JPRS ID: 9272 USSR REPORT CONSUMER GOODS AND DOMESTIC TRADE

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• Document Page Count: 27
• Document Creation Date: November 1, 2016
• Sequence Number: 44
• Content Type: REPORTS

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~ t~c~it c>r~~ic:int. t~s~~; ~~N[.ti~
JPRS L/9272
27 August 1980
_ U SS R~ Re ort
~
COI~SUMER GOODS AND DOMESTIC TRADE
CFOUO 2/80)
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JPRS L/9272
27 August 1980
USSR REPORT
CONSUMER ~OODS AND DOMESTIC TRADE
(FOUO 2/80)
CONTENTS
CONSUMER GOODS PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION
Improvemer~t in Material, Techaical Base of Trade Needed
(Ye. Danilov; VOPROSY EKONOMIKI, Jun 80),,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 1
Private Subsidiary Sector Food Production Underutilized
(V. Voronin; VOPROSY EKONOMIKI, Jun 80).......
14
" a ' [III - USSR - 38b FOUO]
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CONSUMER GOODS PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION
IMPROVEMENT IN MATERIAL, TECHNICAL BASE OF TRADE NEEDED r
Moscow VOPROSY EKONOMIKI in Russian No 6,Jun 80 pp 108-117
[Article by Ye. Danilov, candidate in economic sciences, chief of
the Administration for the Organization of Labor and Wages, member of
the Board of the USSR Ministry of Trade: "An Improvement of the
- Material and Technical Base of Trade"]
' [Text] The question of the necessity for a further dynamic and propor- ~
tional development of public production and for the consj.stent realization
of the course aimed at increasing efficiency and the quality of work
was sharply posed at the November (].979) Plenum of the CC CPSU.
This orientation for the development of public production is also making
qualitatively new demands upon trade. This branch of the economy which
has a direct influence upon improving the public welfare and on the
realization of the party's social program is expanding at rapid rates -
and absorbing substantial material, financial, and labor resources. -
From 1960 through 1979 alone commodity turnover increased from 78.6 to
252.2 billion rubles, and the number of workers increased f~om 5.1 to
9.3 million people.
In recent years there has been an increase in the efficiency and quality
of the work of trade enterprises. However, the standard of services
for the population does not yet accord with the demands of the time
everywhere. A further improvement of the material and technical basis
of trade is a factor in increasing the efficiency of the branch and
improving the standard of services. In addition, it should be empha-
sized that this problem has a clearly expressed interbranch character,
for its solution depends upon many industrial and construction mini-
stries and departments. Studies by economistsl show that in large
stores which have been built according to modern plans the amount of
commodity turnover per square meter of sales space increases and it is
also larger per worker. This is confirmed by the following data on
the RSFSR system of state trade (see the table below).
[Table on following page]
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Table 1
The Dependence of Commodity Turnover per Worker and per Square
Meter of Sales Space Upon the size of the Store
RSFSR State Groups of Stores by Size of�Sa].es Space (in square meters)
Trade 50 100 160 250 400 650 1000 1500 2500 ~~~b
; Commodity
turnover dur-
ing the fourth
quarter of 197R
(in thousands of
rubles) :
Per Worker....13.89 13.67 14.01 14.69 ?5.51 15.64 17.97 18.84 18.91 22.96
Per square
meter of
sales space.. 1.53 1.54 1.61 1.62 1.62 1.38 1.48 1.96 2.33 3.44
In recent years a new, progressive tyge of food store the universam
has appeared and received the recognition of buyers. A survey of 58
universams which was conducted by the Ukrainian Scientific Research
Institute of Trade in 12 of the country's cities in 1978 showed that
these stores have high economic indicators. Thus, commodity turnover
per square meter of sales space comes to an average of 9,400 rubles in
them, and per worker to 58,400 rubles. In gastronoms with the same
sales space these indicators are, correspondingly, 6,900 rubles and
47,100 rubles. The profitability level of the economic work of
universams is 2.37 percent, that of gastronoms 1.81 percent, and
that of food trade establishments as a whole~-- 1.73 percent.2 In
the universams there is a wider assortment of foods; the sale of non-
food goods in everyday demands is performed here; great opportunities
have been created for buyers for selecting the necessary goods; and they
spent less time making purchases. As of 1 January 1979 the country
had in it 206 universams and 51 stores equated to universams with an
average sales space of more than 1,000 square meters.
During the Tenth Five-Year Plan the development of the trade network
was accompanied by an enlargement of trade e~nterprises and an increase
in the number of trade centers and department stores. The sales area
in the newly opened stores in 1988 came to an average of 134 square
meters. In addition, the average sales area which was put into opera-
tion on the basis of new construction and the creation of stores on the
first f loors of new residential houses was equa.l to 159 square meters.
The enlargement of enterprises was promoted by the nomenclature of
types of stores w~~ich had been approved by the USSR Ministry of Trade
and of the USSR State Committee for Civil Construction and which
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roE< oHt~ Ic;int. usL o~rLY
prescribes that the minimum size of newly commissioned sales area
could not be less than 250 square meters. In 1977-1978 Gostroy USSR
and the USSR State Co~ittee for ~.vil Construction jointly aith the
USSR Ministry of Trade reviewed the list of existing standard plans
for trade enterprises locatFd both in individual buildings and in struc-
tures built into and onto 7esidential houses and excluded ob.solete plans.
The new plans provide to a greater extent for the satisfaction of the
population's needs f.or goods in ovPrall demand, for decreasing irra-
tional expenditures of time for goods purchases, for the introduction of
progressive forms of sales, the overall mechanization of labor processes,
and for a decrease in labor expenditures for the sale of goods.
Trade centers are operating and being built in Moscow, Kiev, Leningrad,
_ Orel, and other cities. For example, the total area of a sales room
in ~h'is kin3 of center in Chelyabinsk came to 32,000 square meters,
including 13,000 square meters for sales. The ~uyer here is offered a
wide assortment of food and industrial goods, and there are public
catering enterprises. The center's commodity turnover in 1978 reachec~
104 million rubles, and the number of its workers is 1300 people.
Ninety-five percent o:. the goods are sold by the self-service method.
Eight consumer complexes have been organized in the department store
groups of goods for women, men, children, for everyday life, for
recreation, and so forth. A linear system of placing the equipment
is used. ~aelve-meter lines have been created for each group of goods.
