Activity of Siberian urban and labour consumer cooperation in the development of catering in 1921-1929

In the article the activity of urban and labour consumer cooperation of Siberia in the development of catering in the New Economic Policy time is revealed. As early as in the time of military communism a big number of dining rooms were brought under the jurisdiction of urban and labour cooperatives. Usually they were situated in maladjusted places, possessed outmoded facilities, did not comply with the hygiene and sanitary norms and belonged to amateur enterprises. Lunches in the most part of dining rooms were not remarkable for high calories content providing the physiological norm of survival only. But for the most part of visitors this was the only opportunity to get hot meal in the conditions of hunger. Thus, the system of catering of urban and labour consumer cooperation fulfilled an important social function. The successes in the recovery of economy in 1923-1925, cancellation of obligatory membership in the cooperation, strong competition with private capital contributed to the decrease of number of cooperative catering enterprises. Besides, the directive bodies insisted on the concentration of consumer cooperation's basic efforts on the development of trade activity. In the circumstances those enterprises endured that were able to arrange profitable activity. With transfer to industrialization and necessity of involving women in commercial production, in late 1920s fundamental changes in the numerical growth of catering enterprises in Siberia occurred. Having no proper experience in organizing and running a network of dining rooms, tearooms and buffets, constantly lacking money for this purpose, the consumer cooperation of Siberia managed to take the lead in this field. It is significant that rapid growth of catering enterprises became possible due to raising money from different sources: plant facilities granted it from investment funds, trade unions used the funds of life improvement, the Soviet granted money from the local budget and government - from the state budget. As to the profitable activity of catering enterprises, it depended on market, as well as on professional skills of workers and their ability to organize profitable manufacture. Besides, cooperation dependent on state carried out a policy of low price that essentially effected the revenue position of cooperative societies both from trade and catering enterprises

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