The ''Kriegsernährungsamt'' (War Office of Food), which later became the ''Reichsernährungsamt'' (Reich Office of Food), was an entity of the government of the German Empire from 1916 to 1919.

History

During the First World War, the German Bundesrat enacted wartime measures to ensure the food supply of the population. As a result, the ''Kriegsernährungsamt'' was created on 22 May 1916. The ''Kriegsernährungsamt'', which was formed out of the ''Reichsamt des Innern'' (Reich Office of the Interior), was based in Berlin and was under the oversight of the

Reich Chancellor The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany,; often shortened to ''Bundeskanzler''/''Bundeskanzlerin'', / is the head of the federal government of Germany and the commander in chief of the G ...

. It was to deal with matters of food supply policy of the Reich. The management board of the Office consisted of 7 to 9 members, including the chairman, who was referred to as the ''Präsident des Kriegsernährungsamtes'' (President of the War Office of Food). In 1917 the ''Kriegsernährungsamt'' received the status of a ''Reichsbehörde'' (Reich agency/authority) and was thereafter led by a secretary of state, who received instructions from the Reich Chancellor. On 19 November 1918 it was renamed the ''Reichsernährungsamt''. Four days later, the ''Zentral-Einkaufsgesellschaft'' (central purchasing company) was transferred from the ''Reichswirtschaftsamt'' (Reich Office for Economics) to the authority of the ''Reichsernährungsamt''.Reichs-Gesetzblatt 1918, S. 1329
(German) In March 1919, the functions of the Reichsernährungsamt were taken over by the Reich Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

Secretaries of state

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reichsernahrungsamt German Empire in World War I