Ninety types of additional services are also provided here home
delive~ies, tailoring, the acceptance oi orders for goods which are
temporarily not on sale, various consultations, and so forth. Commodity
turnover per square meter of sales space in the store is 8,000 rubles,
which is four times greater than the average of the country, and commo-
dity turnover per worker is 80,000 rubles co:npated to 46,300 rubles in
the USSR as a whole.
Consumers are now trying to save as much time needed for purchases as
possible and to purchase both food and industrial goods tQund~r one roof."
And the trade centers make it possible to do this by means of the con-
centration of commodity turnover, an enlargement of sales rooms, the
use of the achievements of scientific and technological progress, the
well-conceived d3splay of equipment and goods, the installatior. of
information signs, a simplification of paymer~ts for p~irchases, and so
forth. The pr~conditions are created in them for overall services for
the population, for a substantial reduction of distribution costs, and
for increasing the efficiency of trade and the quality of services for
buyers.
An enlargement of stores is also characteristic for the development uf
trade abroad. For example, the construction of large trade facilities
is being carried out in Poland: depa~tment stores with a sales area of
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~ no less than 2,000 square meters, universa~s ~aith an area of no less
than 400 square meters, and sales salons with a sales area of no less
than 600 square meters. In the United States as of 1 January 1978
supermarkets (an average sales area in 1977 of 1707 square meters) came
to 18.8 percent of the total number of food stores and accounted for
76.3 percent of the commodity turnover of food stores.3 The same
tendency is also occurring in other countries.
During the Ninth ~~nd Tenth Five-Year Plans various measures were taken
in our country tc develop the ma.terial and technical base of trade.
During four y~ar~ of the current five-year plan alone around 5.5 billion
rubles were assigned for these purposes (for state trade). However,
, the growth rates of the material and technical base of state trade
during the Ninth Five-Year Plan, as during the previous one, lagged behind
the growth rates of cottmiodity turnover. At the present time in our
country's cities there are approximately 160 square meters of sales area
per i,000 inhabitants with a current norm of 185 square meters and a
future one of 230 square meters. In other words, the supply level of
this area for the population comes to approximately 86 percent. Ware-
house space is only 77 percent of the norm. This is e~lained, on the
one hand, by the insufficient amounts of capital investments which were
allocated and, on the other, by their bad utilization in a number of
republics. Ttius, in 1979 the capital investments plan for the "trade"
branch in the Kirgiz, Turkmen, Tadzhik, Estonian, Georgian, and Latvian
_ Union Republics was fulfilled by 70 to 90 percent. The situation is
_ unsatisfa~:tory as regards the ful�illment of the construction and instal-
lation plan by many ministries (in the contracting organizations of the
USSR Ministry of Heavy Construction it was fulfilled by 87 percent, of
the USSR Ministry of Industrial Construction by 80 percent, and of
t'~e USSR Ministry of Agricultural Construction by 80 percent). The
capital investments which are formed on the basis of 5 percent of the
allotments ftom investments in housing construction are poorly utilized
locally. In 1979 they were under utilized by 35 percent. The assign-
ment to increase the network of stores in state trade which was estab-
lished for 1979 was fulfilled by 96 percent, while during four years of
tlie five-year plan it ~�~as fulfilled by 94 percent.
The 12 July 1979 decree of the CC CPSU and USSR Council of Ministers
"On Improving Planning a.3 Strengthening ~he Influence of the Economic
Mechanism on Increasing Production Efficiency and the Quality of Work"
emphasizes the necessity for concentrating capital investments and
ass~gning them first of all for the reconsr_ruction and reequipping of
operating enterprises. It is recorded in the decree: "Funds for the
construction of new and the expansion of operating enterprises are to
be allocated in the event that the needs of the economy for a given type
of output cannot be provided for by operating enterprises after their
reconstruction and reequipping." This statement is very important not
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only for industry, b.ut also for trade. Practice has shown for a long
time already that the reeonstruction of trade enterprises and their
reequ3pping provides a much greater effect than new construction. It
should also be kept in mind that most of the stores which were previously
built no longer correspond to the requirements of modern technology. Yet
during the last ten years the operating network of state trade stores has
been renewed at the level of only 24 percent. As a result, the great
majority of the enterprises are in need of substantial recons truction.
This requires the wider use of funds for capital repairs, with their
concentration at the level of trade enterprises and cities so as not to
be limited, for exa~ple, to painting work, but to reequip enterprises
facility after facility~ Much more active use has to be made for these
purposes of credit from Gosbank and Stroybank USSR.
The initiative of a number of oblasts of the RSFSR and the Ukrainian
S5R co~nected with the overall rationalization of the trade network
deserves approval and development. Thus, in Lipetskaya Oblas t the
_ administrations of trade and p~,~lic catering have developed a plan-pro-
gram for the overall rationalizaton of state trade and public catering
for 1979-1985 which has been approved by the obkom CPSU and the ispolkom
of the oblast Soviet of Feople's Deputies and agreed upon with the
RSFSR Ministry of Trade. This plan represents an effective form of the
overall special-purpose program approach to the solution of the problems
of a further improvement of the organization of trade, the organization
of technological progre~s, and a rise in the level of trade services
for the population. 'Fhey establish concrete assignments for the develop-
ment and ?-econstruction of the material and technical base of trade,
for the introduction of new equipment and advanced technology, and for
_ the use of progressive service methods. The plan-program for the overall
rationalization of trade is aimed on the whole at a further improvement
of the management of trade enterprises, a strengthening of th e rela-
tionships between trade and industry, a rise in the level of commercial
work, an economy of ldbor expenuitures, and an improvement of the
training and placement of cadres.
The program is being successfully put into practice. The "Prodtovary"
Trade Association which contai~s 100 stores and the "Klen" Wholesale-
- Retail Association which has concentrated in it more than 90 percent of
the sales of furni;ure in the oblast's system of state trade and where
the functions of supplying furniture to consumer cooperati~ve stores,
workers' supply departments, and so forth have been created in Lipetsk. -
In or3er to improve trade in commodities of a children's assortment
a specialized association has been created in the Lipetsk city indus-
trial trade organization, which has made it possible to malce more
efficient use af commodity resources of children's clothes. Its sales
are concentrated in the specialized trade enterprises "Ch ildren's
World," "Buratino," and "Children's Goods." There is a wholesale-retail
A
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r(~i~ r,i~ i~ r c i nr. i~:,~~: c,rri,~;
enterprise for the sale of records in the oblast. A large amount of work
is being conducted in Lipetskaya Oblast on the specialization ai?d concen-
_ tration of sales of goods in a complex assortment in large stores.
