It's Better with Butter

White text on a blue background with a yellow illustration of butter and an outer white edge

"It's better with butter" was the slogan of a 1942 ad campaign by the American Dairy Association. At that time, the United States had just joined World War II. Butter and fats were not yet rationed in the U.S., but they were often hard to get, thanks to rations on gas and tires and resulting limits on transportation.

The "better with butter" campaign sought to undermine these difficulties by appealing to homemakers' wartime patriotism. Ads referred to "nutrition defense" and described butter's role in maximizing "economy" meals. An ad in Life magazine advised readers that when they served nutritionally dense foods such as butter, they were "helping to win the war".

The "better with butter" ads disappeared at the end of 1942, when the U.S. experienced a serious shortage of butter and other fats. The next year, the government imposed rations on butter, fats, cooking oils, and other foods in support of the war effort. These would remain under ration until the end of 1945.

See vintage "better with butter" ads here and here.