Turnip Winter

The German expression Kohlrübenwinter or Steckrübenwinter (both mean “Turnip Winter”) refers to one of the worst food crises of the war in Germany. During the winter of 1916/1917 several developments came together, among others things a particularly poor harvest caused by bad weather. The entire price structure was configured in such a way that it was more profitable for the producers to use potatoes as fodder or to sell them to distilleries than to sell them to the consumers. The same wa…