American troops deployed abroad and away from their loved ones this Thanksgiving will be receiving 12 times as many pies as they did last year, NBC News reported on Wednesday.
Although the number of soldiers stationed in hazardous areas abroad has remained about the same as it was in 2017, the Defense Logistics Agency, which handles food supplies for the military, is sending a total of 81,360 pies this year as opposed to 6,288 in 2017.
DLA spokeswoman Michelle McCaskill said "the huge increase in pies from this year in comparison to last year was due to a change in menu planning on behalf of the services," although she did not specify whether the "change in menu planning" meant a change in serving size or the definition of "pie."
In addition, this Thanksgiving the DLA will also provide 10,000 more pounds of ham than last year, 25,000 more pounds of beef, more than double the amount of shrimp, 9,000 more gallons of eggnog and 10,000 more cakes.
She said these numbers do not include the more than 5,000 troops on duty on the southern U.S. border, because they are being fed for the most part with food from nearby bases.
Planning for supplying troops with food for the holiday began in May, according to the Army News Service.
"It absolutely improves morale when you can provide a little piece of home to a soldier when they're far away," said Jack Skelly, chief of food services with the Army's G-4 logistics.
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