The construction of .large stores and punctual equipment supplies for
them makes it possible to carry out the specialization and concentra-
tion of the sale of cultural and domestic goods and of a wide products
list of light industry goods. For example, in the system of the Ministry
of Trade of the b~I.orussian SSR the level of specialization in the sale
of non-food goods comes to 84.2 percent, including 82 percent for clothing,
88.5 percent for footwear, and 100 percent for goods of a complex tech-
- nical assortmen~. In tilinsk after the commissioning of the "Gorizont"
store with a sales area of 2,600 square meters the sale of television
sets and radios ~eas concentrated in two stores. It is~wellknown that
the sale of radio ooods and electric household machinery and appliances,
especia?ly with tneir modern assorr_ment and technical complexity,
requires speci.al conditions which are necessary for the pre-sale prepara- -
= tion and demonstration of these articles in action and for consultations
by specialists. In "Gorizont" b.uyers are served by experienced special-
ists. If the buyer so wishes, his purchase is delivered to his home and
instal.lecl there. Tn order to facilitate the infra-store movement of
te?evision sets and radios wide use is made of inechanization equipment,
and the level of manual labor has been reduced to a minimum. This kind
of specialization of the trade. network is very convenient for buyers.
A television set is not bought every year. For this reason, a considerable `
distance from the buyer's residence to the specialized store cannot be
a hindr~nce.
It would seem advisable to conduct a thorough survey of a trade network
- and on this basis to bring about a more efficient and more corL�enient for
buyers use of operating and newly commssioned trade enterprises. It -
has to be noted here that as the general plans for the development of ~
cities are approved the planning institutes of the USSR State Committee
for Civil Construction and the USSR Ministry of Trade and of the gosstroys
of the union republics work out plans for the development and sitin; of
the network of trade and public catering enterprises for the calculated
period and for the near future. As of 1 January 1979 long-term plans
for the development and siting of the trade network of 230 cities were ~
made up.
Along with the concentration and specialization of the saJ.e of durable
goods through the enlargement of the trade network and the creation af
department stores, the task has arisen of making it as edsy as possible `
for buyers to nur.chase non-food goods in everyday demand. We are talking -
about the organization of the sale of accompan;~ing ~oods in large food -
stores. In individual department stores their sale comes to from 1.5 to
3 p~rcent of the total commodity turnover. However, in most cases the
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~ -
the assortment of these goods ranges within the limits of from 80 to
100 items and is represented basically by large household articles and
toys which sometimes occupy up to 2'' percent of the space in the sales
. room. There are no haberdashery, perfume and cosmetic, paper, school,
office, and other goods in everyday de.mand on sale. -
Me2rwhile, there exists favorable experience in this kind of reorgani- _
zation of the trade network. In Klaypeda (Lithuanian SSR), for example,
in the food stores which have concentrated in them a universal assort-
ment of foods (groceries, vegetables, bread) they also sell non-food
goods which occupy 30 percent of tlie entire assortment. This makes it
possible for the population to simultaneously buy foods and prime
necessity articles, simplifies the purchasing process itself, and saves
time. The indicators of the stores' economic work have substantially
improved here and the labor of their workers is used more efficiently.
The reurganization of trade demanded a change in the procedure for
_ supplying these stores. The central food base which supplies them
' became a mixed base a department of prime nec~ssity industrial goods
has been created in it.
An enlargement of the trade network is the general direction of the
development of trade in the near and more distant future. It has b.een
. calculated that enlarged trade enterprises,which have been built in
accordance with the general plans for the development of cities, the -
efficiency of labor i~ increased liy almost 25 percent, the number of
_ workers decreases by 15 percent, the return on fixed capital increases,
and the standard of services improves. However, for the time being the
trade network in our coLntry is represented basically by small stores
whose areas do not exceed 80 square meters. It is not possible to
replace these facilities with larger ones in the next few years, but in -
the future the need for th~m will not cnmpletely disappear. In a number
of socialist countries, for example, in Poland small stores of the
"RUF~i" type are successfully functioning and enjoying the deserved respect
of buyers. For this reason, in our view, now is the time for us to think
through the specialization of smal~ stores and to carry out their recon- -
struction. This kind of work has been performed in the cities of Ryl'sk
in Kurskaya Oblas.t, Yel'ts in Lipetskaya Oblast, and in certain others
and it has made it possible to improve trade services and increase the -
efficiency of trade.
r
Given the still insufficient development of the trade network its more
efficient use is of great importance. At the present time actual sales -
areas are sometimes used ineffectively and are frequently turned, in
= essence, into warehouses. Due to a sometimes poorly conceived placement
of equipment and cash re~isters., demonstration space is reduced. Yet,
there already exists favorable experience in this work. For example,
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since 11 October 1477 a single pajment center has been in operation in
_ the Cherniaov Trade Center. The sales area of the two-story department
story comes to 2,730 square meters, the :tumber of staff places is 250,
y and commodity turnover is around 30 million rubles. The organization of
a single payment center has made it possible to make a more intensive
use of sales areas. Inste~d of the 70 registers which previously existed
in the salesroom there are now 18. In addition to a more efficient use
of equipment, this has made it possihle to expand the installation area
by S percent whic~l, in its turn, has given rise to an increase in commo-
dity turnover of approximately 1 million rubles. In addition, the number
of workers it~ the salesroom has conditionally decreased by 27 people
whose annual wage fund came to 2,000 rubles. The buyer has also gained.
A study of time expenditures for purchases has shown that with two
- purchases in the "stockings and hosiery," "knitted sports goods," and
- "household chemistry" sections payment time has decreased by 1.4 times,
with three purchases, by 1.9 times, and with five purchases by 2.9
times. Commodity turnover in 1978 increased by 5.6 percent and by 5.8
percent per one square meter, and labor productivity increased by 5.3
percent. The profits plan was fulfilled by 102.5 percent, and the economy
of commodity stocks conpared to loss norms came to 5,500 rubles.
TEze use of improved equipment in paying for purchases also promotes an
improvement of the use of sales areas, especially in self-service stores.
