Khrushchev decided he needed to improve Russia’s agricultural problems quickly and embarked on a process to increase food

production. In 1953 agricultural production was low and the livestock population was

low. Khrushchev partly blamed this on Stalin’s methods of controlling agriculture.

“What kind of communism is it that

can’t produce sausages?”

WHY?

To increase food production

Grain stocks and livestock populations were lower than

Tsarists times. Collectivisation was not working as farms had to pay high taxes and received low

wages for their produce!

He was an expert

Khrushchev believed he was a agricultural expert (he had a

agricultural/peasant background) and thought he

knew what he was doing

Failures of the Centrally Planned Economy

Khrushchev thought the controlled economy

under Gosplan had taken away local initiative and

independence. He wanted to reduce control and allow local leaders to

decide agricultural policy.

ENCOURAGE PEASANTS TO PRODUCE MORE

A) Peasants were paid more for grain

B) Taxes on peasants were reduced C) amount of grain requisitioned was

reduced, therefore there was more left for the peasants to sell.

ALL THESE INCREASED THE CHANCES OF PEASANTS MAKING MONEY

•Increase Efficiency

Tractor stations were disbanded.

Tractors sold to state farms

Peasants worked harder to buy tractors

With a tractor can produce more grain

Sell more grain

Bigger profit!

Increase Efficiency Collective farms were also merged to

create larger farms Ministry of Agriculture was moved

away from Moscow, there was also regionalisation- wanted regions to have greater self control as they knew their area better than Moscow

The Virgin Lands Scheme In its 1st three years 36 million hectares

of new land was brought under cultivation

Young communists were sent into the countryside to make these regions fertile

100,000 Tractors were provided

Between 1949 and 1953 agricultural output = 80 million tonnes

Between 1954 and 1958 (under K.) it was 110 million tonnes.

Critics of Khrushchev complained that there was too much investment in agriculture and not enough in other areas, such as the military and space.

This led to a decrease in tractors and machinery.

To maintain improvements Khrushchev tried to experiment with other grains such as maize.

Many areas like Kazakhstan had unsuitable soil.

There were not enough fertilizers. Encouraged early sowing of crops. This

led to wheat infestation, soil erosion.

1963 had to import 20 million tonnes of grain from USA and Australia.

Explain in detail what the Virgin Lands Scheme was.

Draw a table of SUCCESSES and FAILURES of Khrushchev’s agriculture policy.

Successes Failures•Grain harvests rose sharply between 1953-64. (84 million tonnes in 1953 and 109 million tonnes in 1963)•By 1956, 35.9 million hectares of land had been reformed•At least it was an attempt to do something

•Khrushchev didn’t listen to any advice and interfered too much•There wasn’t enough research into the policies so they failed•Not enough money was put in for fertilisers, grain storage etc•Harvest figures began to drop from 1958 due to over farming•Climate was unsuitable for the Virgin Land Scheme so crops failed due to lack of rain•Hurricanes lashed Kazakhstan in 1963 and tore the soil away. 6 million hectares of land was destroyed•Transport was not able to cope moving crops around Russia so much food rotted on the roadside•Russia had to still buy grain from America and Australia to prevent famine