On 28th August 1939 the German people were surprised by the introduction of ration cards. Main food (meat, lard, coffee and sugar) were only to be obtained by using ration cards. From 25th September that year, bread and eggs were rationed as well. The NSDAP officials hoped to prevent a famine as seen in World War I by starting this rationing scheme well in advance.
In the first part of World War II, the "Normalverbraucher" (average consumer) received for example up to 700 grams of meat or items made from meat like sausages; 280 grams sugar; 110 grams jam; 2400 grams of bread; 270 grams lard/cooking oil and 1/5 liter of milk a week. 20 grams of tea and 62,5 grams of "Ersatz-Kaffee" could be obtained monthly. Potatoes and vegetables could be obtained without a ration card.
The ration scheme reduced the use of meat and lard by half on contrast to 1937. Heavy duty workers, children and teenagers and pregnant women would be granted a special allowance.
Soon tobacco and spirits were heavily taxed with the so called "Kriegssondersteuer", which was 20% of the shop price.
People started to fill up their store cupboards, which was frowned upon.
Big companies like Robert Bosch in Stuttgart had to adjust the daily menues for their workers.
" In peace time we served two meals a day, one for 45 Pfennigs and one for 70 Pfennigs. Since war has started we only offer one meal at the cost of 30 Pfennigs."
A weekly menue of their 30 Pfennigs menues:
Monday: Peasoup with sausages and a bread roll Tuesday: Fried Spaghetti with gravy and potatoe salad Wednesday: Meat Loaf with turnips and potatoes Thursday: "Leberkäse" with potatoe salad Friday: Soup, fried potatoes and beetroot
During the war the meat ration went down to 300 grams and lard was reduced to roughly 200 grams. A diet based on protein and fat was changing to a diet based on bread and vegetable based products. The quality of food, especially of bread, was going down. Shop keepers did play tricks with the scales here and there, which lead to heated discussions with the consumer. Cues in front of shops, "Warteschlangen" became an everyday sight, unknown to rural farming areas like the Bayrische Wald. There people only knew about the hunger of families in Hamburg or the Ruhrgebiet by hearsay, by evacuees from the "Kinderlandverschickung" for example. The bombing of the cities and important transport lines played an important part in the decrease of supplies.
In spring 1945 the "Normalverbraucher" was entitled to 250 grams of meat and 125 grams of lard and 1700 grams of poor quality bread. Health was deteriorating and bitterness arose. Corruption grew, although being punished severely, black market and swapping goods were ways of obtaining what was needed. "Hamsterfahrten", trips from cities to rural farm areas to get as many goods as possible and to carry them home in full pockets like a hamster would, were another solution to get food supplies.
A police report states:
".....in the Alpen and Donau area one can swap 1 packet of tobacco for 500 grams of bacon or 500 grams of butter and 1cigarette equals 1 egg. In rural areas around Hamburg one can find a swapping scheme based on peace time prices: 1 goose can be swapped for 3 bottles of brandy. In the Danzig area 50 grams meat equal 10 cigarettes and 5 grams of lard can be obtained for 1 cigarette."
Improvisation in the kitchen was a must for every mother in those days. For example, stinging nettles were used instead of spinach or made as a soup. Bread was made more filling by using saw dust.
With the end of World War II real hunger reached the German people when the allied forces tried to spread the remaining food supplies equally over Europe. To secure a fair system, the ration card for food was essential and hence being in use till October 1950.
Here a picture of a very special kind of ration card, something every soldier would have loved to have held in his hand
the "Reichskußkarte", the ration card for kisses of all kinds.
