Kazakhstan is making significant strides in the international market by focusing on agricultural processing and boosting exports of higher value-added products. China and Central Asian countries are the primary destinations for these exports, collectively accounting for more than half of the exports across 38 rapidly growing product categories.
China alone purchased $913.9 million worth of these processed products, making up 27.4% of Kazakhstan’s total exports in the selected categories. Meanwhile, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan together contributed an additional $825.7 million, or 24.8%, of the exports. Other significant markets include Russia and the Eurasian Economic Union members, which received 13.5% and 10.4% of exports, respectively.
Processed agricultural exports from Kazakhstan have surged, reaching $3.04 billion between January and August, a 35.1% increase compared to the same period last year. These processed products now represent 54.1% of the country’s total agricultural export value. Key contributors to this growth include grain and oilseed products, with flour exports rising by 23% in volume to 1.38 million tons and generating approximately $400 million. Additionally, exports of sunflower, safflower, and cottonseed oils climbed 49% to $673 million, while rapeseed and mustard oil shipments increased more than twofold to $90 million.
Other agricultural exports have also shown impressive growth. Beef exports increased by 78% to $164 million, and the value of animal feed meal exports rose 61% to $578 million. This expansion highlights Kazakhstan’s successful efforts in diversifying its export portfolio and enhancing its market presence.
To further bolster its processing industry, Kazakhstan is planning six major investment projects, with a total investment of approximately $4 billion. These projects, which are expected to have a combined annual processing capacity of 5.8 million tons, will focus on producing products such as starch, gluten, amino acids, and bioethanol. This strategic expansion aims to reduce reliance on raw material exports, strengthen domestic manufacturing, and improve the competitiveness of Kazakhstan’s processed products in the global market.