FINAL REPORT TO NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR SOVIET AND EAST EUROPEAN RESEARCH SOVIET AGRICULTURE TODAY: A RADIO BROADCAST SERIES

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1 FINAL REPORT TO NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR SOVIET AND EAST EUROPEAN RESEARCH TITLE: SOVIET AGRICULTURE TODAY: A RADIO BROADCAST SERIES AUTHORS: WILLIAM A. DANDO JAMES D. SCHLICHTING GARY J. ENRIGHT CONTRACTOR: University of North Dakota PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Dr. William A. Dando COUNCIL CONTRACTOR NUMBER: DATE: June 1987 The work leading to this report was supported by funds provided by the National Council for Soviet and East European Research.

2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY "Soviet Agriculture Today: A Radio Broadcast Series," sponsored by the National Council for Soviet and East European Research, produced a series of 25 4-minute radio programs designed to provide useful information on Soviet agriculture for rural Americans and other listeners. Topics for the series were selected from a nationwide survey of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB) to reflect the interests of the American farmer and rural dweller and were researched both in the USSR on Soviet farms and in U.S. libraries. The broadcast series was distributed in September 1986 to approximately 350 commercial and National Public Radio stations serving all 50 states and to radio information directors of Farm Bureaus of the 50 states. Initial responses from members of the NAFB and listeners throughout the United States have praised the series. Written products of the study are expected to add useful information derived from field research to the current body of literature on Soviet agriculture. These products include: (1) a monograph, Soviet Agriculture Today: Insights. Analyses and Commentary, based on the series of position papers from which the radio scripts were prepared; (2) a second monograph, USSR Food Program for the Period Up to 1990: A Geographic Analysis of Problems and Prospects, written as a Master of Science thesis in connection with the project; (3) a number of professional articles; and (4) eventually, a major book expanding on the materials ii

3 described so far. Of these written products, the National Council anticipates submitting the first two to the U.S. Government as substantive Final Reports from the project. In addition, cassette copies of the radio broadcasts and examples of listener responses are available on request. 111

4 REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES "Soviet Agriculture Today: A Radio Broadcast Series" was designed to produce and disseminate to rural Americans information that would provide them with a better understanding of past, present, and future trends in Soviet agriculture. The need for such information is clear, if for no other reason than because Soviet agricultural performance and hence food and feed import requirements have a direct socioeconomic effect on rural America. Unfortunately, rural dwellers in the United States have less access to information on their Soviet counterparts than do American urban dwellers. In general, rural inhabitants and farmers want to know about specific Soviet agricultural conditions, procedures, and techniques topics not widely discussed in the United States whereas urban inhabitants interested in Soviet agriculture are more concerned about the more widely publicized issues of politics and overall successes and failures. The envisioned product was a series of high-quality radio programs to be distributed to a wide national rural audience. Radio was selected as the means of disseminating information from this study because radio broadcasts reach the highest percentage of American adults daily, and radio is the major source of news in the United States, particularly in rural areas, small towns, and on farms. In addition, radio production costs are low, distribution of broadcasts relatively easy, and programming highly flexible.

5 Radio Broadcast Series The radio broadcast series was distributed in mid-september 1986 to approximately 350 commercial and National Public Radio stations serving all 50 states. Tapes were also sent to radio information directors of Farm Bureaus in all 50 states. The scripts for the series were based on topics derived from a nationwide survey of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters and their listeners. Twenty-five topics were researched and written into position papers. Based on these papers, each radio program addressed a self-contained theme. Broadcasters were advised of the series format of five programs each week for five weeks, but stations were encouraged to make use of the programs according to their own needs. The goal was airplay. Each week of five programs addressed one general theme. The five weekly themes were as follows: Basic geographic and climatic assets and liabilities of Soviet agriculture; contemporary institutional problems in Soviet agriculture; current farming techniques and mechanization; lifestyles of Soviet farmers; and prospects of Soviet agriculture in the twenty-first century. The specific programs are listed as an appendix to this report. Copies of the programs as broadcast, in the form of two audio cassettes, are available on request.

