Land Allotment Scheme in Cork city 1917-1923

During World War 1, food supply was an issue not only in Cork but throughout Ireland. At that time, the urban population was dependent on imported foodstuffs. In January 1917, the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction and the Local Government Board introduced a scheme to promote food production which included town allotments. The scheme provided for the acquisition of lands, instruction in allotment cultivation and loans for requisites, e.g. seed. Cork Corporation established an Allotments Committee, comprising local councillors and allotment holders. Each allotment site had its own committee. In each ward, land was rented or acquired compulsorily from local landowners. At the peak of the scheme, some 1000 allotments, distributed across the city and immediate environs, yielded annual produce per allotment valued at £10. Fixity of tenure, a significant issue for plotholders, eventually resulted in the Acquisition of Lands (Allotments) Act 1926. Though a war measure, the scheme continued until 1923.