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State of Agriculture in Crimea on the Eve of Transfer to Ukraine (1953)

A publication in the newspaper Krymska Svitlytsia (2017, No. 5–6), which, based on an archival reference report on the state of agriculture in the Crimean Oblast dated January 4, 1954, and the memoirs of Oleksiy Adzhubei, demonstrates the catastrophic post-war degradation of the peninsula's agrarian sector—one of the main reasons for "imposing" neglected Crimea on Ukraine in late 1953.

Overview

An article by Petro Volvach polemicizes against the myth that Nikita Khrushchev allegedly "gifted" Crimea to Ukraine out of personal preference. The author asserts that the decision to transfer the Crimean Oblast from the RSFSR to the Ukrainian SSR (1954) matured following Khrushchev's autumn inspection trip through steppe Crimea in 1953, during which the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU witnessed with his own eyes the neglect of agriculture and crowds of despairing settlers. The key piece of evidence is a report on the state of agriculture in the Crimean Oblast, prepared for the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPU Oleksiy Kyrychenko on January 4, 1954.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Motivation for the transfer of Crimea: The catastrophic condition of the economy and agricultural sector forced the Kremlin leadership (Khrushchev, Malenkov) to "impose" war-devastated Crimea on Ukraine, which was tasked with its revival; this action was disguised as "brotherly charity" for the 300th anniversary of the Pereyaslav Council.
  • Report of January 4, 1954: The total land area of the Crimean Oblast by the end of 1953 was 2,562.1 thousand hectares (with 1,270.6 thousand hectares under cultivation); compared to 1940, the sown area had decreased by 135 thousand hectares (1950) and by 35 thousand hectares (1953). The compilers omitted the disastrous year of 1950.
  • Grains and winter wheat: Grain yields dropped from 10.7 centners/ha (1940) to 3.9 centners/ha (1950); winter wheat yield dropped from 11.5 centners/ha (1940) to 4.4 centners/ha (1950). The sown area of winter wheat was reduced almost by half (370 thousand ha in 1940 → 195 thousand ha in 1950).
  • Vegetables, potatoes, root crops: Vegetable yields decreased almost by half (118.2 centners/ha in 1940 → 50.9–55 centners/ha in 1950–1953); potato area shrunk from 10.7 thousand ha to 5.5–5.9 thousand ha, with yields of 29–30 centners/ha (compared to 69.4 centners/ha in 1940); root crop yield dropped nearly threefold (42–47 centners/ha); melons — 16 centners/ha (compared to 60 centners/ha in 1940).
  • Plan of the Ukrainian SSR government (April 1954): On April 7, 1954, N. Kalchenko and O. Kyrychenko sent a comprehensive proposal to G. Malenkov and N. Khrushchev regarding the restoration of Crimea, providing for the expansion of vegetable crops to 18.6 thousand ha, the development of greenhouse farming, and the allocation of 10 thousand ha to the Crimean Wine Trust.
  • Horticulture and viticulture: Once leading sectors of the Crimean economy, they had not recovered to pre-war levels in the ten post-war years—orchard area stood at 12.3 thousand ha (1940) → 10 thousand ha (1953); industrial vineyards contracted to 7,069 ha (79.2% of the pre-war level). There was a shortage of raw materials for winemaking, and wine materials had to be imported from Ukraine.
  • Livestock breeding and fodder base: Farms were provided with roughage at only 81%, hay at 3%, and succulent fodder at 40% (1954 report); in the foothills, availability was even lower (Alushta District—10%). Nearly all districts suffered from a shortage of livestock housing.
  • State procurements: The oblast failed to fulfill procurement plans; in 1953, grain procurements (393 thousand metric tons) did not reach the pre-war level (407 thousand metric tons in 1940); procurement of fruits, grapes, and tobacco dropped sharply. Food supplies for cities had to be brought in from Ukraine.
  • Settlers: The majority of settlers arrived from russia (Volga region, northern oblasts); the growth of procurements for meat, milk, and eggs relied primarily on their private household plots.