6 3 Monograph The first written product of the project will be a monograph entitled Soviet Agriculture Today: Insights, Analyses, and Commentary. Its major contribution to contemporary literature on Soviet agriculture and rural life is the perspective gained from the authors' field work in the USSR and on Soviet farms. The monograph, which is intended to provide a basis for a larger publication on Soviet agriculture currently being researched, proposes new approaches to this issue, discusses new topics and concepts, updates facts and figures, and includes a clear set of maps. The monograph is based on the position papers of the radio broadcast series and includes five chapters corresponding to the five weekly themes addressed in the broadcasts. It is hoped that the monograph will serve farmers, students, and specialists interested in Soviet agriculture today. Master of Science Thesis The project's second written product will be another monograph, USSR Food Program for the Period up to 1990: A Geographic Analysis of Problems and Prospects, initially developed as a Master of Science thesis by James D. Schlichting. This work provides a detailed geographic analysis of the new Soviet food program which was adopted in May Utilizing resources at the National Agricultural Library in Beltsville, MD and focusing on Soviet sources, Mr. Schlichting reviewed and analyzed the economics, production goals, administration, and implementation of

7 4 this new program. Research revealed that goals of past five-year plans for agricultural growth and production have gone unmet more times than they have been attained. Further analysis led to the conclusion that goals set for the new Soviet food program will not be reached by Because the Soviet Union's documented constraints of geography and climate pose obstacles no different from those experienced in the author's home state of North Dakota, where agricultural productivity is substantially more reliable than that in the USSR, Mr. Schlichting argues that other factors must contribute to consistently poor levels of agricultural growth and production. Through field trips to the Soviet Union, he obtained insights into the ways that Soviet agrarian policy and theory contribute to the country's agricultural inefficiency. Findings from Mr. Schlichting's thesis were incorporated into the position papers, radio broadcasts, and the monograph. RESULTS OF TEE PROJECT The radio broadcast series made directly accessible to the American farmer and rural dweller useful information on the agricultural economy and lifestyle of the Soviet Union that directly affects the lives of rural Americans daily. In addition, National Public Radio provided broadcasts to a wide, intellectually curious, national audience. Initial calls and letters from farmers, ranchers, rural dwellers, and others who heard the radio

8 5 broadcast series throughout the United States have been complimentary and have urged more programs of this sort. But the greatest, favorable response came from members of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters. Copies of letters received are available on request. FUTURE RELATED PROJECTS A number of professional articles and a major book are projected for later publication. They will make use of a data bank that has been compiled from resources obtained through field trips to the USSR, and from the National Agricultural Library and Library of Congress. Articles to be written will focus on the new Soviet food program, the impact of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster on Soviet agriculture, and private plot food production. Portions of the book, for which the monograph Soviet Agriculture Today: Insights. Analyses, and Commentary forms a basis, have already been written. In addition, satellite images, computer maps (SYMAP and SYMVU), and photographs taken in the USSR over a span of 25 years, have been compiled. Mr. Schlichting's thesis will also be incorporated into the book. It is hoped that the interest generated by the radio broadcast series will create a demand for more radio programs, videos on Soviet agriculture for television broadcasters, and possibly a national symposium on the subject.

9 APPENDIX LIST OF PROGRAMS IN RADIO BROADCAST SERIES Number Title 1 Introduction to Series 4:20 2 Agriculture and Changing Climate 4:20 3 Location, Size, and Soils 4:00 4 Agriculture and the Disaster at Chernobyl' 4:30 5 Nuclear Disaster Impact on Soviet Agriculture 4:00 6 Soviet Agricultural Theory 4:20 7 Stalin's Plan for Agriculture 4:25 8 Khrushchev's Plan for Agriculture 3:20 9 Private Plot Food Production 4:20 10 Capital Investments in Agriculture 4:20 11 Science and Technology in Agriculture 4:20 12 Dryland Farming Practices 4:00 13 Irrigation on Soviet Farms 4:20 14 Fertilizer, Pesticide, and Herbicide Use 4:10 15 Mechanization on Soviet Farms 4:05 16 Working Conditions for Soviet Farmers 4:00 17 Income Levels for Soviet Farmers 4:20 18 Amenities and Quality of Life 4:30 19 Rural Living Conditions 3 : Rural Women in the Soviet Union 4:30 21 Physical Influences on Growth and Development 3:30 22 Human Influnces on Growth and Development 4:00 23 Communist Ideology and Agriculture 4:10 24 National Food Needs and Priorities 4:30 25 Soviet Agriculture in the Twenty-First Century 4:00 Length was recorded in minutes.