Food Riots

The food riots is a common term for a wave of civil unrest and protests that swept across the United States of America as a reaction to decreasing food supply and strict rationing instituted by the federal government during wartime. As the economy worsened in response to the drawn-out conflict, so did the intensity of the protests, eventually resulting in violence. Riots steadily grew in intensity as hungry, frustrated Americans had to put up with meager rations and increasingly oppressive domestic policies.

Background
The food riots are intimately tied to the Sino-American War, which began in 2066. As resource rationing began, coinciding with food shortages in Mexico and midwestern United States, the food supply greatly decreased, eventually culminating in the food riots.

Government reaction
By January 2077, the federal government had begun deploying front line divisions equipped with power armor to quell domestic unrest. Desertions began as veterans of China and Alaska found themselves fighting fellow Americans. The White House belittled those protesting, claiming that the president was suffering too, having to substitute cube steak for prime rib, while relying on the "detestable" Chateau Montrose 2043 wine. The protesters were ignored, and those who took to the streets were labeled communists.

The combination of these factors only further exacerbated the problems. In just one incident in Roxbury, Boston, four were killed and eight others injured when the hungry crowd stormed a food bank and soldiers guarding the depot opened fire into the unarmed crowd. What made the situation particularly noticeable was the fact that soldiers were allegedly picking out targets in the crowd in advance, and laughing as they did so.

The food crisis was an opportunity that Vault-Tec attempted to cease a solution to, erecting facilities such as the Vault-Tec Agricultural Research Center to test automation of the agricultural center (worsening an already tense relationship between human job growth and robotic automation) and turning Vault 22 into a research center for creating experimental fertilizer and genetically modifying plant organisms.