Thus, with wcrk on the totalling registers of the "Oka" type compared to
work on the "Kim-2" register the labor productivity of the cashier, other
conditions being equal, increases by 20 to 25 percent. Our industry has
now mastered the production of the multi-function "Iskra P-302A" multi- -
function control register. It makes it possible to mechanize and automate
the calculation of monetary receipts and the issuance of documents and
to control these operations in 9 sections. Unfortunately, there are still -
not enough such rapid-action cash registers, and industry is not satis-
fying trade's requisitions for them. Meanwhile, practice shows that there
_ are even more improved ele:~ronic cash registers which make it possible
not only to accelerate the process. of pay ing for purchases, but also to
keep track of the sale of goods in a wide assortment. _
The economic efficiency of the use of sales areas in self-service stores
is 5ti11 low. As a re~ult of surveys conducted in early 1977 it has
been established that commodity turnover per one square meter of sales
space in self-service non-food stores is 15 percent lower and in food
stores 26 percent lower than in stores where goods are sold in the tra-
ditional method over the counter. In increasing the efficiency of
- self-service stores a large role is played by the typization of the
placement of equipment, tiy a better use of sales areas by means of increa-
sing display areas, an.expansion and the stabi~,ity of the assortment of
goods, the regulation of staff, and the el~.minp`:ion of surplus workers.
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PUk (ll~}'f(;IAI. Util~: ONI.},
A rise in the level of the mechanization and automation of labor, the -
overall use of equipment, and an improvement of the organization of the
use and repairing of trade equipment are among the most important factors
of impr.oving the u� of the material and technical base of trade.
Before examining these questions I would like to make one general comtoent.
In the economic literature in recent years a solid place has been occu-
pied by the proposition that although deliveries of modern technological `
equ~pment to trade enterprises have been increasing, the level of labor `
mechanization in them continues to be low: 10 percent at state trade
enterprises, 21 percent at public caterin~ enterprises, and 22.5 percent
at general wh~lesale warehouses, at potato, fruits, and vegetable storage
units, and at refrigerators.4 The conclusion is frequently drawn here
that with respect to its equipment level trade occupies one of the last
- places in our economy. In our opinir,n, it is scarcely possible to agree
with such an evaluation. The fact is that so far there is no scientific ~
work on the possible mechanization levels of trade processes. The
average size of a s.tore in 19~8 came to 82.5 sq.uare meters. The question -
arises: What kind of inechanization level can exist in stores with a
smaller area and with regard to the assortment of their goods? What
kind of lalior processes. can be mechanized, for example, in a perfume and
haberdashery store with two workers? In general, can the level of the
_ mechanization of labor in trade be 100 percPnt? Of course, not. The
approach here has to be a differentiat~3 une. Further work is needed "
on the directions and possible levels of the mechanization and automation
of labor in trade.
It seens to us that the most important problem is the one of inechanization
and automation of labor in loading and unloading goods and in moving them
withia the store. At the presen~ time more than 800,000 workers are
employed in loading and unloading operations. The theory and practice
of recent years makes it possible to def ine the prospects for decreasing _
labor expenditures in these heavy physical jobs. In the food trade they
= can be reduced above all through the organization of industrial packaging
of goods, by putting it in packaging equipment at industrial enterprises
or wholesale bases, and delivering it to the stores by specialized trans-
port. Our industry and the enterprises of the CEMA countries produce
diff.erent types of floor transport for the intra-store movement of goods
and it is necessary for the configuration an~' layout of saJ.esrooms and
auxiliary premises to make it possible to use it. For example, in
Leningrad packaging equipment has been used since 1977 in the "Shuvalovskiy"
universam. The overall sales area of this store comes to 4,055 square
meters, and includes 1,010 square meters for the salesroom and 889 square _
meters fnr the packaging shops. Trade in goods is carried out here
according to the schene of "suppli~er-salesroom-buyer." The technological F
basis of the new trade process is comprised of 792 special containers of
two types, special machines for moving ther~, electric loaders, and hydraulic
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i~~~u c~i~rr~:ini. us~~: c~rvi.Y -
carts. A good wh;.ch has been prepared for sale is loaded into a container
at the supplier`s place, and an electric loader puts it into the truck or
_ conrainer carrier. which is sent to the store. In the universam the
container is tiken off the machine by an electric loader and delivered
to the salesroom or to a temporary storage site. As a r~sult, compared
to the unloading of Foods in retail packaging, the expenditure of time
for unloading the machine has decreased by 3.5 times. Expenditures of
manual labor for noving goods have practically been reduced to nought.
_ The use of containers has made it possible to substantially expand the
_ assortment o` goods in the salesroom, to bring their a.mount to 60 percent -
of total commodity stocks, to increase the display area from 38 to 65 -
percent, and to decrease the equipment area from 35 to 28 percent. The
salesroom has become more open~ Convenient access to the containers and
the refrigerateti counters, and beautifully made up information signs
which indicate the place where a group of foods is kept help the buyers
to rapidly orient themselves in the salesroom and choose the goods they
need; and the 17 cash registers at the payment center which are equipp ed
with rapi.d-action machines make it possible to reduce time expenditures
for paying for purchases to a minimum. The use of packaging equipment -
has brought about an increase in labor productivity of 16.5 percent in
the universam as a whole. It should be kept in mind here that only around
40 percent of the packaged goods are delivered from enterprises, while
60 percent are packaged in the store, which requires the appropriate
workers.
Containers (packaging equipment) are now used in approximately 1300 fruit
and vegetable stores. Packaging equipment is also used in the sale of
certain types of household goods.. In 1959 the "House of Wallpaper" wh ich
traded by the traditional methods was opened in Moscow on Krasikov Street.
Its sales area came to 542 square meters and it had 48 workers. Buyers
spent three to four hours on purchasing wallpaper, and the work of the
store's workers was hard. For example, in the "wallpaper" section a
salesman received two tons of goods a day, while a worker received 12 tons; ~
this caused a large labor turnover and lo*.a profitability. In 1976 the
store was transferred to the self-service method with rolling containers _
according to the scheme'~actory-transportation-salesroom." This made it
possible to curtail 8 technological operations in the store and 13 at the
' factory and in transportation. Time expenditures for purchases were
reduced 8 to 10 times. Commodity turnover increased b.y 15 percent with
a decrease of six workers.
The use of f latcars in delivering and storing goods is of great importance
for the mechanization of lab.or in trade. Their use makes it possible to ~
increase labor productivity in loada.ng and unloading operations from 25
to 30 percent.
