At the beginning of any remote expedition, there is a huge "stock up" of food. For the Weddell Sea Expedition, we needed to supply the ship with seven weeks of food for a crew of over 70 people! It's common for the food choices to become more limited as the days at sea go on, and fresh food like fruit and vegetables are harder to find. I have already started saving oranges in my room for when I need the vitamins later in this journey! When I complete an expedition like this, all I usually want to eat is fresh fruit and vegetables! However, the chefs onboard the Agulhas II know what they're doing when it comes to planning for and making nutritious meals for hungry scientists.
I have eaten a lot of meat! Most of the meals onboard the ship are similar in many ways. Each dinner is usually one main piece of meat, a carbohydrate and vegetables. We also often get deserts, such as cheesecake or sponge cake. The food we have must last us for the whole seven weeks of the expedition, so it will be interesting to see how the menu changes toward the end of the expedition when supplies are running low. We stocked the ship with seven weeks of food, but vegetables do not stay fresh that long, so the typical meal is sure to change. This is to be expected on long expeditions, especially in such remote areas of the globe.
