Rationing on the Homefront, Part 2

In today’s post we’re taking a look at some of the popular ad campaigns about rationing in WWII. These focused on public awareness of and participation in the war efforts. All the characters in A Season for the Heart would have been very familiar with these.

Do With Less, So They’ll Have Enough

The military needed more than guns and ammunition to do its job. Soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airmen had to be fed. The Army’s standard K ration included chocolate bars and chewing gum, which were produced in huge numbers. Sugar cane was needed for these items and also for producing gunpowder, dynamite, and other chemical products. Consequently, cocoa and sugar were rationed to civilians, along with many other foods such as meat and coffee. Local rationing boards issued coupons to consumers that entitled them to a limited supply of rationed items.

Food for Victory

To help offset the hardships of rationing, the government launched a “Food for Victory campaign that encouraged civilians to conserve and also produce more food. Growing your own vegetables and fruits and eating leftovers became a patriotic duty. Victory gardens were soon widespread, growing on farms, in backyards, on city rooftops, in window-boxes, on public lands and parks, and in vacant lots. Home canning became popular, and Victory Cookbooks offered recipes and tips for making the most of rationed foods. 

By the time the war was over in 1945, American Victory Gardeners had grown between 8 and 10 million tons of food. Victory Gardens freed up agricultural produce, packaging, and transportation resources for the war effort and helped offset shortages of agricultural workers. The program fostered morale, patriotism, and a sense of community as well as improving the health of participants through improved nutrition and physical activity. 

Make It do or Do Without

War production created shortages of many critical supplies. For example, canteens are standard military equipment. Millions were produced during the war, most made of steel or aluminum, metals that were also used to make everything from ammunition to ships. Copper was another key metal used in many war-related products. 

To meet the demand for metals and many other needed products, Americans salvaged scrap from basements, backyards, and attics. Old cars, bed frames, radiators, pots, pipes, tin, rubber, nylon, rags, paper, silk, and string were just some of the items gathered at “scrap drives” throughout the United States. In 1943 the US Mint started making pennies out of steel instead of copper and also removed nickel from 5-cent coins. 

Save Waste Fat for Explosives

One of the most important manufacturing priorities of World War II was producing ammunition for weapons. A key ingredient of explosives is glycerin. Americans were encouraged to save household waste fat, which was used to make it. 

Share Your Cars and Spare Your Tires

America’s military needed millions of tires for jeeps, trucks, and other vehicles, which required rubber, and lots of it. Japan’s invasion of Southeast Asia, cut the United States off from one of its chief sources of this critical raw product. The government addressed the rubber shortage in a number of ways. Synthetic rubber filled some of the gaps. Speed limits and gas rationing forced people to limit their driving, reducing wear and tear on tires. Civilians were encouraged to carpool and contribute rubber scrap for recycling.

Dollars for Defense

To help pay for the war the government increased corporate and personal income taxes and instituted a federal income tax with a system of payroll deductions. In 1939 fewer than 8 million people filed individual income tax returns. In 1945 nearly 50 million filed. The government also borrowed money by selling war bonds to the public. With consumer goods in short supply, Americans invested their money into bonds and savings accounts.