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I~OIZ OFFICIAL USE ONLI'
In recent years. measures have b.een taken to create and eacpand the produc- -
tion of new mechanization and automation equipment for trade production
processes. For example, in 1978 there were 72,200 totalling cash
registers in trade, including around 6,000 electronic ones; many stores
have scales which show weight and price. The trade enterprises of
Klaypeda have installed in them and are successfully operating five lines
of the "LUVG-350" type for packaging groceries in a vacuum, and open
refrigeration equipment with forced air circulation for the self-service
store with centralized cold supply. At the beginning of 1978 around
1700 flow lines for the packaging of potatoes, vegetables, fruits, and
so forth, were in operation at state fruit and vegetalile enterprises. _
More and more mechanization and automation equipment is being received -
in trade and its quality is improving, although even practical workers -
are observing with complete justice in the economic literature that there
is still not enough higtily productive equipment and that the quality of
many of its types is in need of improve.ment. But it is not only a
matter of the quantity and quality of trade equipment: it is.very
important to use it efficiently. Yet, the level of the use of installed
equipment, inclu3ing tliose types which are very scarce, is sti11 very
low in the branch. This is the result of the fact that modern technologies
which ensure the overall use of new equipment are still being introduced
slowly here.
An increase in the production and delivery to stores of packaged goods
is one of the basic conditions for the further development and improve-
ment of the work of self-service food stores. Unfortunately, the
enterprises of the food indus.try are not supplying trade with such goods
in the necessary amounts. Therefore, wholesale and retail. enterprises
- are compelled to package the goods themselves, which, of co~trse, is less
productive and more expensive. With the decentralized installation of
- equipment in stores it is used extremely unproductively: packing and
packaging equipment at the level of 20 to SO percent, and automa.tic
units and scales for flour and sugar at the level of 60 to 75 percent.
Meanwhile, a sub.s.t~ntial amount of highly productive equipment is con-
centrated in the s.tores. Thus, in 1975 of 476 automatic tnachines for
pacl:aging loose goods in stores, 292, or 60 percent, were installed, and
in 1979 68 percent. A similar situation can be seen with lines for
cutting and packaging groceries, 80 percent of which are in stores. The
proportion of packaging foods~in stores comes to 90 percent in the
- Kirgiz SSR, 80 percent in the Kazakh. SSR, and 75 percent in the Uzbek SSR.
In 1978 around 2 million tons of sugar and flour were packaged in stores.
With a more eff icient use of pack.aging equipment and its concentration
in specialized shops of trade establishments and associations it would
have been possible to package around 4 million tons of these foods. In
order to correct the situation it is necessary, first, to more actively
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I demand the production nf pa~kaged goods from industry and, secondly, to ~
cc.~tralize the packagi:~g of goods in specialized shops and bases, concen-
I trating highly productive equipment there.
A great deal in the question which is being considered depends upon the
- initiative of industrial and trade enterprises and organizations and _
their superior agencies. To confirm this I would like to cite two
_ examples. In tlie Estonian SSR the packaging of foods is carried out by
industry and tra~l~. The production by industry of packaged foods is
I systematically being increased. Their proportion comes to 50 percent in -
the republic, compared to 33 percent in the country as a whole. Margarine,
animal oils, pou"ltry fat, and cheese products come into trade enterprises
only in packaged form. The need of retail trade for packaged macaroni
. prod~icts, bottled beer, whole milk, sour cream, and certain other foods
is being completely met.
i During the Tenth Five-Year Plan the amount of packaging increased b.y
_ almost 13 percent i.n tliat repulilic`s trade system and this was helped
by the universal organization of packaging shops and the centralization
of equipment. Almost 70 percent of the foods packaged in trade were -
packaged in these shops, including all of the loose sugar and more than
~ 50 percent of the flour and candy products. 7n order to efficiently
organize the packaging process and improve the use of equipment in the
specialized shops they are lieing reconstr~~:ted in accordance with a
technological packaging scheme which has ueen developed. There is a
completely different situation in the Turkmen SSR. Here the food output
packaging plants are not being fulfilled by industrial enterprises. The
proportion of candy and macaroni products which are packaged in industry
- comes to only 2 percent of their total production, for meat it is 8.8
percent, and for whole milk 15 percent. Measures are not being taken
to centralize the packaging of goods in trade and they are packaged
- chiefly in stores. The reason for such diametrically opposed results
as in our examples is ob.viously in different lev~ls of organizational
wark.
- In speaking about a more efficient use of equipment attention has to be
called to the necessity for punctual repairs of existing mechanisms. A
repair service has been created in the system of the USSR Ministry of
Trade which brings together around 230 repair and installation enterprises
at which 50,000 people work. Many of these enterprises are outfitted with
modern equipment and have qualified cadres. At the same time, in indivi-
� dual trade enterprises punctual and high quality technical servicing and
repairs of trade equipment are not provided. As a result, some of the
equipment stands idle or is operated with technical deficiencies. There
has not been a complete solution to the problem of the production of
spare parts for equipment the need for which is met by the Ministry for _
- Light and Food Industry Machine Building by less than 30 percent and by
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the Ministry of Instrument Making by 42 percent. A further improvement
by the material and technical base of trade depends upon the workers ~
both of trade and of other branches of the economy. And during the
period when the economic and social development plan for forthcoming
years is being prepared this should b.e kept in mind.
FOOTNOTES
1. R. A. Lokshin, "On Increasing the Economic Efficie:icy of Trade,"
- 1972.
2. SOVETSKAYA TORGOVLYA, No. 11, 1979, p. 26.
3. "Express Information of State Trade," Issue II, p. 4, 1979.
4. G. N. Korovkin, "The Problems of Reequipping Trade," 1977, pp. 10-11.
COPYRIGHT: Izdatel'stvo "Pravda", "Voprosy ekonomiki", 1980 -
29 59
CSO: 1827
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ro~ or-r r.ci~, usr.; ONLY
CONSUMER GOODS PRODUCTION AND DIS.TRIBUTION
_ PRIVATE SUB.SIDIARY SECTOR FOOD PRODUCTION UNDERUTILIZED
Moscow VOPROSY EKONOMIKI in Russian No 6,Jun 80 pp 118-124
[Article by V. Voronin, candidate in economic sciences, docent, head
of the Department of Economic Subjects of the Voronezh Faculty of the
Correspondence Institute of Soviet Trade: "The Private Sulisidiary
Sector and Trade"]
[Text] Under developed socialism the problems of increasing food
resources are being solved in the interests of all of the members of
society and with an unchanged level of retail prices which makes it
possible to satisfy the needs of people with different income levels.
In order to maintain stalile retail prices annual state subsidies have
come to more than 20 billion rubles for meat and dairy products alone.
; Beginning with 1 January 1979, in accordance with the decree of the
- July (1978) Plenum of the CC CPSU they were increased by an additional
_ 3.2 billion rub.les..
