Provisions and how that can be an awesome thing to do an activity with. Please help me in welcoming karen. Good morning everyone. I hope everyone has had a good week so far. This morning im going to talk to about rationing in world war ii. We all know that teenagers and most of his work with teenagers have large appetite. I have one at home with an incredibly large appetite. I like to try and engage kids with the topic that not only fits their appetite but also increases their appetite for learning. I find that food is often times in engaging topic. Napoleon or frederick the great, depending on who you listen to said an army marches on its stomach. To supply not just the u. S. Army but increasingly throughout world war ii, also that of our allies, prisoners of war and those who we liberated in the civilian population. The people of the United States had to implement solutions to foundational problems. Food production and distribution. The solution impact not only wartime provisioning but also the way we eat today. According to and her book the combat ready kitchen, how the u. S. Military shapes the way you eat, research and development for food during world war ii, not only helped us win the war, they also created Development Processes for modernday processed food. Providing soldiers with food on the battlefield has long been a problem faced by military leaders. The quartermaster corps is tasked with provisioning for much of the u. S. Military. Issues such as fresh ingredients, the weight of provisions for soldiers on the move and the sheer volume of food that the army must provide, magnify the difficulties of normal food production. Prior to world war ii, new difficulties arose that would demand greater ingenuity among the quartermaster corps. To address the needs, army created a Subsistence Research and Development Laboratory that started about five years before the u. S. Joined world war ii. Were tasked with developing new field rations. Some innovation due to social changes. Such as implementation during the war of the womens army corps. Which will lead to modified menus that are more palatable for the dietary preferences of women. Other modifications will be the results of things like innovations in technology which change the nature for fear during world war ii. For example, the implementation of the army corps paratroopers to a wide extent. That will increase the demand for light packable meals. Research into longerlasting rations that carry much less weight for soldiers will be critical. In the 1930s, the military wanted to create an alphabet system to differentiate between types of meals. Field ration letter a were created with fresh meat and produce. B was in kitchens and utilized canned goods where for refrigeration is not feasible. What you see on the left rc rations. They were developed in 1938 but not it put into mass production until 1941 with the outbreak of war for the United States. They contained canned meat and vegetables. The provided foods about 3800 calories per day per soldier. Early versions of the c rations, were heavy, about six pounds. Paper labels would fall off, making evening meals a surprise. The research and Development Laboratory woodwork throughout the war to improve the taste and weight of the rations. They did so with some success. The biggest innovation is they would develop a whole new type of ration called the k ration which we will discuss in a moment. The d ration on the right is also referred to as the logan park. It is the emergency ration. It is a chocolate bar, made out of bitter chocolate, sugar, oat flour, cocoa fat, skim milk powder and artificial flavoring. Developed in conjunction with hershey, beginning in 1937, it had to meet for requirements. It had to be a bar, weighing about four ounces, it had to be able to withstand high temperature, it had to have five high food energy value and it had to taste barely better than a boiled potato. They dont want the soldiers eating them like candy bars. It would not be put into production again until 1941, with the intention of giving soldiers enough energy for 24 hours. That equates to about 600 calories. It was not tasty but it was able to withstand temperatures of about 120 degrees. It was relatively small and light. It became a viable option for soldiers to carry and can zoom in emergency situations. Many problems occurred as hershey explains. Normal chocolate production is done with fluid chocolate might chocolate milk being poured into molds. It withstand higher temperatures and does not melt. Her she had to devise new engineering and machinery in order to develop these at a mass level for the u. S. Military. In addition, the army masters worried about protecting these emergency rations from things like poison gases. They developed new packaging techniques. That was to make sure they would be safe in any type of emergency situation. Engineered everything from the sleeve it was put into all the way to the ink that they used on the packaging. Taste is an issue. In 1943, the army asked hershey to try and improve the taste somewhat. That led to the development of a second type of ration called hersheys tropical chocolate bar. It would long outlived the war and regular use, including a trip to the moon on apollo 15. The development of the d ration is a precursor to the modern energy bar. Today, there is a large industry that provides a variety of meal replacement in many different flavors. They provide americans with something in a bar and a few ounces and weight. Impacts a substantial energy boost is still taste better than a boiled potato. K rations are the lightest and most transordinal development originally designed for paratroopers, motorcycle troops for soldiers on the move, it was intended to be eaten for limited time, no more than 15 days. It did get put into widespread use throughout the war. Developed in 1941 at the university of minnesota, along with the research laboratory, it contained three boxed meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner and it provided almost 3000 calories and only two pounds. It was substantially lighter than the c ration. Due to development and close