This poster, which presented conserving food as essential for the Allied war effort, was produced for the U.S. Food Administration. World War I disrupted European agriculture and food distribution, producing rationing, food shortages, and hunger. Prior to 1917, many American charities gathered and sent food to Europe’s hungry civilians, especially children. Once the United States joined the conflict, food also became central to U.S. government policy. Now, U.S. government and military officials needed to ensure adequate food supplies for U.S. and Allied soldiers as well as Allied civilians. To regulate the supply and distribution of food and to encourage its conservation, Woodrow Wilson turned to an American engineer (and future president) named Herbert Hoover. Hoover had already developed a reputation as a humanitarian by organizing food relief for Belgium. In May 1917, Wilson called on him to lead Americans in a voluntary food-saving campaign. In August 1917, this position became more official with congressional passage of the Food and Fuel Control Act and the creation of the U.S. Food Administration, with Hoover as its head. From this position, Hoover organized nationwide campaigns to persuade Americans to conserve food, using posters such as this one. This particular poster simultaneously made a second—and noteworthy—appeal: it urged Americans to support “Our Flags,” including those of other European countries. For many in the United States, a nation with a tradition of nonentanglement in European affairs, this call to forge stronger international commitments would likely have carried great significance.

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