rations and food stamps
January 30th, 1942 - the Emergency Price Control Act is signed and put into immediate effect by Franklin D. Roosevelt. By spring time in 1942, the Office of Price Administration (OPA), were granted control over just about all prices on goods. The OPA developed a system called the Food Rationing Program that set the limit on how much goods a family could consume.
This rationing system was introduced to ensure that all Americans got the appropriate amount of resources and so the wealthy weren't the only ones purchasing all commodities With advertisements all over the radio and posters, people gratefully chose to cooperate with the program and little bickering occurred. Food, gas and even tires had to be cut back on. Not all parts of the country had the exact same system, but every family was required to have a ration book. In this ration book, there contained several amounts of coupons. Every coupon held special value that allowed families to buy certain value.
World War 2 opened up many job opportunities because troops needed supplies. That meant a lot of parents went out and got jobs. So, a lot of kids had to learn how to use the ration books and go grocery shopping for the family. As long as the owner of the book was over 18, they just had to get approved for the book. Saying this also means that not all food was rationed. Mainly sugars, butter, bread, dairy and meat were rationed evenly. Most fruits and vegetables however, were still up for sale as they usually were. They're prices slightly rose, but that's about it.
With many families still hungry, neighborhoods worked together to build victory gardens. A lot of families depended on these gardens to feed their own. They were also used to sell to grocery stores and distributors. Most canned and processed food was sent across sea because fresh produce couldn't stay fresh over the trip. The war did officially end in 1945, yet rationing didn't end until 1946. Ration books were tossed, and food was back in the market.