The Box is a major cultural and heritage attraction and archive, which opened in Plymouth’s city centre in September 2020. Its collection, formally the South West Film and Television Archive (SWFTA), is the regional film archive for the South West of England, comprising the combined programme libraries of Westward Television and Television South West (TSW). It also includes a significant number of donated film collections dating back to the early 1890s.
This film is part of Free

Devonian Farm Life in Wartime Heanton
Wartime Farmers aim for self-sufficiency in North Devon's Heanton
In partnership with:

Overview
Step back in time as our Heanton farmers gather the hay harvest. Shire horses plough the fields and prepare the ground for crop planting, mechanised and traditional methods are used to ensure yield. British farmers had to meet the demands of the Ministry of Food during the Second World War. Rationing became part of 1940s life and included farming communities. This film portrays farm life at a time when pressures to increase production were growing.
The Second World War had a vast impact on agriculture and production methods throughout Britain. The Ministry of Food was formed on 8 September 1939 and became the sole importer and buyer of food into Britain, guaranteeing farmers an increasing market for home-grown produce. The goal was self-sufficiency. Recruitment for the Women’s Land Army began in 1940 under the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries with at its peak 80,000 members. Together with the Women’s Timber Corps they helped meet growing home demand not just for food but also oil, materials, metal and wood.
Related

Start a Land Club Start a Land Club
Government sponsored film 1942 8 mins
The wartime potato shortage is addressed in this marvellous film from 1942 - exhorting workers and school children to lend a hand on local farms by joining Land Clubs.

Wartime harvesting Wartime harvesting
Amateur film 1944 5 mins Silent Location: Otford
World War II's Food Front is seen here in the fields of Kent as farmers labour to get the harvest in on time. By way of entertainment, a barrage balloon sinks majestically to earth.

Heronsdale Manor Harvest Heronsdale Manor Harvest
Amateur film 1942 3 mins Silent Location: Waldron
The war seems far away in this pastoral film but suddenly there's a reminder when a flight of Hurricanes pass overhead. Then it's back to the work of feeding the nation.

Oliver's Orchard Farm Oliver's Orchard Farm
Amateur film 1944 2 mins Silent Location: Colchester
Women workers were in the majority at Oliver's Orchard during the war but a couple of young men here were some unexpected guests as two German prisoners-of-war joined the force.

Cotswold Club Cotswold Club
Documentary 1944 11 mins Location: Somerton
How Somerton, Oxfordshire benefits from membership of the Village Produce Association during WWII.

Salute to Farmers Salute to Farmers
Documentary 1941 14 mins
With feeding the nation a wartime priority, agricultural workers are heralded as soldiers of the plough.

On Falling - Exclusive Q&A On Falling - Exclusive Q&A
Inside Film 2025 30 mins
Writer-director Laura Carreira talks to Nia Childs about her debut feature, On Falling.

Layla - Exclusive Q&A Layla - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 27 mins
Writer, director and performer Amrou Al-Kadhi talks to Rico Johnson-Sinclair about their debut feature.

All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 28 mins
Payal Kapadia discusses her Cannes prize-winning and Bafta-nominated drama with Ashanti Omkar.

Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.

Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
Documentary 2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.

Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.