Our country is characterized by an equalization of the consumption
structures of the different groups of the population and the individual
regions of the country, by the amounts of consumption of the most impor-
tant foods coming close to the physiological norms, by an improvement
in their balance, and by a decrease in the proportion of natural consump-
tion. This is being promoted both by the development of a production of
agricultural output, the high growth rates of monetary income, especially .
for the low and medium-paid categories of the population, and also by
an increase in payments and benefits from the social consumption funds.
The problem has now been solved of providing each inhabitant (precisely .
each one, and not an average statistical one as ir. the capitalist -
countries) with a high calorie diet (3,000 calories a day) although the -
structure of the diet as a whole is still in need of a certain improve-
ment; that is, an optimization of the relationships between proteins,
carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and different types of foods meat,
- miZn, fruit, and vegetables for which the physioiogical consumption
norms have not yet been attained.
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rrn: c~rrTC:rn~. i15r, cirtT,~~
With the growth of monetary income, especially for the low and medium- _
paid categories af workers, there is a change in the structure of needs
and consumption. They become equalized for the different categories of
the population on the basis of an increase in ,demand for the most
valuable and high quality foods meat, milk,~fruits, and vegetables.
The demand for them grows at more rapid rates han the average growth
rate of monetary income. The production of th se f.oods in the public
sector does not always keep up cai.th the growth of needs. This is why
it is necessary to make fuller use of all of tte possibilities to
- increase these foods. "The basis for the formation of state food commo-
dity resources is undoulitedly public production," L. I. Brezhnev observed
at the 16th Congress of Trade Unions. "At the same time, it is impor-
tant to make full use of the possi.bilities of the personal subsidiary
farms."
At the present period personal subsidiary farms (PSF) play an important -
role in the production of agricultural output. The PSF now account for
around 60 percent of the gross production of potatoes and honey, around
40 percent of the production of fruit, berries, and eg~s, and around
30 percent of the production of ineat, milk, and vegetables. The income
from the PSF comcs to one-fourth of the total income of kolkhoz workers,
and comprises. an important part of the income of sovkhoz workers.
According to our calculations, tfie total income from the PSF is 18
billion rubles a year.
However, the marketability of the PSF is substantially lower than that
_ of the public sector of production. In 1977 it accounted for only
42 percent of the commodity output of potatoes, 13 percent of vegetables,
12 percent of ineat, 7 percent of eggs, ~nd S percent of milk.l This is
the result of objective causes firs.t of all, the assignment of the
preponderant part of the output grown for personal consumption which in
individual cases reaches 70 to 80 percent of the gross production of
the PSF. At the same time, the owners of the output which has been
grown on the PSF experience difficulties in selling it. The independent
sale of output on the kolkhoz market is connected with transportation
difficulties and requires an enormous amount of free (~nd frequently
working) time. The annual losses of working time by rural inhali.itants
for the sale of output on the kolkhoz market is estimated at more than _
- 200 million man-days.2
There is in effect no effective system of relationships between the
owners of the PSF and the basic procurers of agricultural output in the
village. The share of their output in the country's retail commodity
turnov~r has a tendency t~ decrease; however, for comparable commodity
grotips it sti11 accounts for a substantial part of the turnover. In
1977 it came, according to our calculations, to 13.2 percent of the total
turnover of comparable groups of food goods, while the amount of money
exceeded 10 billion rubles.
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f~0lt (1FFICIAL U5E OI~LY
Tab le 1
The Sale of PSF Output in the Country's Retail
Commodity Turnover for Comparable Commodity
Groups* (in millions of rubles)
PSF output in retail turnover: 1940 1965 1970 1975 1977
through state prucurements........ 661 1426 1~374 3025 2142
Througl~ state and cooperative trade.. - 1345 2204 2676 2495
Through the lcolkhoz market..........2900 3600 4200 5200 5700
Total 3561 6371 8278 10901 10357
Output of thz public sector in
retail turnover 6784 34502 48444 62552 67830
Total overall turnover............10345 40837 56722 73453 78167
Proportion of PSF output in total
turnover 34.4 15.6 14.6 14.8 13.2
* The table has been calculated on the basis of the data in the Statis-
tical Yearbook "USSR National Economy in 1977," 1978, pp. 210-212,
449, 4458. We have made the assumption here that the sale of PSF
output to the population which is not taken into account b.y state
statistics is no lower than the amounts of procurements and the sale
- of surpluses of agricultural products on the kolkhoz market than the
output of the public sector (kolkhozes, sovkhozes).
Consumer cooperatives have a leading role in ensuring the punctual and
~ fullest procurements of surpl.uses of agricultural output in the PSF.
They are performed according to agreed upon prices that take account of
the operating prices on the kolkhoz market, or else on a commission basis.
' Procurement offices have been created for the performance of this func-
tion in the system of consumer cooperatives. However, the organization
of these procurements and the sale to the population of surplus output
on the PSF is still being performed by the consumer cooperatives in
inadequate amounts, which is witnessed by tne following data.
[Table following page]
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J
!1
Table 2
Procurement of PSF Output Surpluses by Consumer
Cooperatives* -
1970 I977
- Gross Procurements ross Yrocurement~ _
produc Amoun Propor- roduc- Amount Propor-
tion o tion of tion on I tion or
the PS output of PSF the output
~~he PSF of the
(in per PSF (in
cent) ercent)
Meat (in millions
of tons)...... 4.3 0.2 4.7 4.3 0.19 4.4
Milk (in millions
of tons)...... 29.8 0.04 0.1 27.4 0.02 0.1
Vegetables (in
millions of
tons)......... 8.1 0.38 4.7 7.0 0.36 5.1
- Potatoes (in
millions of
tons)......... 62.9 0.25 0.4 49.4 0.23 0.5
Eggs (in b.illions
of units)..... 21.7 0.5 2.3 21.2 0.4 1.9
*The table has been calculated on the basis of the data of the Statis-
tical Yearbook "USSR National Economy in 1977," pp. 202, 204, 259,
462.
The amount of animal husbandry surpluses which is procured by consumer
cooperatives at agreed upon prices or on commission comes to a negligible
part of the gross production on the PSF. During the Ninth and Tenth
Five-Year Plans there was a definite tendency toward a decrease in the
amounts of such procurements. Thus, compared to 1970, in 1977 they
. came to 95 percent for meat and vegetables, 92 percent for potatoes,
80 percent for eggs, and SO percent for milk. At the same time, there
was a decrease in the proportion of the animal husbandry products bought
by consumer cooperatives from the population in the total amount of their _
production on the PSF.
