Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food
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Authors: Lizzie Collingham
Tags: #History, #Modern, #20th Century, #Military, #World War II
The Taste of War
The Taste of War
World War II and the Battle for Food
LIZZIE COLLINGHAM
THE PENGUIN PRESS
NEW YORK
2012
THE PENGUIN PRESS
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA • Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P 2Y3 (a division of Pearson Canada Inc.) • Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England • Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd) • Penguin Books Australia Ltd, 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd) • Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi – 110 017, India • Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd) • Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First American edition
Published in 2012 by The Penguin Press,
a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
Copyright © Lizzie Collingham, 2011
All rights reserved
Illustration credits appear on pages xi–xii.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION DATA
Collingham, E. M. (Elizabeth M.)
The taste of war : World War Two and the battle for food / Lizzie Collingham.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN: 978-1-101-56131-7
1. World War, 1939–1945—Food supply. 2. Food supply—History—20th century. 3. Food security—History—20th century. 4. Nutrition policy—History—20th century. 5. Starvation—History—20th century. 6. Food habits—History—20th century. 7. War and society—History—20th century. I. Title. II. Title: World War Two and the battle for food.
HD9000.5.C624 2012
940.53′1—dc23
2011043783
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
ALWAYS LEARNING
PEARSON
For Sarah
Contents
Defeat, hunger and the legacy of the First World War
Herbert Backe and the Hunger Plan
A radical answer to rural crisis
One million households in Manchuria
From meat to bread and potatoes
American dried egg and Argentinian corned beef
Frozen meat versus men and arms
7 Mobilizing the British Empire
West Africa and the dollar deficit
The occupation of western Europe
Greek famine and Belgian resilience
9 Germany Exports Hunger to the East
Food confiscation in the Ukraine
11 Japan’s Journey towards Starvation
Chaos and hunger in the empire
13 Japan – Starving for the Emperor
Healthy eating as a patriotic virtue
14 The Soviet Union – Fighting on Empty
15 Germany and Britain – Two Approaches to Entitlement
1930s Britain – a nutritional divide
1930s Germany – the campaign for nutritional freedom
Feeding the British working classes
Feeding the German war machine
The German cities – hungry but not starving
16 The British Empire – War as Welfare
Dr Carrot – guarding the British nation’s health
Health and morale – the Army Catering Corps
Fighting on bully beef and biscuits
Nutritional reconditioning – the Indian army
17 The United States – Out of Depression and into
Australia – food processing for victory
American plenty versus European relief
The shape of the post-war food world
A Selective Chronology of the Second World War
List of Illustrations
1.
‘State Secretary Herbert Backe. Reich Minister for Food and Agriculture, NSDAP.’ 2 June 1942. Bundesarchiv: Bild 183–J02034.
2.
‘A re-settled Polish family (Matschak) from Skaradsch.’ Photographer Wilhelm Holtfreter,
c
. 1939–41. Bundesarchiv: R-49 Bild-0129.
3.
Ours to fight for. Freedom from want.
Poster of an original painting by Norman Perceval Rockwell published by the Division of Public Inquiries, Office of War Information, US Government Printing Office, offset lithograph on paper, 71 × 50.9 cm. Australian War Memorial: ARTV00185.
4.
Potatoes set our shipping free.
British poster issued by the Ministry of Agriculture,
c
. 1939–45. HMSO, James Haworth & Brother, offset lithograph on paper, 74.6 × 49.6 cm. Australian War Memorial: ARTV01561.
5.
Hamster – shame on you!
Poster by Max Eschle. Published by the Reich Propaganda Department, NSDAP. December 1939. Bundesarchiv: Plak 003–023–077.
6.
‘France, Paris. German soldiers buying cakes from a street seller with Notre Dame in the background.’ Photographer Heinz Boesig. Summer 1940. Bundesarchiv: 101I-129–0480–05A.
7.
‘The arrival of confiscated foodstuffs.’ Archive Heinrich Hoffmann, September 1942. bpk, Berlin: Bild 50073634.
8.
‘Registration of Jews. Violence against a Jewish man – mistreatment by a civilian next to a German sentry.’ Photographer Franke. June 1941. Bundesarchiv: Bild 101I-186–0160–12.
9.
‘Inhabitant of Stalingrad cooking on a makeshift oven.’ September 1942. Bundesarchiv: Bild 169–0369.
10.
