Kazakhstan sets record linseed exports driven by demand from China and the EU

Kazakhstan exported nearly 900,000 tonnes of linseed during the first seven months of the 2025/26 marketing year, setting an all-time record for the country. According to Kazakhstan’s Bureau of National Statistics, exports totaled 890,700 tonnes from September to March, which is 2.36 times higher than during the same period last season and 1.7 times above the total exports for the entire 2024/25 MY.

Yevgeny Karabanov, head of analytics at the Grain Union of Kazakhstan, said the country exported 126,100 tonnes of linseed in March alone, down 3% from February. However, Kazakhstan has already shipped around 85% of its projected annual export potential within just seven months of the season, highlighting exceptionally strong international demand for the oilseed crop.

China and the European Union remained the key destinations for Kazakh linseed exports. China was the largest buyer, importing 365,800 tonnes, or 41% of total exports, while Belgium purchased 227,300 tonnes, accounting for another 25.5%. Together, the two markets represented 66.5% of Kazakhstan’s total linseed exports during the current season.

Shipments to EU countries increased sharply. Exports to Poland rose 4.1-fold, to the Czech Republic 3.2-fold, to the Netherlands nearly ninefold, and to Italy surged 65-fold. Significant volumes were also shipped to Estonia, Lithuania, and Germany. Analysts attribute the strong growth in EU demand to higher import duties imposed by the bloc on Russian linseed, which reached 20% in 2025 and are expected to increase to 50% from 2026.

Beyond the EU, Kazakhstan also expanded exports to several other markets. Supplies to Afghanistan nearly tripled, exports to Tajikistan increased 1.9-fold, and shipments to Uzbekistan rose by 28%. Meanwhile, Chinese customs data showed that China imported 949,000 tonnes of linseed during the first eight months of the season, up 46.5% year-on-year. Russia’s share of Chinese linseed imports fell from 72.7% to 54%, while Kazakhstan’s share increased from 23.7% to 32.3%.

In the European Union, linseed imports reached 511,600 tonnes during July–February 2025/26 MY, up 14% from the previous season. Kazakhstan accounted for 68.5% of those imports, while Russia’s share dropped to 15.9%. According to Karabanov, strong export momentum and increased imports of Russian linseed into Kazakhstan prompted analysts to raise the country’s 2025/26 linseed export forecast to 1.05 million tonnes.

Tags: export, Kazakhstan