Something else I remember, from many, many years ago...
Jim Lawrie ran a T2k game titled Schlachtbrücke (literally, Slaugher Bridge). There was still enough NATO command & infrastructure left that supplies could be irregularly sent to forward units but these supplies were typically sourced locally. If I remember his campaign right, the war had stagnated into fixed lines more akin to WW1 than to the situation in the BYB.
So our characters, along with all the other troops were actually able to get fresh cooked food from base but... most of the time, the main meal was cabbage soup.
Jim made sure to mention that most people were fed up with cabbage soup and a lot of people suffered from flatulence because of the soup. But there simply wasn't enough of any other food source.
So to put that into context of the QoL question, the situation Jim created meant that the troops were not going hungry but their food was the same thing day after day after day... After eating almost nothing but cabbage soup for months, just about any other fresh food was desirable and ration packs would be highly prized above their normal value.
The impact on morale if the unit had been able to get even just potatoes, carrots and some meat would have been enormously positive.
So in terms of the game, if the Referee creates that sort of background, it emphasises the QoL issue without being overbearing about it and it also makes any of those things that improve the QoL, something to be treasured.
From there, you have a range of options for making any item that improves the PCs quality of life, the object of an adventure (or at least, a side quest).
It makes trading a whole lot more personal when you have to make the hard decision between trading for more ammo or new clothes (or anything else the PCs have been living without and has been making their lives less enjoyable).
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