Shoah |Ghettos |Camps | Lebensraum |Facts & History
Introduction: Starving to Death
I always want to accumulate. My wife says, “The fridge is full.
There's no room.” I said to her, “I feel more secure. I feel the security.” But
this is what I feel. Yeah, and this is in the household of most survivors, and
you can't help it. Even in the plenty of America, I'm still a Holocaust
survivor, and I still feel the hunger is, the accumulation is… concern it is for
me. I feel it. (I. F.)
The feeding of a national population during wartime is not a small thing. An enemy bent on victory at any cost will make the food supply of a populace a main target: it is always the innocent that suffer the most. By then end of WWII; the major cities of Europe were in ruins: it was not only the victims of the holocaust in the death camps who were starving to death, but the inhabitants of ruined cities. When roads and highways are bombed, food supplies cannot be easily brought in: foodstuffs in bombed markets ruin quickly. Water supplies, if they can even be found, are often contaminated and unfit for drinking.
The FOOD OF EUROPE:BEFORE THE WAR
Before the second world war began in Europe, Western Europe for the
most part was able to feed itself adequately, even in the Post World I
recession/depression that lead to the collapse of the weak German Weimar
Republic. In the Soviet Union massive social and political changes were
underway: government control of farming and food, lead to famine and
hardship, & was used as political leverage by Stalin and his
predecessors; as political propaganda by those seeking to stop the spread
of communism. Some areas were particularly blessed with abundance, such as
the Ukraine, which was nicknamed 'the breadbasket of Europe' and Belgium
which because of its stable foreign ties and regions had a solid economy
before during and after the war, at least more than most of Europe.
(Farming was also successful in the region). All in all pre-war Europe,
while still experiencing the difficulties of depressed post-WWI economies,
still managed to feed itself adequately, although perhaps not in the
abundance of pre-WWI days. Europe was not new to the concept of famine: in
the latter half of the 1800s, the potato famine and food shortages in the
British Isles were well-known causing many to expatriate to the United
States. Still by the beginning of the 20th century, most of Europe was
adequately if not fully fed, and most countries met their own needs or
relied on exports to meet the needs of their populaces.
FOOD SHORTAGES, RESTRICTIONS & CHANGES
 For all,
in any major war, food shortages and restrictions occur, as well as what
types of foods are available and what nature they take. Their is an old
adage that the best foodstuffs to invest in are luxury items: when times
get tough, basic necessities may be in short supply, but luxury items such
as alcohol and candy are often in high demand. In WWII even in the United
States, dietary habits and food availability changed. In the U.S., Britain
and elsewhere, "ration coupons" were issued: they specified how much and
what kind of foods people could buy: for example, sugar, in short supply
was extremely limited, so a family might be able to buy 3-5 lbs a month
and would need a food coupon for purchase. The coupons were not used like
food stamps, which act as a form of money, but as "permission-slip" to buy
certain types and amounts of food. Food ration booklets were distributed,
even in the Jewish Ghettos of Europe. Because food was so scarce, often
the deaths of loved ones were hidden or obscured in order for the family
to continue collecting their rations. One of the main function of the
Resistance movements in certain countries was to hide Jewish citizens and
help them escape from the Nazis: in order to feed them, ration books were
often forged or stolen.
