Brown Bread for Victory: German and British Wholemeal Politics in the Inter-War Period

Bread is more than a foodstuff: it is a symbol of life. Its cultural status not only includes the Christian promise of brotherhood and equality of mankind, but bread consumption also marks crucial differences between individuals, social groups, and nations. This chapter will analyse a short but important episode in the history of consumption. During the two world wars bread was still the most important foodstuff in the European diet. It was a decisive resource in conflict and for victory. While the First World War was a testing field both for strategists and nutritionists, intensified research and cultural anxieties moved bread to the top of the social and political agenda of the Second World War.1 The type of bread and the efficiency of bread policy were understood to be central for individual health, social efficiency, and national strength. This chapter will concentrate on wholemeal bread policy and compare the efforts of the main European powers, Germany and Great Britain, in the inter-war period.