Change in agricultural output in the Soviet Union 1970-1990

The Soviet Union's agricultural output throughout the 1970s fluctuated significantly, with growth ranging between -5.3 and 16.1 percent, before narrowing in the 1980s to a range of 6.2 and -2.3 percent. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the state controlled approximately 97 percent of arable land. However, the sector's inefficiency meant that roughly a quarter of all agricultural output came from the three percent of farmland that was privately owned. Agricultural inefficiency was a persistent problem throughout the Soviet Union's history. Food shortages or famines were relatively common, despite the Soviet Union's size, the abundance of arable land, and the disproportionate amount invested by the state into this sector.