Collective Farms (Kolkhozes)

Collective farms, known as kolkhozes, were agricultural cooperatives established in the Soviet Union during the 1920s and 1930s. Farmers pooled their land, resources, and labor to cultivate crops collectively, aiming to improve efficiency and output under socialist principles. The government controlled production and distribution, which often led to inefficiencies and food shortages. While intended to promote communal ownership and eliminate private landholding, many kolkhozes struggled with management and motivation, ultimately influencing the structure of rural life in the USSR. The system was a fundamental aspect of Soviet agrarian policy until its decline in the late 20th century.