Problems of Accumulation and Consumption in Collective Farms

Abstract

The problem of accumulation and consumption affects the most important aspects of the economy of collective farms. Its solution will to a great extent determine the rates of expanded reproduction and the standard of living of the collective farm peasants, the proportions between industry and agriculture and between subdivisions I and II of social production. The serious shortcomings in the management of agriculture which were disclosed at the March (1965) Plenary Meeting of the CPSU Central Committee could not fail to have an effect on the combination of accumulation and consumption. Owing to violations of the principle of the correct combination of social and personal interests, many collective farms, despite the comparatively low level of incomes, allocated a considerable portion of their income to replenish their indivisible funds, that is, to meet accumulation needs, to the detriment of the personal material interest of the collective farmers. The raising of purchase prices and the other measures which the March Plenary Meeting of the CPSU Central Committee adopted to increase the incomes of the collective farms do not mean that the problem of a correct combination of accumulation and consumption is automatically solved. A number of questions connected with the distribution of income still remain to be solved, since the method of distributing collective farm income that developed in accordance with the Model Charter of the Agricultural Artel neither meets the task of full cost accounting between the state and collective farms nor that of establishing correct proportions between accumulation and consumption.