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there’s one thing soldiers love to complain about more than their
leadership, it’s the military food they eat. Jokes about army food have been around for
ages although in many cases they aren’t deserved.
Regardless, the infamous mess hall or field kitchen is an
integral part of a soldier’s military service.
Basic food service in the Grenztruppen was probably not much different than most armies, but one major departure from their American counterparts across the border was that each Border Company on the Landesgrenz maintained its own mess operation. This was a necessity since the companies were stationed independently from their battalion headquarters. |
A Grenztruppen cook prepares a meal. - NVA photo |
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To keep their soldiers fed in an active 24-7 operations environment, the Grenztruppen had to prepare meals for their garrison soldiers as well as for the border guards on patrols. To complicate matters, the Grenztruppen used three patrol shifts so there was an early breakfast served about 3:00 a.m. in addition to the normal meal times. To feed the troops on border duty, meals were prepared in the dining facility and then transported in containers to the patrols. These rations apparently depended on the unit. Some units provided hot meals, while others supplied only sandwiches and bread. Whether a guard post was in a tower or along the fence, it was not uncommon to see border guards delivering food to their fellow soldiers on duty. |
Border guards taking lunch to comrades. - TDP photo |
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| Former border guard Richard Hebstriet, who served with Grenzregiment 35 in Berlin during the 1960s, provides an interesting insight into how the border guards were fed during his time in service a few years after the building of the Berlin Wall. Although it's difficult to say his experiences apply across the board to other Grenztruppen and NVA units in the later years, it none-the-less affords a glimpse of border service that probably didn’t make the pages in any of the propaganda publications. |
Taking a lunch break on the Grenz'. - TDP |
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| According to Hebstreit’s account the food in his unit was good and the cooks in the dining facility were held in high regard. It was customary with the soldiers of the unit that no cook paid for beer at the clubs or bars they frequented. Yet in other nearby units, the food quality and the cleanliness of the mess halls was terrible. Another benefit for the border soldiers was a weekly supplemental bag with a variety of canned meats, chocolates, soup and drink concentrates, tea, fruit drops, and occasionally cigarettes. Among the soldiers it was joked this extra ration was provided to help convince them to stay on the correct side of the border. Although not a major benefit, the extra ration privileges earned the border guards the derisive titles of “Border pigs” and “Wall farmhands” by other envious East German soldiers. According to Hebstreit’s account, “the other soldiers thought we lived in a paradise army.” |
East German field rations. - TD |
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| In
addition to their special treats, the border soldiers found
other ways to supplement their regular meals. With some lakes and
streams located within the restricted border areas the border troops
had in some cases what amounted to exclusive fishing rights. Other times
the soldiers would sneak cooking implements on patrol and using typical
G.I. ingenuity (in this case G.I. means “Genosse Ingenuity”) tapped
into the nearest electrical circuit to power their immersion heaters and
hot plates. Since this practice was forbidden and interfered with their
guard duties, the border guards learned to mask the aroma of their meal
by burning munitions powder after the cooking was done. Sometimes,
though, electrical cooking implements were not needed. Former
border guard Mario Jakob of Grenzregiment 3 in Stedtlingen,
used the cleaning rod of his AK-47 to roast mushrooms.
Overall, Grenztruppen field feeding operations were not much different than other armies. The kitchen prepared the food, soldiers delivered it, and the soldiers ate the meals and probably complained. Some things about military service are universal. |
Got milk? A border guard finishes his bottle of milk. - TDP
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