Virtual Homefront Festival: Rationing

Did you notice the lack of supplies in the aisles of supermarkets this past spring?

The lack of items and limiting the number purchased is not new to the United States during crisis. During World War II, country wide rationing was implemented to make sure that everyone had enough. Learn more about this system and try your hand with shopping with rations and making ration-era recipes below.

“Shopping with Rations” Video
Have you noticed the lack of supplies in the aisles of supermarkets lately? The lack of items and limiting the number purchased is not new to the United States during crisis. During World War II, country wide rationing was implemented to make sure that everyone had enough. Learn more about this system and try your hand with shopping with rations during this program.
Activities and Resources:

Piggly Wiggly Rationing Activity

Try this activity on your own, or while you watch the “Shopping with Rations” video above!

Learning about Life in the 1940s through WWII Ration Recipes

In this article, the National Museum of American History tried a few recipes from the 1940s to learn more about life during the war.

Collection of Wartime Recipes

Try your hand at a WWII ration-era recipe! Over the years, our education staff has tried dozens of recipes from the war and posted them to our blog.