The question you asked about who had the rights to all chocolate rations during the war depends on which country and which time period of the war you have in mind. Broadly speaking, several nations relied on centralized, government-directed production and distribution of military chocolate rations, with key examples including the United States during World War II and the United Kingdom in the same era. Here are the main points, with context:
- United States (World War II): The U.S. government and military contract system centralized chocolate ration production through companies like Hershey, which produced the so-called U.S. military “ration D” bars. Hershey’s production was aligned with the Army and Navy for emergency field rations, and the Ration D bars became a standard component of U.S. troop provisions. The government’s support and contracts effectively gave the armed forces centralized control over these chocolate rations during the war. This arrangement is well-documented in military and corporate history sources detailing Hershey’s role and the Army-Navy “E” production award recognizing extraordinary wartime output.
- United Kingdom (World War II): In Britain, chocolate was rationed for civilians as part of the general wartime rationing system, with official allocation through ration books. The government controlled civilian chocolate rations, while military rations were handled through separate supply chains. The system limited civilian access but ensured continuous, centralized distribution in support of the war effort. The specifics of weekly allocations and the rationing framework are described in historical overviews of British wartime rations.
- Other notes: In WWI and other conflicts, chocolate often served as a morale booster and was distributed through military supply chains, sometimes with private companies contributing to production under government contracts. For example, U.S. and Allied forces frequently sourced chocolate through military procurement channels during conflicts, but the exact “rights” to rations varied by theater, era, and whether the context was civilian vs. military provisioning.
If you can specify the exact war (e.g., World War I or World War II) and the country you’re interested in, it’s possible to give a precise statement about which entity held rights or controlled production and distribution of the chocolate rations in that context.
