WHY WE SHOULD SAVE FOOD AND FUEL

In the great city of Rome in Italy there sits an International Grain Bureau composed of men representing the various countries in sympathy with the Allies. To this Bureau each nation sends regular reports on its probable production of wheat, oats, barley, rice, and other cereals. Having summed up the amounts given in these reports, this Bureau is able to estimate the total of cereal food available and to calculate how far this food will go towards supplying the needs of the Allies. Because of the effect of war conditions on the production of food it is almost certain that, during the coming winter, millions of poor people in Russia, Poland, Serbia, and Rumania will starve to death. Moreover, France, Italy, and even Great Britain are going to be very scarce of bread and other foods, unless we in Canada and the United States are willing to save as much food as possible.

Why is food scarce? Millions of men who were formerly engaged in tilling the land or in assisting in other ways in food production are now fighting on the battlefields or are sick, wounded, or dead. And even the battlefields themselves were, before the war, fertile farms producing great quantities of grains and vegetables. Again, many men have been taken from food production to work in the factories to make materials required to carryon the war successfully. As a result, old men, women, boys, and girls have had to work in the fields and, since they are not skilled farmers, the crops in many parts of the world are not as good as formerly. It has been impossible, moreover, during the war to obtain a sufficient supply of fertilizers, and as a result the land is becoming less and less productive every year. Further, in Russia and the Balkans much less food is being produced on account of the unsettled conditions of these countries. Think, too, of the thousands of tons of food that have been sent to the bottom of the ocean by German submarines.
Not only is less food being produced, but a good part of that which is produced is not available on account of the lack of means of transporting it. For example, Australia has several years wheat stored up in the country because it is impossible to obtain ships to transport the grain to those requiring it. For a similar reason sugar is scarce in Canada; ships of all kinds must be used to transport men and materials to the battle fronts.

Our soldiers are being better fed than many of them were before the war. They probably eat much more nutritious food than they did in times of peace. And do they not need it? Do they not deserve it? On them Canada's safety depends. They must not feel the scarcity of food. Shall we not gladly save food, eat less, be more careful to avoid waste, so that our defenders may have enough? Most people are accustomed to eat more than is necessary to keep them strong and healthy. Saving food not only improves health but it helps directly in winning the war. For example, if fewer ships are needed to carry food, more ships are available to transport American soldiers to Europe; and the more rapidly these soldiers are landed in France, the more quickly will the war be won. Besides, if less food were needed, many workers now engaged in producing food could devote themselves to the production of munitions for war.

For very similar reasons we should save fuel. So many men have been taken from the coal mines to fight and to work at munitions that it is not possible to mine as much coal as before. Since factories for the production of war material have sprung up all over Canada and the United States, much more coal is required to keep them running. The following are a few good reasons why we should save fuel:-(l) because less coal is being mined, (2) because more coal is required for manufacturing war materials, (3) because, if the railroads are not required to carry so much coal to be used as fuel in houses, they can transport troops and munitions more rapidly, and (4) because if coal is saved, money is saved, and money is needed for winning the war.

Source:  Chapter 6, The Canada War Book (1918)