OCTOBER 10, 2025 – On Oct. 13, the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) salutes the U.S. Navy (https://www.navy.mil/Navy-250/) on the 250th anniversary of its establishment by the Continental Congress in 1775.
Although Navy Command Master Chief Mario Rivers is the senior enlisted advisor to the DeCA director and the agency’s liaison for all military members, he cannot escape the fact that he’s also a career sailor.
“My service in the Navy and my usage of the commissary benefit have gone hand in hand,” he said. “As a sailor, I’m proud to acknowledge the Navy’s legacy of service on their 250th anniversary, and as DeCA’s senior enlisted advisor, I’m here to say how the agency celebrates our sailors and their families every day by delivering the commissary benefit they’ve earned.
“Commissaries exist to provide the Navy community – active duty, reservists, retirees and their family members, as well as disabled veterans and their caregivers – the highest quality product at the lowest price possible to help them boost their financial and food security with at least 25 percent savings on their groceries.”
Before the Navy established commissary operations, sailors had to find ways to procure their food while they were at sea. In the 18th century, sailors’ diets consisted of salt pork or beef, hardtack, salted fish, hard cheese, and usually ale or grog, because the water was not fit to drink.
Sailors would often purchase fresh fruit and vegetables when they traveled to a foreign port. Bumboat operators would also pull alongside ships to sell an array of exotic fruits, vegetables and baked goods, but they charged exorbitant prices and many times their foods were not of the best quality. When the Navy reduced the rations in 1801, bumboats became even more important.
During the voyage of the Great White Fleet, which began on Dec. 16, 1907, the Navy realized that the bumboats were not sufficient to serve the needs of the crew onboard a modern warship. Congress had already started taking steps to eliminate the bumboats by establishing ships’ stores aboard each ship and ships’ stores ashore which were similar to Army commissaries that had been established in 1867.
In 1910, the first Navy sales commissary opened in the Washington, D.C., Navy Yard and operated similarly to a warehouse. A clerk stood at a counter and pulled items from the shelves for the customers. Self-service stores started becoming popular by the late 1920s and became widespread by World War II.
In 1946, Navy commissaries fell under the authority of the Navy Ships’ Store Office, later under the Navy Resale System Office (NRSO) in 1969 and finally the Navy Resale and Services Support Office (NAVRESSO) in 1979.
On Oct. 1, 1991, DeCA assumed control of all U.S. military commissaries worldwide. Today, members of the Navy community may shop at any of DeCA’s 235 commissaries. There are 60 such stores at Navy bases, plus one at the Joint Reserve Base at Naval Air Station Fort Worth, Texas.
Today, commissaries boast conveniences like internet ordering/curbside pickup services, self-checkouts, digital coupons, dietitian-approved resources to identify nutrient dense foods, sushi bars, hot foods, deli-bakeries, credit and debit card acceptance, gift cards and much more.
“Today sailors and their families can access their benefit and save thousands of dollars annually on their grocery purchases compared to similar products at commercial stores,” Rivers said.
About DeCA
The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees, disabled veterans and other authorized patrons and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which supports the costs of building, modernizing and sustaining commissary facilities. A core military family support element and valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America’s military services and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.
Courtesy Story
Defense Commissary Agency