Two years later, livestock buildings were built on the site of the current Zapolyarnik stadium. In May 1938, the Norilsk agricultural organization became a state farm; there were 32 cows in its herd.
By the mid-1940s, the state farm successfully grew turnips, potatoes, three types of cabbage, rutabagas, radishes, lettuce, carrots, peas, beets, dill, sorrel and onions on the tundra land. The state farm gardens were located on the site of the modern Gvardeiskaya square. The greenhouses harvested cucumbers, tomatoes, eggplants, paprika, lettuce, spinach, parsnips, and even mushrooms, watermelons and melons! In the pigsties there were 101 sows with 1554 piglets.
In its best years, the Norilsk state farm gave the polar city 1 500 liters of milk, 3 000 kilograms of fresh meat and 3 500 kilograms of greenhouse vegetables daily. By 1965, the state farm became a member of VDNH (the exhibition of the national economy achievements) six times. They were going to build a poultry farm for 50 thousand hens.
In the late 1990s, the state farm was sold to Dudinka, but it did not last long under the neighboring leadership.
Read other materials of our photo project in the History spot section.
Text: Svetlana Samokhina, Photo: Nornickel Polar Branch archive
