SPAM and the Second World War?

Shangas · Jan 26, 2011

Hi chaps and chappies,

I'm currently writing a historical fiction piece for a unit in my Master of Arts. It's about a family and its experiences on the home front in London during the Second World War.

I have a question about food.

I know that in England (and most other places) food was rationed so severely that most people had almost nothing to eat. Eggs were powdered, bread was reduced to "national loaf", sausages, though unrationed, had barely any meat in them, and all that stuff.

But my question is about that most famous of all wartime foods...SPAM.

Because meat was rationed along with everything else, the Americans sent literally MILLIONS of cans of SPAM over to feed their meat-deprived allies. My question is...when did this start?

The closest date I've found is March of 1941. Is this correct? Or did large-scale SPAM importation start before then? Would a housewife in war-rationed England have started buying SPAM instead of a regular meat before that time, just because it was more convenient and probably, easier to buy and more available?

My story spans the years from early 1940 until late 1941. At the moment, my story has reached September 7th, 1940 (which those who are good with dates will know, was the day the Blitz started). So I'm just wondering if it would be realistic that a middle-class London family would even then, have started eating SPAM "regularly" (so to speak) because the rationing of meat meant they couldn't get anything else?

Stearmen · Jan 26, 2011

Christmas SPAM

I can't help you on when Great Britain first got SPAM, but I do know a story about it! Seems during the battle of Guadalcanal, the Americans had to eat a lot of captured Japanese rice. For Christmas they got some SPAM, and were very grateful. One Marine had a slice of fried SPAM every Christmas tell he died just to remind him how lucky he was!

Shangas · Jan 26, 2011

I have eaten rice. I have eaten SPAM. I have never, in my life, eaten rice WITH SPAM (which I damn well hope is not what those poor sods had to do, because I would feel honestly sorry for them).

cco23i · Jan 26, 2011

Did all the above while deployed to Guam. I DO like SPAM! You go to Guam and order Chomorro "steak" and eggs. (SPAM and eggs).

Scott

1961MJS · Jan 26, 2011

Hi

These guys could probably answer your question:

http://www.spam.com/games/Museum/default.aspx

We went there on vacation (well not JUST there), and it's pretty interesting. SPAM is actually pretty good after you get past the "shluuuuuk" should as it slides on jellied grease from the package onto the cutting board.

Just to irritate everyone at work, we used SPAM as our area's food dish at our Xmas feed. I fried 1 inch squares of SPAM, added a 1 inch square of smoked cheddar, and wrapped it in a croissant. It's pretty good while it's still warm. Another guy made SPAM Salad using a Chicken Salad recipe.

Later

dhermann1 · Jan 26, 2011

Well, a lot of off topic answers, to which I'll add another. I recently (last year) bought a beautiful old art deco sideboard on Ebay, that originally came from England. It was made in maybe 1930. It required a fair amount of cleaning, including a lot of CAT HAIR in the middle silver ware drawer, the one with felt lining.
Anyhow, way in the back in the bottom, what did I discover, but an old Spam can key? It could have been the key to any other kind of similarly opening can, but I just KNOW it was from a Spam can.

I don't know exactly when Spam arrived on those hungry British dinner tables, either, but I know it was considered a great God send, and was devoured enthusiastically. Maybe after a few thousands iterations of the expeience the stuff might have gotten a little tiresome.

CharlieB · Jan 26, 2011

Shangas said:
I have eaten rice. I have eaten SPAM. I have never, in my life, eaten rice WITH SPAM (which I damn well hope is not what those poor sods had to do, because I would feel honestly sorry for them).

Sorry, but when I first read this, all I could think of was "Dr. Seuss" ...

Chasseur · Jan 26, 2011

I have eaten rice. I have eaten SPAM. I have never, in my life, eaten rice WITH SPAM

Another off topic answer... SPAM because quite popular at the same time in Hawaii because of availibility during WWII and also the realities of Plantation life. Unfortunately I do not know the exact date when it was introduced. However, rice and SPAM together in various forms is pretty much a stable in Hawaii and in many other islands in the Pacific. SPAM musubi (SPAM sushi); SPAM, eggs and rice, etc. Another canned mystery meat staple here in Hawaii are Vienna Sausages, again with fried with eggs or in a Bento box, etc. Personally, I do eat SPAM from time to time (I just call it American pate

), but just don't like Vienna Sausages...

