Russian Agriculture

For the ten days following birth, the calves are kept in boxes so they are easier to feed.

One of my main intents in studying abroad in Russia was to gain exposure to the system of agriculture practiced in Eastern Europe and the differences from American agriculture. While not much is growing at the moment due to the foot of snow still blanketing the ground, as part of my courses we take weekly field trips to agricultural businesses around Moscow. Last week we ventured two hours outside of Moscow to Klin in order to tour a dairy operation. Along the way we learned a lot about the farm system under Soviet rule and the transformation into its current state.

Many businesses struggled when the Soviet Union collapsed and they lost the support of the government. The Klinsky dairy that we visited is one of sixteen privately owned dairies in its region, but it is the only one to remain profitable, most likely due to the use of vertical integration. Instead of focusing solely on milk production, the dairy has also begun processing the milk and selling the products on the local market.

During Soviet times, agricultural production was focused into large state controlled farms. Due to mismanagement and a lack of incentives to produce more products efficiently, these state farms struggled to produce enough food to meet the demands of the population. Over time the Russian government realized this and allowed private gardens for personal consumption. Eventually, the go ahead was given to allow the public to sell excess produce. This created the incentive needed to boost Russia's agriculture production. By the 1970-80s, forty percent of Russia's agricultural production took place in these private gardens which accounted for around five percent of Russia's agricultural land. This practice has carried over to today and a large portion of Russians still grow their own vegetables, fruit, and herbs at their country homes, or да́ча​.

Just as Russians have been reluctant to let go of their gardens when it is easier and sometimes cheaper to buy their vegetables, they have also been reluctant to let go of their traditional farming practices and embrace differing concepts. This may be due to a lack of capital to invest in different farming techniques or the disbelief that these new practices could possibly work.

A bit dirtier than at home.

One of the barns.