We love our council pigs!

Now that we’re on rations and it’s less easy to bring in food from abroad, we’re all very sensitive about waste. It’s more important than ever that we preserve food properly, and even things like potato peelings can be put to good use.

It’s now all the fashion to keep your own hens, chickens and even pigs. And if you don’t have your own animals, you can drop your food waste either at the local ‘pig club’ or drop it in the council pig bin.

The pig clubs are run on a co-operative basis, and they’re a wonderful way to increase the amount of meat available to the community. Even His Majesty King George VI has joined a pig club – it really is all the rage!

I’ve managed to get hold of some photos for you. Below, WVS (Women’s Voluntary Service) salvage workers Kathleen Kent (left) and Winifred Jordan are collecting a pig food bin from outside some houses. They are just about to empty the salvaged kitchen scraps into their trailer. On the side of the trailer is the painting of a cartoon pig, preparing to eat, which is the emblem of the pig food campaign.



And in the below photo, members of the East Barnet WVS pig food collection unit watch as a group of Large White pigs enjoy their evening meal, made from the salvaged kitchen scraps they have collected.



And here’s one of the local girls giving a helping hand!

Just Add Water!

Adding water, left, right and centre!

You can see more food flashes like this on the "youtube"!

Rations

There's been a rationing system for quite some time now. Not sure if you’ve got something similar in 2009, but it’s a big part of our life here. It’s hard figuring out how to keep varied meals on the table, but we can rise to the challenge!

Most adults get this much each week (soldiers and their families get more):

• Bacon and ham: 4ozs (100g)
• Meat to the value of 1s.2d (I gather that’s £1.50 in your day). Sausages and offal aren’t included in the ration, but they are difficult to obtain.
• Butter: 2ozs (50g)
• Cheese: 2ozs (50g)
• Margarine: 4ozs (100g)
• Cooking fat: 4ozs (100g). Sometimes this goes down to 2ozs, though.
• Milk: 3 pints, sometimes dropping to 2 pints. You can get dried milk as well, though.
• Sugar: 8ozs (225g)
• Preserves: 1lb (450g) every two months
• Tea: 2ozs (50g)
• Eggs: 1 egg a week, but sometimes there’s a shortage. We get one packet of dried eggs every four weeks.
• Sweets: 12ozs (350g) every four weeks

It’s amazing what you take for granted until you can’t have as much as you want. Fortunately, the Ministry of Information has created a book called Wise Eating in Wartime which helps us make the most of things.

We’re all short of food, so most people look for other ways to bring in more. I’ve already mentioned an allotment, that’s one good way. There’s a healthy black market and barter system (a not-quite-legal way of getting round rationing!). And Doris, who lives on my street, works at a local restaurant and has been known to smuggle salmon home in her underwear! Honestly, the lengths some people go to...