proximity, it was suggested to limited testing before the implementation. It would undergo many changes throughout the war. Early versions contained malted milk dextrose and tablet. Delicious. Those were quickly changed to fruit bars in the dinner box. Sugar was included to help reduce the chocolatey drink. Throughout the war, modifications would be made as needed and as supplies allowed. Originally, there was a hard candy in the rations. When those became in limited supply, they replaced them with. Eventually with candy bars like milky way. Hard biscuits would be replaced with cereal bars. New flavors of drinks would be offered. The original lemonade was so acidic and tart that the soldiers claimed it would be better used as a floor cleaner than as a drink. I can only imagine. Packaging will also evolve from something that looks very basic. To something that contained instructions on how to utilize and eat the ration to these colorcoded versions you see here. They were actually designed in part to provide a morale boost. Speaking of morale boost, the military uses candy rations to fill a couple of needs. One is morale boost, the second is a quick boost of energy. The candy has to have that ability in 1941, the military was provided an option by the mars company. They are for the military candy coated chocolates for military use. The coating kept the chocolate from melting and became a sweet treat for soldiers throughout the war. After the war, rationing was listed. M ms were a popular treat and remain so today. More munchies. Had been for quite some time. Cheeses bulky and heavy due to the high water content. The Army Research core, usda, universities and manufacturers started trying to research and develop some type of a powdered cheese during the war so they could transport cheese and use it as a flavoring. The first cheese powder would be developed in 1943 by george sanders. It was. If you have students that are , you can get into the process of how they did this. According to the article in wired magazine, it was considered impossible to dehydrate natural pack containing cheese because when you heated the cheese, the fat would melt out and separate. The innovation was to do this in two steps. The cheese would be shredded or grated and dried at a low temperature. Once the water had evaporated her enough, then the cheese would be groundup. And dehydrated at a higher temperature and turned into powder. Would formed into cakes and those could be shipped easily around the world. Surpluses were sold off at low prices to grocery manufacturers like quaker oats, kelloggs, craft one of the founders of the fritolay company was a military contractor during the war. He was aware of these. The fritolay Company Debuted a new snack, made with easily transported military powdered cheese, she does. Mentioned earlier, will were to spur the development of modern processed food. It is a perfect example of processed food entering the diet. I know a lot of kids that each he does on the regular. Innovations were made possible, not just by the military scientist but also by average people at home would alter habit and devise innovative ways to aid the war effort from home. These efforts are recognized on the National World war ii memorial in dc. American farmers were called upon to increase food supply. New innovations to increase efficiency and farming techniques, such as improved irrigation that are discussed in this article, helped farmers provide for wartime need. The small changes would lead to much more dramatic changes in the decades after the war. Here you might be old to see, still a little small, the increased numbers of livestock as reported by the u. S. Bureau. The numbers go up substantially. The u. S. Government also devised an innovative Foreign Policy solution to help with the concern of farm labor shortage. The Mexican Farm Labor Program referred to as the procedural program was a Guest Worker Program between the u. S. And mexico. Farmers were concerned with so many men going to war, there would not be enough workers to manage the increased demand for farm goods. The program allowed for Migrant Workers to obtain contracts and work on american farms. It was not without critics on both sides of the border that the implementation of Foreign Policy toward migrant labor helped keep products in strong supply to feed america and allies. The program will not end until 1964, after over 4. 6 million labor contracts had been issued. Other ways of dealing with shortages is to use atypical workers like young people. As you can see, High School Students were encouraged to use free time in somers for labor needs on americas farms. In the newspaper article, the governor of nebraska went as far as to advocate for a truncated school year for high school boys, to allow them to leave early and work on farms. Arguing it was both good for boys and farms. In addition to producing more, americans were also asked to deal with less. Sugar was the first to be rationed, starting in the spring of 1942, due to the inability of us to have a lot of trade from our trading partners where we got the majority of our sugar. Process food, meat and Dairy Products were added to the list of items. The government developed a program to help guide americans to make sure they ate a well balanced diet, despite rationing. Rationing was instituted and overseen by the office of information or opa. Families were issued books of stamps for rationed items. There was a system of red and blue points. Read were for me, fish and Dairy Products and blue for canned foods and bottled. The point system was deemed the best way to restrict purchases while allowing for some consumer flexibility. If you had 10 left, you may choose a can of vegetables worth 10 points or two cans of fivepoint fruit. The number of points necessary to obtain an item fluctuated with supply. Stores and newspapers would regularly publish the updated point values to help consumers plan meals around their available points. Another way to ensure enough to eat and some what the war effort was to grow your own food. During the war, almost 20 million Victory Gardens were planted to