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1974 sugar shortage


Yngwie

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My mum dug out a diary she kept of my first few years. Amongst all the usual embarrassing poo stories, there were numerous references to sugar being in very scarce supply in 1974. It clearly became an obsession trying to get hold of any sugar, and brought much joy if some could be procured through friends or colleagues. Not enough to make jam that year though.

Any of the oldies remember this? Why was there a shortage, and was it international, national or just around Inverness?

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I also have some memories of this as a very young forresdame - my Mum getting me to take a basket round the Spar shop as well as her, so we could get an extra bag of sugar - I think to make jam!  I think each customer was only allowed to buy one 2lb bag each at any one time.  But other than confirming that it was also happening in Forres I can't really add anything further to this mystery!

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I just don't remember that at all. Certainly there was very nearly petrol rationing around that time following the October 1973 2nd Arab Israeli War but I just don't remember the sugar shortage. Two general elections (Feb and Oct) in 1974 are my most prominent memory of that year, apart from winning the 400m at the Edinburgh University Sports and with it the Eric Liddell Trophy on the 50th annivesary of Liddell's Olympic 400m win in Paris in 1924 (which I don't remember!)

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I remember 74/75 ish my old man had a grocers in Dundee and as Forresdame says we had to ration customers to 1 bag each,cant remember the reason for the shortage but mind folk hording sugar and trying to sweet talk /bribe /threaten us into giving them an extra bag

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I recall a number of "shortages" at or about that time. By and large they weren't genuine shortages but caused by housewives, many of whom were still steeped in wartime attitudes, hoarding commodoties which were rumoured to be in short supply. These included, from memory, sugar, flour, coffee, butter and even toilet roll.

One commodity which was in genuine short supply during the time of the miners' strke was coal, much of which was reserved for electricity generation. Even that didn't prevent phased planned power cuts on an area by area basis the only upside of which was that you might be fortunate enough to be spared two or more episodes of Crossroads every week.

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Don't remember a sugar shortage at all but do remember the days in early 1972 when the electricity was switched off at certain times.  Was this to do with the miners strike?

I think the electricity was cut off around 5pm and I had a really evil boss at that time who always endeavoured to find jobs for me to do which kept me in the office until after the electricity went off.  My colleagues would all be away to their hot dinners.  When I had to go home in the dark for the umpteenth time to a cold dinner, that was when I went round to the Job Centre and, hey presto, a better job, better pay, better everything.

Two fingers to him - lousy old git.  Turned out to be the best move I ever made, despite him.

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Jeez, the miners strikes and nae leccy, that takes me back, we used to sit for hours playng monopoly by candlelight,we had countles packets of candles piled up in the scullery and if it got blown out ,i'd swipe a few extra hundreds from the bank and by the time it was lit again i had 2 new hotels on Mayfair! shortly after the game would decend into bedlam as my brother and sister sussed where my new found wealth had come from

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