Another occurrence was the substitution of lesser food products for
traditional ones which were no longer available. Many of these products in
Europe were referred to as 'Ersatz' referring to a cheap version of the
product. For example an 'ersatz' coffee was made, not tasting as good as
regular coffee, but used in the same way and 'better than nothing'. In
America, products such as "Luzianne" coffee, or coffee mixed with chicory
became popular, although some of those products today are just as
expensive as regular products. The introduction of "Oleo" our first form
of margarine became popularized for those missing dairy butter: in the
beginning, oleo came in a packet with white shortening and yellow oil in
the middle, and the product had to be mixed and kneaded to create the
substitute for butter. In order to combat severe food shortages, those still free, when possible grew "victory gardens" of tomatoes, herbs, filler foods such as squash and potatoes etc to combat slim meals: the ghettos relied almost entirely on Nazi shipments, often of old, or decaying food and left-over produce. Black-markets prevailed: sweet items such as cakes, rolls, candy and so on were either seldom or never seen because of sugar shortages, but less-than-legal marketing grew up in these areas allowing occasional purchases. Food Recipes changed also: persons in areas where food preparation was still relatively normal, became inventive in creating meals which were inexpensive and filling: often starchy in content. Casseroles, pastas, and potato dishes, with sausages and processed meats and many meatless dishes were frequent as families strived to stay within food allowances and availabilty. Food restrictions and shortages in the ghettos and camps were intentional and often cruel, and often far worse than even shortages demanded. This will be discussed in another section. As the war years came to a close and virtually millions were displaced and homeless, starvation occurred rampantly in far more than the camps and ghettos.As cities in Europe lay in rubble, normal taboos on what could be eaten or not disappeared: anything edible, including animal carcasses and grass and wildflowers became food for the starving in the rubble of Europe. OCCUPIED TERRITORIES, LEBENSRAUM & THE FEEDING OF GERMANY
As the war began formally with the invasion of Poland in 1939, Hitler
and the Reich had more in mind than mere control over other nations. The
process of Lebensraum, described
elsewhere in this site, had as its central concept, the need for expansion
of living space for the Germans: Aryanism taught that German perfection in
a Master Race was integral with being on German land: in line with the
push to increase the population of aryans, German borders had to be
expanded also for settlement.
This concept went deeper: the peoples and nations that the Germans took over, were seen as inferior: even aryans of other nations were seen as inferior with the exception of Scandinavians. The resources of occupied territories, therefore, were to be primarily for the German populace, and only secondarily for the people of the occupied territory. An excellent example is found in the Ukraine. As the War increased, as with any war, food shortages and restrictions
became pronounced. (SEE Food
Shortages)As already mentioned, in a few areas such as Belgium, the
Ukraine and xxx food was still at a fairly normal leveland farming
production was successful.As the Germans occupied those more bountiful
regions FOOD AND THE JEWS OF THE GHETTO
The Jews of the Ghettos in Poland, Belarus and Baltic states suffered greater starvation even than
the rest of Europe, although such comparisons are somewhat artificial because starvation and malnutrition
had blurred boundaries. A definitive description is also not holistic because food usage and distribution
varied by time in the war and by the region and the individual ghetto. However, using the Warsaw Ghetto as
a primary example, Jews suffered greatly next to their gentile counterparts, alloted on the average, 650-800
calories a day which consisted often of coarse bread [sometimes with sawdust as a filler], a small portion of fat,ersatz or imitation
coffee when possible made of chicory and other roots, starchy vegetables especially potatoes and turnips, with
occasional variety based upon a blackmarket and whatever was left for distribution. There was almost no meat
in the diet for the poor, which was most of the ghetto at the time. Families with workers got better portions
and even in the war in the ghetto, wealthy Jews benefited much as their outside counterparts. An example of this
is in Lodz where Rumkowski was deeply criticized by his fellow Jews for living in relative ease and caring little
for his 'charges'. Even when the Jews adapted to low-calorie diets after time, starvation still took its natural consequence: malnutrition. Because of the lack of a proper diet in addition to extremely limited caloric intake, malnutrition related diseases took hold such as scurvy and beriberi which are vitamin deficiency conditions. Since the immune system does not function normally in starvation and malnutrition, people are more susceptible to disease, hence the weakened condition coupled with other issues such as lack of clean drinking water aided bacterial related diseases and the inability to fight off others. Typhus was a constant problem in the camps and ghettos and people died daily. Since even in the ghetto hospitalization was not free, many died for lack of medical care in a viscious cycle.
