| In
his article on PGS during the war, Rod
Crook commented on food supply. Also, the
report of the VE day tea party has the
author enthusing over ham sandwiches and
fancy cakes. Today, one might be tempted
to consider this as satire, but I can
assure you it was not. The sentiments are
real - I was there! The occasion was
indeed a huge 'one off' treat, a really
special occasion. It was, for instance,
through the period of sugar rationing,
illegal for bakers to put icing on any
cakes they were able to produce, though
you could ice them at home - if (a very
big if) you could find the sugar. More
information on what was available during
the war seems appropriate in the context
of these other items on the site. In Britain,
people did not go hungry as they did on
the Continent, but food was extremely
limited as well as being dull and
monotonous. Rationing was introduced to
ensure that everyone regardless of income
or circumstance was given a fair share of
whatever food was available. This was a
new and different principle from that of
rationing by the purse as in the 'hungry
thirties'. That the system worked well
despite the difficulties of bombing, the
U-boat blockade and so on was, in fact, a
remarkable achievement of planning and
collective effort with which the name of
Lord Woolton, the Minister of Food, will
for ever be associated. So what did we
have, and when did rationing start and
finish? Details varied from time to time,
but the table gives the general picture.
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