Regional fluctuations in Rumanian agriculture : a case study of grain production, 1956-1966

Abstract

The essential distinctiveness of the economic geography of Eastern Europe has always depended upon the emphasis given to the primary sector of production that is upon extractive industry, forestry and above all in agriculture. The collectivisation or the amalgamation ofplots into various forms of co-operative production units under centralised control, as well as small-scale trade between socialist bloc countries brought considerable changes. The case in Rumania is important because grains dominate agriculture, they are key indicators of the country’s post-war development, and also, because the country includes two regions which stand out as core complexes where human activity appears to be harmonised with ecological potential to a high degree. During the period 1948-1968 aggregate cereal production in Rumania more than doubled. The author analyses in detail the area yields of various grains and gives tables of the variability of the yields. Funds being invested in most productive regions create a gap between backward and progressive areas. Consequently, agriculture’s share of total investment varies considerably from one province to the other. It should be taken in consideration also that the more developed regions can afford to put less into agriculture because of capital accumulated over a long period, in contrast to the backward areas which received less in any case.