Forensic Research Archive of Manipulation and Exploitation
Food is ammunition...so don't waste it!, 1944 US poster: Cartoon of three cooks in white caps pushing a loaf of bread into

Food is ammunition ...so don't waste it!

Cartoon of three cooks in white caps pushing a loaf of bread into the mouth of a seated sailor, with scraps, sausages and a ham bone on the floor around him. The headline 'Food is Ammunition ...so' runs into the bottom banner 'Don't Waste It!'. The food-as-ammunition equation is played for humour; no other persuasion device is prominent.

Propaganda techniques used in this poster

Transfer
Date
1944
Period
Second World War
Made by
U.S. Navy; Dyer, USNR (artist)
Region
North America
Country
United States
Medium
Poster
Issuer type
Military
Regime
Roosevelt Administration
Leader
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Audience
Own forces
Purpose
Mobilize or secure compliance
Themes
Home front, War and the military
Event
World War II
Regime
Roosevelt administration
Leader
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Source
Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
Source
U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Posters, retrieved October 4, 2026
Rights
Public domain (U.S. government work)
U.S. Navy. National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44, 44-PA-788 (NAID 514276).

Text on the object

Original (English) · read from the image, not independently checked

FOOD IS AMMUNITION
...SO

DON'T WASTE IT!

[signature:] DYER USNR
[imprint:] U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1944-O-620867

More propaganda examples that use the same techniques

Fragments of the Abydos king list from Ramesses II's temple, in the British Museum: rows of royal cartouchesNew Kingdom EgyptFragments of the Abydos king list from Ramesses II's temple, in the British Museum: rows of royal cartouches0000 · Card stacking, TransferClay cylinder with the Ehulhul inscription of Nabonidus, king of Babylon, describing work on three templesNeo Babylonian EmpireClay cylinder with the Ehulhul inscription of Nabonidus, king of Babylon, describing work on three temples0000 · TransferSeated limestone statue of Hatshepsut as king, with feminine royal titles on the throne, reassembled from fragments broken up at Deir el-BahriNew Kingdom EgyptSeated limestone statue of Hatshepsut as king, with feminine royal titles on the throne, reassembled from fragments broken up at Deir el-Bahri0000 · Transfer, TestimonialGlazed-brick panel with a striding lion, from Babylon (reign of Nebuchadnezzar II)Neo Babylonian EmpireGlazed-brick panel with a striding lion, from Babylon (reign of Nebuchadnezzar II)0000 · TransferLimestone relief block of Ramesses II wearing the White Crown, a jubilee relief from his temple at HerakleopolisNew Kingdom EgyptLimestone relief block of Ramesses II wearing the White Crown, a jubilee relief from his temple at Herakleopolis0000 · TransferLine drawing of the Great Kadesh battle relief on the walls of the Ramesseum, from Breasted's History of EgyptNew Kingdom EgyptLine drawing of the Great Kadesh battle relief on the walls of the Ramesseum, from Breasted's History of Egypt0000 · Card stacking, TransferContent noteGypsum alabaster slab inscribed in cuneiform, from Nimrud (Kalhu), reign of Ashurnasirpal IINeo Assyrian EmpireGypsum alabaster slab inscribed in cuneiform, from Nimrud (Kalhu), reign of Ashurnasirpal II0000 · Transfer, Glittering generalitiesEgyptian alabaster jar inscribed with the name of Xerxes the Great in four languages (Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian, Egyptian), 486 to 466 BCEAchaemenid EmpireEgyptian alabaster jar inscribed with the name of Xerxes the Great in four languages (Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian, Egyptian), 486 to 466 BCE0000 · Transfer