FOOD AND THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS
By now most have heard of the terrible conditions in the
concentration camps or Killing Centers. While food in the ghetto was
sparse, food in the concentration camps was far worse: in most camps, the
incarcerated lived on 600 calories or less a day. Persons were often fed
only one 'definable' meal a day often in the form of a soup/stew, with a
portion of bread, which like in the ghettos often contained fillers of
semi-edible substances such as sawdust to extend portions. Some would
hoard food and food became a method of exchange or 'currency': services,
privileges or other kinds of food were bartered among inmates. What many
do not realize, though, is that food in the camps differed according to
1)gender 2)age, 3)health 4)role or vocation and 5)location of the camp.
GenderFood was distributed according to gender just as treatment was determined by gender. At most camps, men and women were separated: children either stayed with the women, were interred separately, or killed at the outset: children require more care and suffer more from malnutrition and hunger: in many camps unless it was near the war or children could be germanized, they were among the first, with pregnant women and young mothers to be exterminated. It was felt they were not useful for labor, and a burden on resources. While resources differed in some camps women and children at the least faired no better than the rest.AgeWhile this has already been alluded to, age was a determinant in amount and quality of food in the camps. The elderly, like the very young, especially in Auschwitz and the Operation Reinhard camps were often counted as lesser in distribution because of their lack of usefulness to the 'war effort'. Since many were killed upon deboarding in gas chambers, the issue of food was not as prominent for some as for other. In 'work camps', the elderly and children were sometimes used for lighter labor such as production of electronic equipment, sewing, and factory work and fed the same as others, but most 'work camps' emptied toward the end of the war into the larger killing centers.HealthHealth became such a factor in feeding, that to become ill in many of the death camps was a death sentence. While many of the camps had infirmaries or hospitals, becoming ill meant becoming unuseful: and rather than contributing to a profit, the ill became a liability, costing money for medical care and food without return. Since by 1942 the "Final Solution" of exterminating the Jews of Europe was already widely underway, any Jew or "undesireable" or resistance member who became a liability became a priority in extermination. In the armaments camp of Mittelbau Dora, when enslaved workers became too ill to work due to conditions such as hypothermia and starvation and lack of sunlight, they were sent to Nordhausen and laid in rows in sawdust in hangars, and left without food, medicines, or hygenic conditions to die. Only a few were found alive, when Nordhausen was liberated by American soldiers. (See Did the people know?) Several camps had a subcamp or portion of the camp which the sick or terminal were assigned to: prisoners knew that assignment to these 'special treatment' barracks almost always meant no food, no sanitation, no medical care and a wait till death. the ill and dying were of no use to the Third ReichRole or VocationWorkers were fed a little better than the general populace of the camps, but they were certainly not fed what a normal worker requires in calories or nutrition. Morning meals at dawn were often no more than ersatz coffee, with a small thin soup at midday. Diets varied depending on what each camp was distributed. Notably lacking was vitamin C, resulting in more disease.
FOOD AS A WEAPON OF WAR
 Can food be used
as a weapon of war? It has since the earliest times: Biblical accounts
even record times when famine and starvation allowed armies to 'starve
out' their opposition or when it impeded the usefulness of the soldiers
such as Saul requiring his soldiers to neither eat nor drink in the
process of war.(I Samuel 14) Truly, food has always been used a a weapon of war, a terrible bargaining chip. Sometimes the withdrawal of food and supplies
can weaken an army or city such that they cannot retailiate or defend
themselves; at other times the blockading of supplies will bring a quick
surrender. It is one of the cruelest weapons war, because deaths caused by
starvation are protracted, involve great suffering and anxiety, and take
their toll also in disease long before death, and malnutrition causes
vitamin-deficiency diseases and related problems, and later breaks down
the immune system. In WWII, the Nazis purposely reduced the amount of food
to Jewish Ghettos and Camps leaving even the working residents
half-starved. Since deaths were part of the "Final Solution"
Jews and Germans as mentioned earlier, even at the outset of the war
differed greatly in caloric intake: while German's had to restrict their
diets only modestly, the Jews found themselves on approximately 800
calories a day, with a diet containing few vitamins and minerals, and with
the main portion often starchy vegetables such as potatoes or turnips,
bread mixed with fillers (even finely ground sawdust) and tiny portions of
fat. This characterized the diet in the overcrowded Warsaw ghetto. The
starvation diet killed many, especially the weak and elderly without
lifting a gun, and left the rest of the populace of this and other ghettos
too weak to provide much resistance. Smuggling food also carried a death
penalty. To be fair, some areas of Europe fared far better, such as the
Ukraine, although again, food became a spoil of war after capture, as the
Ukraine's surplus went to feed the german army and populace resulting in
an increase between 1941 and 1942 for domestic Germans while the rest of
Europe saw decreases. (See diagram above). Countrysides where farming was
prevalent also kept better fed than some urban environments, although the
fare was simpler, and just as shelter was not willingly shared with Jews
in hiding, food was often not shared either for Jews who were still free.
