Food and malnutrition

Food was a major preoccupation for the population of the occupied territories. The purpose of the Commission for Relief in Belgium (CRB), set up by the Americans, was to ensure regular supplies of food aid. In the Nord Department, it was passed on by the Food Committee of Northern France (CANF). The Germans undertook not to seize the foodstuffs provided to the civilian populations. In 1916, each inhabitant received a daily average of: 200g of flour, 14g of maize, 60g of rice, 48g of lard or conserved meat, 15g of sugar, 19g of coffee and 16g of soap. The food ration thus represented between 1,100 and 1,300 calories per day, which is approximately half the normal food intake of around 2,000 to 2,500 calories.
The CRB and the CANF saved the populations from starvation. Malnutrition nevertheless led to significant excess mortality and disastrous physical consequences for children. Spanish Flu spread across what was fertile ground, with populations weakened by inadequate nutrition. It further aggravated the terrible consequences of the War.