The Plankton ration plan

"It was a scheme that may have turned a few stomachs if it had gone ahead.
Especially if your idea of a fish meal was cod and chips.
Madcap scientists were preparing to feed Britain's wartime population with plankton, research has revealed.
Plans were drawn up to harvest the microscopic sea creatures to sustain the country if food supplies were cut off during World War Two.
A professor has uncovered secret and confidential letters between academics that proposed harvesting tons of protein-rich plankton from Scottish sea lochs.
They claimed the waters were 'soup-like' in richness with nutritional material and that some types of plankton were quite 'tasty'.
They made diagrams of nets, explored areas where it could work and even carried out trials from 1941-43 to see if it was possible.
They proposed taking the haul to drying plants before it would be sorted, mixed and turned into food.
The nutritional value of eating copepods would be similar to that of larger crustaceans such as crabs or lobsters. "
How scientists planned to feed Britain on PLANKTON if food ran out in WWII | Mail Online

 

Probably would tried eating the welsh first, scots are way too stringy.

 

... and what do you get?

Soylent Green


yummy

 

Soylent Green is people!!

 

Don't do seafood, me. Not unless it's in crispy batter and covered in brown sauce....

 

Yes it is/was, but it had been plankton, and was still SUPPOSED to be plankton. OK, it really did seem to make sense at the time.

 

Actually sounds like a great idea...even now. Bit like clam chowder...NUM! Bit of seasoning and its comfort food.
BUT...plankton reserves are dwindling...they ARE the beggining of the food chain...its to be nutured, not exploited...

 

Plankton.......hmmm only a theory here in the desert......perhaps it could be shipped inland like sardines in water. Perhaps it could be dried like red chili, dusted on the pizza hmmmm. Perhaps the anchovies would feel more at home on the pizza.

 

I bet you plankton is awesome. Like tiny lobsters. You could always turn it into crab meat.

 

Heck I love headcheese, so tiny lobsters, no problem.

 

That was my first thought on reading that...FISHCAKES! Good old British staple.

Mind you - It's not the WORST plan they came up with!!!

Remember the sainted Magnus Pyke's idea of turning excess donated blood into Black Pudding in 1940!!!!

 

YOU....ARE.....KIDDING!!!?

Man thats desperate...the Scots might get a little aroused at the thought i spose...

 

LOL nope, that one is quite serious! Magnus Pyke - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There it only says "It is said..." but there's been articles in Fortean Times (and IIRC Britain At War) about Pyke and his cousin Geoffrey Pyke...the inventor of Pykrete and the man who dreamed up HMS Habbakuk! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Habbakuk.The Black Pudding idea was very nearly a go-er!

 

Black pudding.......hmmmm.......vampires, hmmmm........cannibals restarted just from the mention of plankton.

 

I'd give it a crack...but thats it. No relation to "Pyke" in Dad's Army is there? : )

 

Mmmm. Plankton....Good to see Pi is also prepared to don the Fortean foil hat ( secret handshake- welcome brother ).
Get out of my head Marmat. You stealing my bits. I'd have phrased the Soylent bit less succinctly, using more words to convey less humor...You forgot the link.
Soylent green trailer - YouTube
2022. It's coming.

 

Frank Pike? Nope

 

Dont Panic! Dont Panic!...
We're doomed! Doomed i tell ye...!