On the whole, on the basis of a rise in the level of procurement prices
for certain types of output the total amount of sales by consumer coopera-
tives of foods purchased at agreed upon prices and on commission has
remain~d unchanged since 1970 and comes to 1.5 billion rubles. It stiould
be noted that the level of retail prices for this output in the stores -
of cooperative trade is on the average 25 to 30 percent lower than the
prices of the kolkhoz ma.rket, which provides consumers with an annual
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eco~omy of around S00 billion rubles. Thus, an increase in the amounts
o,f procurements by consumer cooperatives makes it possible not only to
moxe fully satisfy the needs of the population for agricultural output,
hut also to provide for them at low prices. For this reason, a decrease
in the amounts of procurements of agriculture surplus output by consumer
cooperatives on the PSF which has been occuri~ing in recent years is
impermissible.
- The basic reason for such a situation, in our opinion, is an insufficient
interest by con~umer cooperatives in increasing procurements of PSF '
output. First of all, the economic work of consumer cooperatives is
multi-branch: in addition to the organization of retail and wholesale
trade and public catering in the village, this work consists of state
procurements of many types of agricultural products in the publ.ic
sector of production, the processing of agricultural raw materials,
the production o.f. foods and non-food goods, the raising of fur-bearing
animals, animal husbandry, and poultry breeding on ti~eir own subsidiary
farms (which are large agricultural enterprises), and the procurement
of wild fruits, berries, and medicinal grasses. Against the background
of these large-scale operations, the work of organized procurements of
PSF surpluses is put in second place. In addition, a violation of
the established assignments on procuring agricultural surpluses from
the population practically entails no responsibility. Moreover, a
decrease in procurements of agricultural surpluses is not reflected
in the amount of material rewards for cooperatives, particularly on
the amount of bonus payments for the fulfillment of the trade and pro-
duction plan. When bonuses are paid account is taken primarily of the
fulfillment of the plan for such indicators as the total amount of
retail commodity turnover, the amount of state procurements, and the
amount of output production.
Secondly, the sale of output which has been bought at agreed upon
prices or taken on commission enters into the total amount of the retail
commodity turnover of consumer cooperatives and occupies a negligible
proportion in it. In 1977 it came to only 2.3 percent. And although
since 1969 the economic plans of the union republics, particularly the
RSFSR, have provided a separate line for the amount of sales of such
output, the total amount of retail commodity turnover remains the
basic indicator for evaluating the results of trade work. An under-
fulfillment of the plan for the sale of agricultural surpluses bought
from the population can be covered through the sale of other groups of
goods (which is what is done). Th~a~, in 1978, according to the data
of the Central Scientific Research Laboratory for Demand of the Central
Union of Consumers' Societies, the rhythm of transporting and selling
agricultural output which had been bought on the PSF was on a low level.
During the course of a month interruptions in the delivery and sale of
potatoes occurred in 59 percent of the stores surveyed, pickled provi-
sions 67, pork 71, and beef 76 percent of the stores.
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Thirdly, the labor intensiveness of procurement work on the PSF is
much greater than with procurements in the public sector; the output
is basically perishible and the slightest delays in selling it leads
to losses. The responsibility for such losses is much greater than
for a disruption of the procurements plan or for simply refusing to -
accept the output from the pogulation. In the latter case the losses
are born by the owners of the PSF, and not the trade.
Al1 of this leads to the fact that the owners of PSF, especially in
remote areas, experience great difficulties in selling output which is
needed by the population. Thus, in 1977 honey was refused from the
owners of PSF in Saratovskaya Oblast, and in 1978 meat was refused in
Kirovskaya Oblast. At the same time, five stores of the Central Union
. of Consumers' Cooperativ?s which sold agricultural output were closed _
here. In many oblasts procurers did not accept rabbit meat, with the _
result that its price on the kolkhoz market became much higher. The
Central Union of Consumers' Cooperatives has an insufficient network
of reception-procurement points and, in addition, they are marked by
a low level. o� material and technical supplies. In the areas of
Siberia and the Far East a single point accounts for only 2,600 farms, -
while in Chitinskaya Oblast and Khabarovskiy Kray there are none at
all. In a number of places the reception points operate at an incon-
venient time for the sellers of agricultural output. There are also
difficulties for the sellers in receiving money.
It should be noted that in carrying out the decisions of the 25th CPSU
Congress and the July (1978) Plenum of the CC CPSU the Central Union
of Consumers' Societies adopted a course aimed at improving the
organization and ~ncreasing the procurements of agricultural products
from the population and kolkhozes at agreed upon prices, and at a
wider development at improvement of the sale of these products in cities
and workers' settlements. This plan was approved by the decree of the -
CC CPSU and USSR Council of Ministers "On a Further Developmeht and
Improvement of the Work of Consumer Cooperatives" (1979). An accelera-
tion of the development of the network of reception-procurement points
is envisaged. By 1980 it is planned to create this kind of point for
every 200 to 300 farms, and by the end of 1985 on the territory of
every rural Soviet. T'he capital investments needed for their deve-
lopment are now being allocated in construction plans as a separate
line and are being used strictly for their purpose.
Along with the development of the network of reception-procurement
points, the conclusion of long-term contracts with PSF owners has begun
- to be practiced on an ever wider scale. The introduction of contact
relations will make it possible to determine beforehand the concrete
amounts of the procurement of each type of output, which will become
the economic basis for the establishment of the procurement work plans
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i~~~r, c~E~rictni, us~~: nrr~,Y
of the Central Union of Consumers' Societies. The contract system
guarantees the PSF owners the sale of all of their surpluses with the
smallest expenditures of effort, means, and times. However, the -
contract system tias not yet been satisfactorily organized in all of
thP union repub].ics. Whereas at the end of 1978 1.5 million contracts
were concluded in the Ukraine and in the Russian Federation, in
Belorussia only 40,000 were concluded and in Georgia and Armenia not -
a single one was concluded.
The PSF owners ~�Jith tahom contracts have been concluded for the procure- ~
ment of agricultural output surpluses can receive money advances (through
Gosbank credit) for the procurement of animal husbandry products of
up to 50 percent of the amount agreed upon by the sides, and of up to
30 percent for the procurement of cropping output. This is an important
economic stimulus for growing the output on the PSF which is needed by
the country .
At the same time, in our opinion, there also has to be an increase in the
economic significance of the plans which are established for the Central
Union of Consumers' Societies for the procurement and sale to the
population of agricultural surpluses which are bought at agreed upon
prices or talcen on commission. The fulfillment of these plans should
be equated to the fulfillment of the retail commodity turnover plan
and the state procurements plan.
