Are there any examples of German propaganda / public information posters exhorting people to be frugal with foodstuffs?
The British Ministry of Food put a lot of effort into presenting rationing as a virtue and giving tips on how to make a little go a long way.
I've yet to find anything similar from the German Home Front. Any links gratefully received.
Civilian Food Rationing
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martin_sole
- Member
- Posts: 2
- Joined: 10 Mar 2015, 12:30
- Location: UK
Re: Civilian Food Rationing
This is the only one so far
But that's more about guilt tripping hoarders than the virtues of parsimomy
But that's more about guilt tripping hoarders than the virtues of parsimomy
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CRAIG CARR
- Member
- Posts: 113
- Joined: 07 Oct 2009, 22:07
Re: Civilian Food Rationing
Dear Martin,
My mother just turned 91 and grew up in Berlin.As a present for her birthday, I took all the surviving family fotos of our now deceased relatives and assembled them by year and captioned them with their oral histories of what they saw and barely survived daily. The Hamsterin poster you show is in my mothers album as it was posted as a reminder of not bartering with ration stamps.The first 3 months it was slapped onto Berlin buildings.most people thought it was a cute and silly warning of a cute Hamster hausfrau on her daily shopping gathering bargains of things 99% of the public couldn't get any way... as the Reich's Ministry of Nourishment would never have allowed the things she is carrying in her arms.
By illustration, every Berliner was supposed to be entitled to ONE egg per person per week...the reality was.. 3 out of 4 weeks there were no eggs. Milk was rationed at one CUP per person a week.If you were 14 and under.. you got whole milk. If you were older you were given blue white water stripped of all mineral and calcium.. and it was called "magermilsch". It tasted so awful, my mother swore off milk for the rest of her life. As for the poster's humorous depiction.. at six months, it became a death penalty offense,my mother saw neighbors hung from street lamps coming home from school with a "hoarder" sign hung around their necks...pretty terrifying buit a very fast public message of enforcement if one violated the never ending new laws passed weekly. .
If you look in the album, you will see a Reichkart ID without which you couldn't buy anything from anyone.You will also see some food ration cards and the very limited amounts they allowed per person..if the stores were not sold out. I also duplicated in labelled pedastal jars the exact amount the ration cards issued to a civilian..Loaves of bread were made with "fillers" by 1943... that included sawdust and wallpaper paste..that is not a joke. With no refrigerators, shopping was an every other day necessity. Maybe you will find it of interest. http://picasaweb.google.com/anne.loftin/SiegHell#
I am still adding to the album as I write as I think it is very important that we save the memories of eyewitnesses to history like my mother.. kindest regards/mit freundlischen Grussen. CRAIG.. and Happy New Year to you.
.
My mother just turned 91 and grew up in Berlin.As a present for her birthday, I took all the surviving family fotos of our now deceased relatives and assembled them by year and captioned them with their oral histories of what they saw and barely survived daily. The Hamsterin poster you show is in my mothers album as it was posted as a reminder of not bartering with ration stamps.The first 3 months it was slapped onto Berlin buildings.most people thought it was a cute and silly warning of a cute Hamster hausfrau on her daily shopping gathering bargains of things 99% of the public couldn't get any way... as the Reich's Ministry of Nourishment would never have allowed the things she is carrying in her arms.
By illustration, every Berliner was supposed to be entitled to ONE egg per person per week...the reality was.. 3 out of 4 weeks there were no eggs. Milk was rationed at one CUP per person a week.If you were 14 and under.. you got whole milk. If you were older you were given blue white water stripped of all mineral and calcium.. and it was called "magermilsch". It tasted so awful, my mother swore off milk for the rest of her life. As for the poster's humorous depiction.. at six months, it became a death penalty offense,my mother saw neighbors hung from street lamps coming home from school with a "hoarder" sign hung around their necks...pretty terrifying buit a very fast public message of enforcement if one violated the never ending new laws passed weekly. .
If you look in the album, you will see a Reichkart ID without which you couldn't buy anything from anyone.You will also see some food ration cards and the very limited amounts they allowed per person..if the stores were not sold out. I also duplicated in labelled pedastal jars the exact amount the ration cards issued to a civilian..Loaves of bread were made with "fillers" by 1943... that included sawdust and wallpaper paste..that is not a joke. With no refrigerators, shopping was an every other day necessity. Maybe you will find it of interest. http://picasaweb.google.com/anne.loftin/SiegHell#
I am still adding to the album as I write as I think it is very important that we save the memories of eyewitnesses to history like my mother.. kindest regards/mit freundlischen Grussen. CRAIG.. and Happy New Year to you.
.