Soap as a Product of the Food Industry in the Blockaded Leningrad: Production and Existence in 1941-1942

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Abstract

The authors discuss the problems of functioning of soap factories in the conditions of the siege of Leningrad, representing the perfumery and cosmetics industry of the food industry. Attention is paid to the range of products manufactured by enterprises, the peculiarities of the raw material base. The conditions that provoked the decline in production, the deterioration of product quality and the narrowing of the range of manufactured goods have been studied. Attention is focused on the search for fat substitutes and the use of the company's equipment to open new areas of activity that take into account the circumstances of wartime. The interaction of the USSR Drug Food Industry and the special commission of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR on food supply of Leningrad in connection with the supply of food raw materials and foodstuffs to the blockaded city is analyzed. The intention of the central government bodies to include household soap in shipments of food products to ensure timely card delivery to the population and replenishment of supplies has been revealed. And also to send railway trains with vegetable oil to Leningrad to create raw materials for soap-making enterprises. The article considers the practices of household detergents and attempts by the population to use soap as an exchange tool to expand the food ration. The features of personal hygiene of blockade runners in conditions of acute shortage of detergents and interruptions in the work of baths are characterized. The conclusion is made about the progressive difficulties in maintaining soap production in the conditions of the blockade of the city. Despite the efforts of the management of enterprises to find substitutes for raw materials and change technological processes, the complete exhaustion of even conditionally suitable materials for soap production could not allow the restoration of detergent production with the start of electricity supply to plants.

Full text / tables, figures

Table 1
Food Remains in Leningrad

Расчет по жирам, наличие на 1.09.41, в тоннах / Calculation by fats, availability as of 09.01.41, in tons

Расход на сентябрь 1941 г., в тоннах /  Consumption in September 1941, in tons

1. Масло животное / Animal oil – 2440

2. Масло растительное /     Vegetable oil – 2900

3. Масло из сои / Soybean oil – 700

4. Масло кокосовое / Coconut oil – 1100

 

1. НКО и НКВМФ / NKO and NKVMF – 720

2. Населению по существующим нормам /      To the population according to existing standards – 2000

3. Дополнительно по новым нормам /          Additionally, according to new regulations – 280

4. Промпереработка на мыло /      Industrial processing for soap – 1000

Итого / Total: 7140 т / tons

Итого / Tons : 4000 т / tons

Остаток на 1.10.41 – 3140 т или всего наличия на 53 дня /

Balance as of 1.10.41 – 3140 t or total availability for 53 days

Source: State Archives of the Russian Federation (hereinafter – GARF), f. 5446, op. 25a, d. 6937, l. 67.

 

 Table 2
 List of the most important products and semi-finished products manufactured by the Karpov Plant

Наименование изделия

Единица счета / Unit of account

По плану в год /  According to the plan per year

Фактически выработано/ Actually worked out

1940

1941

Мыло хозяйственное / Household soap 60%

Тонн / tons

4500

13089

8765

Мыло хоз. / Household soap 50%

 

5000

14910

2205

Мыло хоз. / Household soap 40%

 

33500

7538

16069

Мыло жидкое специальное / Special liquid soap

 

1150

1533

1157

Мыло жидкое флота- ционное / Liquid flotation soap

 

–

99

261

«Пиксафон» весовой / “Pixafon” weighing

 

5

53

98

Он же фасованный /  It's packaged

 

10

–

25

Стирпор[16] в ящиках / Laundry detergent “Stirpor” in the drawers

 

8000

2667

3284

Он же в мешках /  It's in bags.

 

2000

4342

1069

Глицерин технический / Technical glycerin

 

1456

1450

948

Моющих в переводе 40% / Detergents in converting 40%

 

53532

51976

36008

Ящики новые /

New boxes

т/шт / Thousands of pieces

360

333

234

Source: The Central State Archive of Saint Petersburg (hereinafter – CGA SPb), f. 1238, op. 4, d. 46, l. 23.

 

Table 3
Information on the progress of food shipments to Leningrad according to February assignments  as of 18.02.42, in tons and cans

Наименование  продукта / Product Name

Недогруз  за январь / Under-loading in January

План на февраль / The plan for February

Было отгружено  на 15.02 / It was shipped on 15.02

Отгружено  на 18.02 / Shipped on 18.02

Масло растительное / Vegetable oil

–

600

–

отгрузка на / shipping for 17 – 28.02

Саломас / Hydrogenated fat

–

400

–

38

Мыло хоз. / Household soap

–

300

–

15

Мыло / Soap

–

300

–

отгрузка назначена на / The shipment  is scheduled for  19–25.02

Source: GARF, f. 5446, op. 43a, d. 8395, l. 4–2.

×

About the authors

Olga A. Gavrilova

Saint Petersburg State University

Author for correspondence.
Email: o.gavrilova@spbu.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-0372-1714

Ass. Professor of the Department of Modern History of Russia, Institute of History

7-9, Universitetskaya naberezhnaya Str., St. Petersburg, 199034, Russia

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