To meet the demands from overseas and to curb inflation at home, a Wartime Prices and Trade Board controlled the price and distribution of food and other necessities. Commodities such as sugar, butter, tea, coffee and meat were rationed.
In this posed photograph, Mrs. William Brockett and six of her ten children receive their ration books from the postman. Storekeepers were instructed to remove the appropriate stamp or coupon from the ration book (example inset) when a rationed item was purchased. But even though it was illegal to use coupons that had already been detached, swapping coupons became a common practice among housewives. Grocers further abused the system by saving scarce items for favourite customers, and a black market quickly developed for such commodities.
Courtesy: Public Archives of Canada (C-26110) Canadian War Museum, National Museum of Man, National Museums of Canada (S83-321)
