A Visual Feast: War-Era Food Posters at the National Agricultural Library

“I had the conviction that the poster must play a great part in the fight for public opinion. The printed word might not be read, people might not choose to attend meetings or to watch motion pictures, but the billboard was something that caught even the most indifferent eye.” -George Creel, Chairman of the Committee for Public Information, in his World War I memoir, How We Advertised America. 

When Beans Were Bullets, an exhibit of food and agricultural posters from World Wars I and II currently on view at the USDA’s National Agricultural Library, gives us a first-hand look at how the United States government took to the poster as one of its primary forms of communicating with the public during the World Wars.

Poster by the Committee of Public Safety in Pennsylvania, based on the USFA posters by the artist Frederic G. Cooper, c.1917.

The exhibit examines the evolution of poster styles, propaganda messages and advertising history during the two time periods. Viewers will recognize familiar wartime messages about food conservation, rationing and home canning. But today’s audience might be surprised by government messaging during World War I encouraging home front populations to eat locally, healthfully and conscientiously in order to put the nation’s interest first and contribute to distant war efforts.

The exhibition is curated by Cory Bernat who has also produced an expanded online version of the exhibit.