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Lightweight backpacking meals

Lightweight food planning is about carrying more energy per ounce while keeping meals practical and enjoyable.

The ranking below uses calories per ounce from the existing food catalog, not a generic list of supposedly best foods.

Backpacking foods by calories per ounce

Each bar is calculated from one serving in the BackpackMeals catalog.

  1. Olive oil packet243 cal / oz
  2. Coconut oil packet243 cal / oz
  3. Macadamia nuts208 cal / oz
  4. Mayo packet202 cal / oz
  5. Walnuts192 cal / oz
  6. Coconut flakes187 cal / oz
  7. Freeze-dried scrambled eggs176 cal / oz
  8. Almonds172 cal / oz

Reduce weight through calorie density

Fats, nuts and dense snack foods tend to carry more energy per ounce. They work best as part of complete meals, not as a replacement for every other food.