Second World War foodstore, Buffer Depot 521G (EHER 46707)

A Second World War or later, MAFF foodstore or Buffer Depot. The depot survives in good condition as a three-aisled structure.

Original HER entry merged with NRHE data import: The former Ministry of Agriculture Food and Fisheries Buffer Depot or foodstore at Elsenham lay in Home Defence Region 4, and was allocated depot number 521G. The store was managed on behalf of MAFF by Co-ordinated Traffic Services Ltd. The store lies to the east of Elsenham railway station and was originally at the centre of a triangle of land defined by railway lines. The depot building is a three aisled structure, each aisle is a pitched roof clad in asbestos sheeting. This is carried down to eaves height on gable walls. The walls are of brick. The buffer depot is a standard type and was either built during the second world war or shortly afterwards. No internal inspection of the building was made. <1> During the Second World War a system of buffer depots had been established, supplemented by four inland sorting depots. They held a strategic stockpile of food and were large enough to permit the rapid removal of valuable imported goods from high-risk port areas, thereby not only ensuring their safety but also facilitating the speedy turn-around of shipping. One of the main factors in the choice of sites for buffer depots was the availability of good transport links: all depots were served by road, but most were also next to rail or waterways. In 1951 there were 260 storage depots but by the middle of the decade there was only about half that number, administered by 60 firms. The stockpile held by the ministry of food in 1954 amounted to 745,000 tonnes (756 920 tonnes) and included oils and fats, flour, yeast, sugar, canned corned meat, tinned milk and special biscuits. Stocks of feeding, bakery and milling equipment were also maintained. <2> See also: <3>