Dozens of poultry farms to be built in Kazakhstan by 2027

Under the poultry industry development plan recently presented by Kazakhstan’s Agricultural Ministry, at least 29 poultry farms with a nameplate capacity of 220,000 tonnes of broiler meat per year are scheduled to be built in the country in the next 2 years.

The Ministry reported that new capacities are set to be established in 12 out of 17 Kazakhstan regions. Overall investments are estimated at KZT440 billion (US$830 million), of which KZT262 billion (US$495 million) will be borrowed funds.

Poultry is one of the 5 food products on which Kazakhstan has yet to achieve self-sufficiency, said the agricultural minister Aidarbek Saparov. The country also imports large quantities of sugar, cheese, sausages and fish, he added.

The poultry industry development plan, which is part of a comprehensive strategy aimed at lowering dependence on food imports in the coming years, involves 780 investment projects with a total worth of KZT2.3 trillion (US$4.3 billion), Saparov added.

The Kazakhstan government also plans to facilitate investments in food storage infrastructure to bolster food security. In the coming 2 years, 92 food storage facilities with a capacity of 690,000 tonnes are due to be launched into service in the country.

Additional quantities will be sufficient to allow Kazakhstan to fully abandon poultry imports. During the first 9 months of 2024, the country imported 110,500 tonnes of poultry worth US$147.8 million, the official data indicated. In addition, Kazakhstan has started exploring export opportunities offered primarily by neighbouring Central Asian republics. During the first 9 months of 2024, the country exported 35,300 tonnes of poultry worth US$58.3 million.

However, production costs are relatively high in the Kazakhstan poultry industry, which imperils development opportunities, Rimma Gakhova, a local analyst, told local publication Karavan. The average cost of 1 kg of broiler meat production in Kazakhstan reaches US$1.5, against US$1.2 in Belarus and Brazil and US$1.1 in China, she reported.

“Until we lower production costs, we can forget about reducing imports and having a serious position on the foreign market,” said Gakhova. “Expensive feed, high logistics costs, lack of access to modern equipment and technologies – all this makes farmers’ products uncompetitive,” Gakhova added, also indicating the high cost of borrowed money in Kazakhstan and a lack of state support in obtaining soft bank loans. “Kazakhstan has a long and difficult road to go to become a competitive player in the global meat market,” she concluded.

Tags: Kazakhstan, investment, imports, food security, broiler meat, capacity, poultry industry