‘Balikpapan, Borneo. Two Malayan natives, suffering from malnutrition after being ill-treated and starved by the Japanese, now receiving treatment at the Netherlands civil administration compound in 7 Division area.’ 10 July 1945. Australian War Memorial: 111003.
11.
‘Muchu Island, New Guinea. Japanese soldiers cooking their rations over a fire.’ 11 September 1945. Australian War Memorial: 096143.
12.
‘Papua, Sanananda area. After having been in action during which time their only food was bully beef and biscuits, these Americans prepare a hot meal – jungle stew.’ Photographer Clifford Bottomley. 27 January 1943. Australian War Memorial: 014241.
13.
‘Sandakan, North Borneo. A badly emaciated Japanese POW waiting to embark on a landing ship, Tank (LST) for the POW camp at Jesselton.’ Photographer Frank Albert Charles Burke. 26 October 1945. Australian War Memorial: 121785.
14.
‘Tokyo, Japan. A scene from one of Tokyo’s tall buildings shows evidence of the shortage of food among the people.’ 1945. Australian War Memorial: 019221.
15.
‘Tokyo Bay, Japan. Australian Navy personnel who boarded USS
Sims
(an American assault destroyer) to take part in the naval landing of Tokyo Bay enjoy the food piled up on their American mess trays. They are Leading Writer Jack Norris of Sydney, NSW, and Leading Stores Assistant Jim Cumming of Essendon, Vic.’
c
. August 1945. Australian War Memorial: 019248.
Acknowledgements
For talking or writing to me about their experiences during the war and for putting me in contact with or interviewing their friends and relatives on my behalf I would like to thank: Alison Backhouse, Dorothy Bacon, Elfreda Bayly, Jill Beattie, Teruko Blair, Richard and Margot Eickelmann, Herbert Froböse, Prof. Fujita, Reinhold Fellies, Elfriede Günter, Helmut Geidel, Doris Hallpike, Tom Kimura, Alois and Elizabeth Kleinemas, Professor Kusakabe, Mary, Doreen and Peter Laven, Jean Legas, Evdokiya Andreevna Levina, Robert Mair, Prof. Matsumoto Nakako, Elizabeth and Tony Minchin, Eva Norman, Oki, Chiyo, Catherine Oki, Clara and Emilia Olivier, Irmgard and Peter Seidel and Tosa, Mitsuhiro, Akiko and Hiroko. I would also like to thank the copyright holders of the papers held in the Imperial War Museum for permission to quote from their relatives’ memoirs. I am grateful to the staff at the Imperial War Museum, Cambridge University Library, the National Library of Australia, the Australian National Archives and the Australian War Memorial for their assistance.
Generous friends have at various times lent me their homes and spare bedrooms during the writing of this book and I am very grateful to Stephen Barton and Maureen Langham, Sarah Burwood and John Hay, Pam and Vic Gatrell, Mike and Tricia O’Brien, Clare and Simon Redfern, Tim, Jan and Anna Rowse, Peter and Becky Ryan and Lionel and Deirdre Ward. I am especially grateful to Fiona, Andrew, Ali and Sarah Blake for providing me with a quiet room of my own and sustaining meals and conversation during a stressful period in the writing process.
Interesting conversations as well as helpful suggestions and assistance in finding information were provided by friends and
colleagues. I would like to thank Clare Alexander, Olaf Blaschke, Steven Bullard, Adrian Caesar, John Cornwell, Joanna Cwiertka, Peter Garnsey, Sophie Gilmartin, Gu∂mundur Jonsson, Tsuchihashi Kenichiro, Barack Kushner, David Lowe, Veronique Mottier, Rachel Murphy, Mogens Rostgaard Nissen, Keith Richmond, Richard Overy, Tim Rowse, Wendy Way and Hans-Ulrich Wehler. In particular I would like to thank those who read and commented on the manuscript: Chris Bayly, Paul Brassley, Helen Conford, Adam Tooze, Rebecca Earle, Mike O’Brien and Rana Mitter. I am very grateful to Geoff Dunn for devising the maps. Thanks are also due to Rikin Trivedi and his team.
Finally, I am indebted to my sister, Sarah, for endlessly re-reading the manuscript and for generous help and cheerful support. Thomas Seidel knows how much I owe him and I especially thank him for his assistance with the research as well as his willingness to engage in discussion and for always asking challenging questions.