Food was also used as a weapon when it was tainted with either poisons or disease, sometimes in experimentation on vaccines or medical interventions and etiologies, and other times out of cruelty without cause. Near the Ninth Fort, the water systems were poisoned; in other camps food was laced with cyanide or other toxins to look at the effects of poisonings: in one camp, food became a means of spreading typhus bacilli for investigation of treatment of typhoid fever. Using food then as a weapon of war took the form of:
RACIAL POLICY AND FOOD
Do people get fed better food based on Race or Nationality? In the war
this was true, although the reasons for better food for some than for
others was diverse. For some nations such as Germany, there was food in
ample supplies both before and during the war: Germany took food supplies
and resources from the occupied territories to feed its own populace to
the detriment and even starvation of the territories, such as the Ukraine.
In this instance, greed and force accounted for the better supply of food.
In other areas such as Belgium and the Ukraine, there was rich and
properly operated farms, accounting for better food at least until
occupation. For the Poles, some fared better than others: those in
incorporated areas fared far better than those in the General Government
 Food Table
II).
FOREIGN POLICY, AID AND FOOD
Coming Soon
FOOD IN THE POST-WAR YEARS
Coming Soon
HUNGER, STARVATION, & GENOCIDE
HungerIf there is one common report of events among eyewitnesses in the Killing Centers or Concentration Camps, it was that of hunger. Most have experienced normal hunger: as the stomach and digestive system empties of food, a sensation called 'hunger' comes about telling our bodies it is time to have something to eat. But in the Shoah, this initial 'warning' often went on days without end, and stayed over a period of time. As little food is taken in the stomach may become smaller, and after an initial few days of hunger, in addition to weakness and faintness. One eyewitness described it as follows:
I don't think there's such a thing as severe. It was just hunger you cannot even describe. It's very difficult to describe to a person who has never been…7, 8 days without food and water, without anything."1
REFERENCES1 Peace Corps, Lesotho, Africa; 2 National Policy and Resource Center on Nutrition and Aging, Florida International University, Miami, Florida; 3 Department of Religious Studies, Florida International University, Miami, Florida |
While the rest of the World worried about
Weaponry and Boundaries, those victimized by the Shoah worried about how
to make it through the day with the knawing hunger that arrested each
sufferer. Food in a war that reaches the expansive proportions of WWII
becomes as precious a commodity as oil and ammunitions. A populace without
food will quickly turn on their leaders; an enemy without food will
shortly surrender.
Bread was filled with more air by allowing it to rise longer,
making more bread for more persons, and in the ghettos, cruelly, was
sometims mixed with finely ground substances even including sawdust. Meat
was eaten far less frequently and cheap meat products became popularized
such as the infamous "spam", fed in abundance to the military and the
starving.
,they confiscated and
controlled food production and exports, and while keeping it cloaked from
the German people at large and from the foreign press, supplies went first
to feed Germany, and only then to the native populace. An example of this
may be seen in Table I in this section, in which food resources for
Germans increase significantly after the occupation of the Ukraine. These
figures are of Goebbels own accounting.