What did the number of allotments rise to?

• A. 2 million
• B. 1 million
• C. 1.4 million
• D. 800 thousand

Answer: (C)

During wartime, the government encouraged people to grow their own food to cope with shortages and reduce reliance on imports. Local authorities expanded allotment plots and promoted participation, including women taking part. This push led to a large, rapid increase in allotments, reaching about 1.4 million by around 1917–18. The figure reflects the scale of state-led effort to boost home-grown production during the war, more than the pre-war level and higher than the other options. After the war, numbers dropped again as supplies stabilized, but the wartime rise to roughly 1.4 million shows how policy and necessity can dramatically expand such programs.