Feeding the War. Canned Meat Production in the Horn of Africa and the Italian Front

The Horn of Africa was deeply affected by WWI. Thousands of askaris were sent to the Libyan front while on the Red Sea trade and traffics were disrupted by the confrontation between the Allied and the Ottomans forces. The impact of war was felt by the population that had to confront a steep increase in prices and food shortages. Eritrea was asked to provide to the Italian army some twelve million cans of meat, an exorbitant request that was met only through the use of quotas, the introduction of controlled prices and requisitions. Once the Eritrean livestock was exhausted, the Italians turned to the Ethiopian and Yemeni markets, from where cattle started to be imported and processed in the “Torrigiani Cannery” based in Asmara. The story of canned meat production during the WWI is an interesting example of how the maelstrom of WWI was felt across the Horn of Africa. Eritrea, although largely untouched by combats, was deeply affected by the war, which had a profound impact on the country’s productive and social system.