Definition
The Hunger Plan (German: Der Hungerplan) was a policy formulated by Nazi Germany during World War II, principally by Herbert Backe, Minister of Food and Agriculture, to deliberately allocate food resources from the occupied Soviet Union to the German war effort, resulting in the planned starvation of millions of civilians in the occupied territories.
Overview
Implemented after the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941 (Operation Barbarossa), the plan aimed to secure sufficient agricultural produce for Germany by confiscating grain, livestock, and other foodstuffs from the Soviet countryside. The expected surplus would be redirected to sustain the German military and civilian population, while the remaining population in the annexed regions would face severe food shortages. The Hunger Plan was closely linked to the broader Nazi objectives of Lebensraum (living space) and racial hierarchy, targeting primarily Slavic and Jewish populations for extermination through famine. Evidence indicates that the policy contributed to the death of an estimated 4 million civilians through starvation and related diseases during the early years of the occupation.
Etymology/Origin
The term derives directly from the German word Hunger (hunger) combined with Plan, reflecting a systematic, bureaucratically organized scheme. It was coined within Nazi administrative circles to describe the deliberate use of food deprivation as a tool of war and occupation. The concept originated within the Reich Ministry of Food and Agriculture, where Backe and his staff drafted the policy as part of a wider economic exploitation strategy.
Characteristics
- Policy Scope: Targeted grain-rich regions such as Ukraine, the Volga basin, and the southern Soviet Union.
- Implementation Mechanisms: Forced requisition of agricultural outputs, export of seized food to Germany, and strict control of distribution within occupied territories.
- Ideological Basis: Integrated with Nazi racial ideology, considering the target populations as “untermenschen” (subhuman) and therefore expendable.
- Consequences: Massive famine, displacement, and mortality among civilian populations; contributed to broader patterns of war crimes and crimes against humanity recognized by post‑war tribunals.
- Documentation: Detailed in memoranda and reports archived in the German Federal Archives (Bundesarchiv), including Backe’s 1941 memorandum titled “The Hunger Plan for the East”.
Related Topics
- Operation Barbarossa – the German invasion of the Soviet Union that created the conditions for the plan’s execution.
- Herbert Backe – architect of the Hunger Plan and later Reich Minister of Food and Agriculture.
- Nazi Economic Exploitation Policies – broader strategies for resource extraction from occupied territories.
- Holocaust by Hunger – scholarly term describing starvation as a method of genocide in Eastern Europe.
- War Crimes and the Nuremberg Trials – legal proceedings that addressed accountability for policies such as the Hunger Plan.