allow commercially grown produce to be used for soldiers. That also protected the americans against Food Shortages at home. At its height, 40 of the produce was grown in a victory garden. But ranged from very small rooftop gardens all the way to people turning their entire backyards into a garden to participate and support the war effort. The government will encourage the use of gardens through propaganda, as well as instructions to novice growers in how to plant, attend and harvest crops. Favorite things to grow included produce like beets, beans, carrots, cabbage, peas, tomatoes and squash. With so many vegetables being produced, the government encouraged women to help the effort through the practice of canning. Worked as canning vegetables or fruit that would not be eating before it went bad. In 1943, the usda estimates that 4 billion cans of food were created in the u. S. Was about the same time reduction peak, demonstrating the successful length between. Canning has been a way of life for Many Americans prior to this, many had to learn the art as part of the war effort. The governments cookbook offers and companies helped american women learn how to can by not wasting Fresh Produce and making sure to have enough. The usda would create almost 6000 Community Centers throughout the u. S. , to help women learn how to can as well as to share in the kitchen tools they may not otherwise have. Pamphlets were created to instruct women in the process. Even children were able to help the effort by helping to garden and canned foods. For many that turned into a lifelong practice for some. I will show you a quick video from janine johnson. She still cans and she sat down with me and told about what food was like for her during the war. We had neighbors who had chickens they would trade ask for food. We had a basement in the house that had a huge pantry or seller. You dont have to buy much food. If you can foods, that keeps for a year or two. That is where i learned how to can. I canned everything but not into it like she was. It was a huge garden. He had to do something with this stuff. If there was an abundance of eggs, she would put them in a mixture of vinegar and things. They were very good. They had great big jars. You get pickles and sometimes. I ate pickled pigs feet. Because of the war effort, we couldnt buy a lot of meat but we ate liver and all the organs. Tongue was good. We ate. We didnt have plastic. My grandmother made butter. My grandmother was upset after the war because Betty Crocker came out with a cake mix. People are too lazy to make a cake. I dont think i would even eat one. For my grandparents and parents to. For those that couldnt make tongue taste good, i dont know that i could try that. Master later, how do you make delicious desserts with sugar rationing . That was a whole different conversation. A special wartime addition cook book that would help families creatively use what they had. To produce Quality Foods that wouldnt taste like they probably should. Became part of the war effort and when you can tell she is proud of. Her part in that effort. Here are a couple of examples of recipes that you substituted items. For example, brown sugar, corn syrup were used in place of regular sugar whenever it was rationed, to make different treats. In addition to propaganda, a variety of other people and companies to help educate americans on the path to adding more through food. On the left, this is a favorite to students, in part because he is familiar to them. He creates lots of cartoons. This one, encouraging people to do their part. Several disney shorts were also made, regarding food. The one i will play for you is called out of the frying pan and into the firing line. In not only speaks to americas patriotic acts but also educates americans about how to save cooking fat to use in the production of munitions. Dont throw away that bacon grease, housewives of america, savior kitchen pets, bacon grease, meat drippings, frying fat. We need millions of pounds of fat to help win the war. Thats make glycerin and glycerin makes explosives. Every year, 2 billion pounds of waste that is thrown away. Enough glycerin for 10 billion rapidfire cannon shells. About 150,000 miles long. Six times around the earth. Meat drippings, access warships. Waste frying fat, speedups charges on their way to. It will give some boy at the front an extra clip of cartridges. Pour your fat in a clean widemouth can. Not a glass jar or paper bag. Please strain the fat through a kitchen sieve, keep it in a cool and dark place so it will not become rancid. When you have a pound or more, take it to your neighborhood meat dealer who is patriotically cooperating. You will way the fat and pay you for it. You want weenies instead of money. Catch them. Save waste fat to make explosives. Look for the insignia in your meat dealer window. Who doesnt want to save your fat to bring mickey home. It was not just patriotic but it was also educating americans on what they needed to do and how they needed to do it. Everybody gets in on the action. Almost everybody. As with all things, there is going to be a bit of innovative thinking on how to skirt the rationing system. There is a black market that develops for rationed items. Some people will also produce counterfeit ration coupons and try to get more than their fair share. Other ways of skirting the system would be for people to sell cuts of meat that did not meet government standards for fat content. Throughout the war, only about 7 of retailers were ever charged with violations of rationing. Estimates are, it was probably higher than that. That is a hard number. Far fewer were convicted. For those that were, they were only asked to pay small fines. It did not become a major deterrent for the black market. It did exist. Overall, americas use of food throughout world war ii was a big help to the success and that of us helping las and eventually enemies at the end of the war to make sure the transition from wartime two piece time went misle. We will pause for a couple of minutes for questions and answers and then we will get into lesson ideas. Dont have a special section on the