Minister of Food facts for kids
The Minister of Food Control (from 1916 to 1921) and the Minister of Food (from 1939 to 1958) were special government jobs in Britain. These roles were separate from the Minister of Agriculture.
During the First World War, the Ministry of Food Control helped set up places called National Kitchens. These kitchens provided meals for people. In the Second World War, a big part of the Ministry's job was to manage rationing in the United Kingdom. This was needed because of the war. A special helper called the Parliamentary Secretary worked with the Minister.
More recently, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Food and Animal Welfare was created in 2018. This person worked in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Their job was to make sure Britain always had enough food, especially during the Brexit process. This role has been empty since 2019.
After the First World War, in 1921, the Ministry's work moved to the Board of Trade. This Board had a small Food Department between the wars. In 1937, it became the Food (Defence Plans) Department. Then, when the Second World War started in 1939, it officially became the Ministry of Food again.
Jamie's Ministry of Food was a TV show in the UK in 2008. It featured a famous chef named Jamie Oliver. The show tried to do what the original Ministry of Food did: encourage people to eat healthy food.
Contents
Food During the Second World War
In April 1940, a well-known businessman named Lord Woolton became the Minister of Food. He was chosen by the Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain. Lord Woolton stayed in this job until 1943.
He was in charge of 50,000 workers and more than a thousand local offices. People could go to these offices to get their ration cards. His Ministry controlled almost all the food sold in Britain, whether it came from other countries or was grown at home. His main goal was to make sure everyone had enough to eat.
Food supplies were cut a lot because of enemy attacks and the needs of the armed forces. So, rationing was very important. Lord Woolton and his team first thought of one way to ration food. But then, experts suggested a "point rationing" system. With this system, everyone got a certain number of points each month. They could use these points to buy any food they wanted. They tried it out, and it worked very well. In fact, food rationing was a big success story for Britain during the war.
In June 1940, when there was a threat of a German invasion, Lord Woolton told everyone not to worry. He said there were emergency food supplies that would last "for weeks and weeks," even if ships couldn't get through. He also mentioned "iron rations" that were stored for very serious emergencies. Other food supplies were kept outside cities that might be bombed. When the Blitz (heavy bombing) started in late 1940, he was ready. He set up over 200 feeding stations in London and other cities under attack.
Lord Woolton had to manage rationing because there wasn't enough food during the war. He believed it wasn't enough just to tell people what they couldn't have. He also needed to advertise and explain why rationing was important. He warned that meat, cheese, bacon, and eggs were in very short supply. He said they would stay that way. He asked people to eat simpler meals. He pointed out that there was plenty of bread, potatoes, vegetable oils, fats, and milk. He even asked a mathematician, Martin Roseveare, to help design the ration books.
In 1940, Lord Woolton opened Advice Centres all over the country. These centres offered cooking demonstrations and recipe leaflets. They showed people how to make the most of their food rations. When wheat from other countries became hard to get, a cartoon character called 'Potato Pete' encouraged people to eat more potatoes.
By January 1941, the amount of food coming from overseas had dropped by half. But by 1942, lots of food started arriving through a program called Lend Lease from the U.S. and a similar program from Canada. Lend Lease was a gift, so there was no charge. Most food was now rationed.
Lord Woolton was worried about children. By 1942, he made sure that 650,000 children in Britain got free meals at school. About 3.5 million children also received milk at school. They also got extra milk at home. The bad news was that his "national loaf" of soft, grey wholemeal bread replaced the usual white bread. Most housewives didn't like it. Children were also sad because there were fewer sweets. This was to save shipping space for sugar and chocolate.
Lord Woolton also kept food prices low. Eggs and other items were made cheaper by the government. He promoted recipes that worked well with the rationing system. The most famous was the meatless "Woolton pie". This pie was made of carrots, parsnips, potatoes, and turnips mixed with oatmeal. It had a pastry or potato crust and was served with brown gravy. Lord Woolton's business skills helped the Ministry of Food do its difficult job well. He became very popular, even though there were food shortages.
Ministers of Food Control (1916–1921)
These people served as the Minister of Food Control during and after the First World War.
| Name | Portrait | Term of office | Political party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Lord Devonport |  |
10 December 1916 | 19 June 1917 | Liberal | |
| The Lord Rhondda |  |
19 June 1917 | 3 July 1918 | Liberal | |
| J. R. Clynes | .jpg) |
9 July 1918 | 10 January 1919 | Labour | |
| George Roberts |  |
10 January 1919 | 19 March 1920 | Labour | |
| Charles McCurdy |  |
19 March 1920 | 31 March 1921 | Liberal | |
After 1921, the responsibilities of this role moved to the Board of Trade until 1939.
Ministers of Food (1939–1958)
These people served as the Minister of Food during and after the Second World War.
| Name | Portrait | Term of office | Political party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W. S. Morrison (later Viscount Dunrossil) |
 |
4 September 1939 | 3 April 1940 | Conservative | |
| The Lord Woolton |  |
3 April 1940 | 11 November 1943 | Independent | |
| Colonel J. J. Llewellin (later Lord Llewellin) |
 |
11 November 1943 | 26 July 1945 | Conservative | |
| Sir Ben Smith |  |
3 August 1945 | 26 May 1946 | Labour | |
| John Strachey |  |
27 May 1946 | 28 February 1950 | Labour | |
| Maurice Webb |
|
28 February 1950 | 26 October 1951 | Labour | |
| Major Gwilym Lloyd George (later Viscount Tenby) |
 |
31 October 1951 | 18 October 1954 | Liberal & Conservative | |
| Derick Heathcoat-Amory (later Viscount Amory) |
 |
18 October 1954 | 6 January 1958 | Conservative | |
Heathcoat-Amory held two jobs at once from 1954 to 1955: Minister of Agriculture & Fisheries and Minister of Food. These jobs were then combined in 1955, and he became the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Food and Animal Welfare (2018–present)
This role was created to help ensure food supply and animal welfare.
| Name | Portrait | Term of office | Political party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Rutley |  |
3 September 2018 | 27 July 2019 | Conservative | |
This position has been empty since 2019.
See also
- Rural Pie Scheme (1942)