DutchIndo · Jan 26, 2011

This was/is real popular in Hawaii I understand it's even served in snooty Restaurants. This was also courtesy of the Second World War. I read somewhere that Spam was the perfect War time food. This was because Pork would be mature in 6 months. I still can't eat it.

Shangas · Jan 26, 2011

According to one documentary ("The Supersizers Go...Wartime"), SPAM was exported to England in gutbusting quantities under the American-British Lend-Lease Agreement. When would this have been?

green papaya · Jan 28, 2011

I like to make SPAM & EGG fried rice

David Conwill · Jan 28, 2011

Tangentally related answer: According to my dad, my grandfather hated spam because it was virtually all they had to eat while he was in North Africa in 1943. So it was probably being shipped to the UK by that time. If it's any help, Lend-Lease became U.S. law March 11, 1941, and by April U.S. ships were becoming really active in the Battle of the Atlantic protecting merchantmen headed for the UK.

-Dave

Shangas · Jan 29, 2011

THanks for the answer, David. I guess my real question NOW is...Would it be conceivable that a housewife would have to have resorted to feeding her family largely on SPAM during the Blitz, but before 1941? I know that starting in 1940, meat was rationed. If (was?) SPAM available in British shops at that time, would a housewife have just bought that to feed her family instead, because it was more convenient and easier to get her hands on?

LizzieMaine · Jan 29, 2011

Spam appears to have been pretty much unknown in Britain prior to Lend Lease -- an article in the Chicago Tribune for November 29, 1941 is headlined "England Probes Mystery of US Canned Foods," and indicates that there was a campaign in the press to tell mystified Britons what Spam actually was.

Article available here (pay per view.)

And of course, there is the general wartime view of the subject ---

y1p0eagW0Owl8yMDa2aqW0Ru2YhDRPXpSuyfJf2C9E-1MBUsEdSn-doKAlygxv2nwdPwHEquf0lqgk

John in Covina · Jan 29, 2011

Chasseur said:
Another off topic answer... SPAM because quite popular at the same time in Hawaii because of availibility during WWII.

More side notes.

Here in Los Angeles there are a number of Pacific Islander communities and with it regional food restaurants and food vendors. One place that is a chain is called something like Hawaiian BBQ and they are noted for having Spam on the Menu. I went to a Samoan Festival in the Carson area and 3 out of 4 food vendors had some type of Spam based dish on the menu.

John in Covina · Jan 29, 2011

There is a history section at spam.com and it is noted by Edward R Murrow that by December 1942 Londoners were eating SPAM for Christmas dinner. You might email the maker to see if they have any records as to when the first shipments went to England. It is noted that from1941 on the troops were eating Spam.

B-24J · Jan 29, 2011

Hi Shangas, Perhaps you could try the folks at www.ukhomefront.co.uk and ask about the typical rationing foods during the Blitz. A bit off topic is that in the book "Enemy at the Gates", the Soviet headquarters at Stalingrad had SPAM in 1942. And in the Soviet home front propaganda movie "Ballad of a Soldier", the subject of the movie takes some American canned ham back to his small village for his mother.

John

Kopf-Jaeger · Jan 29, 2011

Not to derail a thread but in relation to SPAM and the wartime opinon. When I was a kid i saw a cartoon in an old Stars and Stripes of a ragged Japanese soldier surrendering to a Marine under the condition that he would not have to eat the American delicacy known as SPAM lolol.

Shangas · Jan 30, 2011

Thanks for all the answers, folks. I edited my story appropriately and replaced an earlier reference to SPAM with something bit more period-appropriate.

*Cough*WooltenPie*cough*

But now, my story has progressed to March, 1941, which is when SPAM started being seriously imported into England, so this should make the story a bit more interesting...

CharlieB · Jan 30, 2011

Of, source you now SPAM actually means "Stuff Posing As Meat"

SPAM and the Second World War?

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