Vegetable Cutting Machines through Visual Materials: The Mechanization of Communal Canteens in 1958–1960s China

This article explores the mechanization of communal canteens during the Great Famine (1958–1961), focusing on the development and use of vegetable cutting machines. Communal canteens were one of the most important measures for realizing communism in China. To free female labor for use in the workforce, reduce cooking staff numbers, prepare large numbers of dishes, and provide free meals on time at communal canteens, the central and local governments of the People’s Republic of China promoted the mechanization and semi-mechanization of communal canteens. One of the most important innovations was the reformation of cooking utensils, and the introduction of machines to handle and cook ingredients, including vegetable cutting machines. Based on three types of historical material, this article looks at the historical background of vegetable cutting machine construction and use, and analyzes their use in communal canteens in China. The article finds that the mechanization of communal canteens was in fact merely sloganeering and did not contribute to technological reform in contemporary China.