soviet collectivization

[cc136@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

        I'm currently taking my oral exams, and one of my questions
centers on James Scott's latest book "Seeing Like a State."  In the book,
Scott makes the claim that in the half-century period following WW II,
yields per hectare of many crops grown on Soviet collectivized farms were
stagnant or actually inferior to levels recorded in the 1920s or the
levels reached before the Revolution (page 203).  I find this hard to
believe, given the limited reading I've done on Soviet agriculture in the
1950s and 60s, and Scott provides no documentation for this claim.  Can
anyone provide some feedback on this question?

Chris Carrick
PhD Candidate
Department of City and Regional Planning
Cornell University