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World War 2 Rations
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Here is a piece I thought you all might find interesting. The following depicts the rations during World War 2 in Great Britain, rationing did not end completely until the 1950s even though the war ended in 1945. When we complain today about how little we have perhaps this will open our eyes a bit – my mum abd dad told me a lot about rationing growing up, but it is a concept forgotten by today’s generation. Resourcefulness was the word of the day back then and people did well, the population in general were healthier under rationing than they are today, and if you look carefully you will see that is likely because there was no junk food, only good wholesome food. Hope you find it interesting and eye opening.
One Person’s Weekly Food Allowance
4oz (113g)
lard or butter
12oz (340g)
sugar
4oz (113g)
bacon
2
eggs
6oz (170g)
meat
2oz (57g)
tea
Vegetables were not rationed but were often in short supply. People who had gardens were encouraged to plant vegetables instead of flowers. The government called this ‘Digging for Victory’ and produced posters to persuade people that they were helping to win the war by planting vegetables.
The only fruit that was available was that grown in Britain e.g. apples, pears, and strawberries. Bananas, oranges, peaches and other imported fruit were not available at all.
Dried egg powder was available and was used to make scrambled eggs.
Clothes Rationing
Everyone was given a book of 66 coupons to use to buy new clothes for one year.
This was cut to 48 in 1942 and 36 in 1943. Each item of clothing cost a certain number of coupons.
Item
Men
Women
Children
Raincoat
16
15
11
Overcoat
7
7
4
Jacket
13
12
8
Shirt/Blouse
5
4
3
Jumper/Cardigan
5
5
3
Trousers
8
8
6
Shorts
3
3
2
Skirt
8
6
Boots/Shoes
7
5
3
Nightdress/Pyjamas
8
6
6
Underpants/Knickers/Vest
3
3
2
Socks/Stockings
2
2
1
Second hand clothes were not rationed and children’s clothes were handed down from one child to the next or sold on to other families. The government used the slogan ‘Mend and Make Do’ to encourage people to repair or patch torn or worn clothes.
My mom has a couple of ration books from that time still. (She was a child in England in the war). Yes, it is eye opening.
btw – there was rationing in Canada during the war too – not to the same extent (and there were a few things that were luxuries in comparison to Englands rations… like ice cream…)
Thank you for posting this! WOW. It really does make you think about how hard it must have been to manage a family under such restrictions. And a valuable lesson on superfluous living. I read Fancis Chan’s Crazy Love and it made me see how rich we really are. How we really do have so many blessings and yet we worry so much about unneccesary things. I am inspired by the thought of this all.
Yes I know the US had rations as well, but not as austere as back home, and it took GB a long time to get back to a normal way of life. We expect so much now and yet they managed well on those meagre rations – amazing. If you can cook from scratch, you can do a lot with a little – my mum taught me that. Linda
It also explains why the children would follow soldiers (from Canada or US) around saying “Got any gum, chum?”
Probably also explains the number of women that dated US or Canadian Soldiers too……
A few years ago (8 or 9?) there were a bunch of TV shows with families volunteering to live like the people from another time for a while (I think doctors would regularily check their health etc…)
There was one – I think it was called “The 40’s House” or something like that with a family that was living pretty much like a family in England during the war. It was eye opening.
There was one with Canadian Voyageurs, One with a couple of families living on the prairie of Canada like about 1840 (saw most of that one)… and I think another from the dark ages….?
There seemed to be a lot of these shows on for one single year…..
Maybe they were mostly Canadian shows? I think the one from the 40’s house was a British show though….. wonder if it is possible to find them to watch again.
The one in the England for wartime, I remember things like them painting a black line in the tub to show how much water they could have in it (NOT MUCH)… them putting up the dark curtains on the windows for a blackout…. their rations getting cut, the mom having to take on a job to help the war effort (her child that wasn’t school aged had to be watched by the grandma who was living with them….) etc. These things were over several episodes…..
That is for sure – the US and Canadian troops had far more than their allied friends and those US/Can servicemen stationed in GB were very popular, likely because they had the means to spoil a lady and the GB troops did not, also because they were a novelty – something different. It did cause bad feeling as well – however that was life then, it was very hard, but that is where the British spirit came from, just get one with it and the stiff upper lip type thing. My mum was German and my dad English, so I experienced both sides through them and that made life interesting – I understood far more about those times having a parent on opposite sides of the fence – it was an interesting glimpse into life in both countries. Linda
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