Kazakhstan imported almost 2 million tons of Russian wheat for the year

The Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan has developed a draft order to ban the import of wheat by road, water and rail transport. The ban is set for a period of six months by decision of the Interdepartmental Commission on Foreign Trade Policy. The ban on import of Russian wheat by road was introduced by Kazakhstan on April 10, 2023, and then extended for the same period of time with a ban on import by rail.

Wheat deliveries will continue to be allowed by rail to flour-milling and poultry enterprises of Kazakhstan, the list of which is approved by the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan. All imported wheat should be used for the enterprises’ own needs without the right to sell it on domestic or foreign markets.

As explained in the Ministry of Agriculture, the gross harvest of grain crops in Kazakhstan in 2023 amounted to 17.1 million tons, including wheat – 12.1 million tons. On March 1, grain stocks amounted to 11.5 million tons. Including Prodkorporatsiya purchased 350 thousand tons of feed grain.

“Thus, the domestic market has sufficient stocks of grain, both food and feed grain. At the same time, additional grain supply from the Russian Federation continues, which leads to a decrease in demand in the domestic market and falling prices,” – noted in the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan.

According to the agency, in 2023 wheat imports from Russia amounted to 1.9 million tons – 31% more than the level of 2022 (1.46 million tons), including soft wheat imported 1.8 million tons (1.39 million tons in 2022). According to KTZh, in January, 174,000 tons of wheat were imported from Russia by rail, which is 35% more than the level of 2023 (127,800 tons). At the same time, importers provide KTZ with monthly plans of applications for wheat imports of more than 500 thousand tons.

In addition, during the summer navigation period, 29 thousand tons of wheat were imported by water transport.

“The growth of imports further aggravates the problem of marketing ungraded wheat. The lack of a market for the sale of grain leads to a deterioration in the financial condition of agricultural producers, which may lead to the disruption of the sowing campaign in 2024,” – emphasized in the Kazakhstani department.

In this regard, a ban on imports of wheat by road and rail for six months. The ban does not apply to transit rail transportation, starting and ending outside Kazakhstan.

Tags: Russia, Kazakhstan, wheat