osmosis to filter the water or urine,” according to New Scientist magazine.

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The rations were developed by scientists at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick, Mass., who two years ago developed an indestructible sandwich that stayed edible for up to three years.

Their aim is to reduce the amount of water soldiers need to carry. To hydrate the food, a soldier pours liquid on one end of the foil sachet. It seeps through the pouch and a membrane into the food.

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But researchers at Hydration Technologies of Albany, Ore., which makes the membrane, said soldiers should only use urine in an emergency because the membrane does not filter out urea, a compound contained in urine.

Although it is not initially dangerous, the company said rehydrating food this way over the long term could cause kidney damage.