The Welfare Food Scheme was introduced in 1940 as a wartime measure to help ensure the provision of an adequate diet under rationing conditions. Today, the scheme provides milk and vitamins, primarily to expectant and nursing mothers and children aged under five years in low income families. This is the first scientific review of the scheme since its introduction, and it focuses on the nutritional aspects of the scheme. It concludes that the scheme retains great potential for improving the health of pregnant women, nursing mothers and young children from disadvantaged social groups. Some changes to the scheme are recommended in order to address current nutritional vulnerabilities of these groups.