Climate Dependence and Food Problems in Russia, 1900–1990
Between 1900 and 1990 there were several periods of grain and other food shortages in Russia and the former Soviet Union, some of which reached disaster proportions resulting in mass famine and death on an unprecedented scale.
New stocks of information not previously accessible as well as traditional official and other sources have been used to explore the extent to which policy and vagaries in climate conspired to affect agricultural yields. Were the leaders' (Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev and Gorbachev) policies sound in theory but failed in practice because of unpredictable weather? How did the Soviet peasants react to these changes? What impact did Soviet agriculture have on the overall economy of the country? These are all questions that are taken into account.
The book is arranged in chapters representing different time periods. In each the policy of the central government is discussed followed by the climate vagaries during that period. Crop yields are then analyzed in the light of policy and climate.
List of Figures
List of Tables
Preface
Chapter 1. Introduction: climate and agriculture in Russia
Chapter 2. The availability and reliability of statistical agricultural data for Russia
2.1. The pre-revolutionary period (before 1916)
2.2. The post-revolutionary decade (1917–28)
2.3. The Stalin era (1929–53)
2.4. The post-Stalin period (after 1953)
2.5. Summary
Chapter 3. The pre-revolutionary period (1900–16)
3.1. Major developments in agriculture
3.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
3.3. Food problems
3.4. Summary
Chapter 4. The post-revolutionary period (1917–28)
4.1. Major developments in agriculture
4.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
4.3. Food problems
4.4. Summary
Chapter 5. The collectivization of Soviet agriculture (1929–40)
5.1. Major developments in agriculture
5.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
5.3. Food problems
5.4. Summary
Chapter 6. The post-war recovery period (1945–54)
6.1. Major developments in agriculture
6.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
6.3. Food problems
6.4. Summary
Chapter 7. The virgin lands campaign (1955–64)
7.1. Major developments in agriculture
7.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
7.3. Food problems
7.4. Summary
Chapter 8. Period of intensification of the Soviet agriculture (1965–75)
8.1. Major developments in agriculture
8.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
8.3. Food problems
8.4. Summary
Chapter 9. Period of stagnation of the Soviet agriculture (1976–90)
9.1. Major developments in agriculture
9.2. Weather variations and agricultural production
9.3. Food problems
9.4. Summary
Conclusion
Glossary
References