In the current marketing year (July 2016 – June 2017) Kazakhstan plans to export 8.5 million tons of grain, Sabit Kashkimbayev, Deputy Chairman of National Company Food Corporation JSC, said at a briefing on the current state of the harvest campaign in the country.
He said that Kazakhstan planned to export 8.5 million tons of grain to its traditional markets: 4.2 million tons to Afghanistan, 1.8 million tons to Iran, about 500 thousand tons to China, up to 500 thousand tons to Azerbaijan, 200 thousand tons to Georgia, and 900 thousand tons to Russia.
Kashkimbayev stressed that the current projected balance of grain ensured meeting the internal market’s demand and maintaining the export potential at a high level.
“The price of the 3rd class wheat ranges from 41 to 50 thousand tenge per ton, 4th class – from 34 to 36 thousand tenge, 5th class wheat – 30 thousand tenge, and 25 thousand tenge for 2nd class barley”, he said.
First Deputy Agriculture Minister Kairat Aituganov said that in 2016 the gross yield of crops in Kazakhstan was projected to exceed 22 million tons.
According to him, this year the area under the crops amounted to about 21.7 million ha, 445.1 thousand ha more than in the previous year. Of the total area, 15.4 million ha are under grain crops, 2 million ha under oilseeds, and 426.7 thousand ha under watermelons, melons and potatoes.
Aituganov also said that the quality of grain in the current year was lower than in the past, as weather conditions and crop diseases did not allow growing high-quality grain. (Timesca/Business World Magazine)