At the present time most of the PSF agricultural surpluses are drawn
into circulatien by means of kolkhoz trade. In 1977 its turnover
came to 5.7 billion rubles and exceeded the turnover of consumer
cooperatives in the sale of agricultural surpluses by almost four
times. For this reason, an improvement of kolkhoz trade, an increase
in its efficiency, and an ever deeper introduction into it of planning
principles are very important directions for inereasing the country's
food resources.
The decree of the CC CPSU and USSR Council of Ministers "On Measures to
rurther Develop Trade," (1977) provides for measures aimed at improving
~ the urganization of kolkhoz trade. The periods for the extension of
credit by Gosbank for the construction and reconstruction of kolktioz
markets have been increased to six years.(there are 6,500 such markets
in the country). It is planned to use the funds from one-ti.me collec-
tions strictly according to their purpose for the development of
the material and technical base of the kolkhoz markets. Gostroy USSR
has been charged with the development of standard plans for covered
markets. It has been recommended that the kolkhozes and sovkhozes
provide active assistance to the population in organizing the transpor-
tation of agricultural output surpluses to the kolkhoz markets by
allocating motor vehicle transportation for this.
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The attraction of additional commodity resources depe:~ds to a large
extent upon the level of the organizatioa of keiniioz trade and upon -
the introduction of planning principles into it. One of the new direc-
tions in this work is the conclusion of contracts with the kolkhozes
and sovkhozes for the sale on the kolkhoz market of agricultural output
~ which is not covered by state procurements. The contracts provide for
the kolkhozes and sovkhozes to commit themselves to sell their output
_ surpluses on the market, and also to provide assistance to kolkhoz
workers and sovkhoz workers in selling the surpluses of the PSF. This
form of relationship, as the experience of Rostov-na-don and a number
of other cities shows, yields palpable results in increasing the amount
of products on kolkhoz markets.
It should be noted that the organization of s ervices for the PSF awners
by the rnarket itself is of great importance f or the development of the
PSF. Thus, a specialized motor vehicle enterprise consisting of 80
motor vehicles has been created at the markets administration of
Rostov-na-donu. This makes it possible to send trucks at specific days
and times for the transportation of output to the market in keeping -
wi.th the requisitions of kolkhoz workers and other PSF owners. Such
economic relationships between the kolkhoz market and the PSF owners
are not only convenient and economical, but also make it possible to
establish long-term stable relations, which is important for a constant
supply of transportation for output. In its turn, the stability of
supplies of diverse output on the market is one of the conditions for
lowering and maintaining a low level of prices. For example, in 1978
by ensuring stable supplies of rabbit meat on the kolkhoz markety in
Kherson rabbit meat became 1.5 to 2 times ch eaper than in the previous
year, and also in comparison with other years.
The establishment of stable relations with the PSF owners is also
helped by the creation at kolkhoz markets administrations of an insti-
tute of public inspec~.tors with whom the markets directorate maintains
constant relations, informing them of conditions on the market, the
level of retail prices, the state of demand for individual types of
output, and the amounts of supplies of this output.
It should be noted that cases of a local approach still occur in solving
the problem of increasing food resources. Not all kolkhoz workers and
workers have the possibility of selling all of their surplus locally.
Sometimes transportation outside of a rayon or an oblast encounters
difficulties. The necessary documents are not issued for the sale of
outpu*, and when kolkhoz market trar.sportation is used instructi~ns are
issued by the State Motor Vehicle Inspectorate to take away the drivers'
licenses and authorizations.3 Such administrative measures not only da -
not help to make fuller use of PSF surpluses, but also lead to a decrease
in the amounts of production.
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I~c)k clt~ l~ 1.(: I Al. USI? l)NI_,1'
The creation of bureaus of trade~services at kolkhoz markets is of
- great importance for the development of the PSF in 1978 there were
more than 700 of them. They help kolkhoz workers to sell the output
they have b rought to the market, thus freeing their time; they take
output which has been delivered on commission or even pay in full for
it. In the country as a whole, this made it possible last year to save
several hundred thousand man-hour days for rural workers which is
especially important during the harvest period. However, bureaus of
trade services ha~e been organized only at one out of every ten kolkhoz
markets. While they frequently perform the functions of a procurement
element and thereby economize labor power, the bureaus of trade services
do not enjoy the rights cahich are possessed by the special.ized procure-
ment elements of the oblast Unions of Consumers' Societies.
This indicates that it is necessary to develop a standard regulation
on the kolkhoz market's bureau of trade services which will be coordina-
ted with the USSR rlinistry of Finance and Gosbank U~SR. The point of
departure here should be the requirement for ensuring the maximum
possibility of achieving the final goal a fuller involvement in
turnover of agricultural surpluses with the smallest losses of working
time by the sellers and a fuller satisfaction of the needs of buyers.
Public catering organizations have a great influence on the development
of the PSF. Their relations with PSF owners should also be organized
- on a contract basis, which will be a guarantee of stable receipts of
additional food resources. Procurements have to be made in a centralized
manner by trusts not on the kolkhoz market, but directly at production
si.tes at lower procurement prices, which will help to lower retail
prices for the output of public catering enterprises. In the future
this will make it possible to move to planning for these enterprises
the receipt of a definite and stable part of their resources on the basis
of procuremen ts of PSF surpluses, as is being done in consumer coopera-
tives. In their turn, the trade organizations will be able to have an
effective inf luence on the PSF above all by supplying them with fees on
the basis of mutual delivery contracts for food wastes and meat products.
An improvement of the relationships between the PSF and trade and a
strengthening of the role of the plan in the economic relations between
them with a simultaneous improvement of organizational forms is an
effective condition for increasing the efficiency of the use of existing
- food resources.
FOOTNOTES
1. True, statistics do not take account of the part of commodity output
which has been sold as intra-village turnover; of the sale of output
- to other categori~s of the population without the mediation of the
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kolkhoz market: purchases by city dwellers during the fa11 period
directly at the PSF, the home sale of dairy output, and so forth.
2. A. Levin and V. Nlkitin, "Kolkhoz Trade in the USSR," 1978, p, fi1.
3. V. Gridsenko, "Reserves of the Kol.khoz Ma.rket," SOVETSKAYA TORGOVLYA,
17 July 1978; N. Aleksandrov, "In What is the Kolkhoz Market Rich,"
TRUD, 8 Augus t 19 79 .
COPYRIGHT: Izdatel'stvo "Pravda", "Voprosy ekonomiki", 1980 -
29 59
CSO: 1827
END
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