Sunseed harvest is over in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan has finished harvesting sunseed and other oilseeds. According to official data, this season’s gross harvest is almost 50% higher than a year ago. However, processors report a shortage of sunflower seeds and rising prices.

“The oilseed harvest is now complete. The harvested area of sunseed this year amounted to 1 mln 286.3 thou hectares. We harvested 1 mln 686.2 thsd tonnes of sunseed with an average yield of 1.31 t/ha. Overall, the gross harvest of oilseeds in the current season amounted to 3.2 mln tons. This is 46% more than last year. Last season, the harvest of oilseeds amounted to 2.2 mln tons. Speaking specifically about sunseed, the growth was 35%. Last season, 1.2 mln tons of sunflower seeds were harvested,” the Ministry of Agriculture reported.

Speaking about oilseed processing, the ministry noted that the supply of basic foodstuffs to the population of Kazakhstan is much higher than the demand. As for sunflower oil, it is 1.7 times higher. The demand for oil is about 400 thsd tons, production is more than 670 thsd tons.  Over 10 months of 2024, oil production increased by 10% – from 548 to 604 thsd tons.

Meanwhile, global markets have seen a sharp rise in oil prices. In November, the FAO index rose by 7.5% compared to October and reached its highest level since July 2022. Prices for soybean oil also rose. Similar dynamics were observed for rapeseed and sunflower oil.

Speaking of Kazakhstan, the price of oil is also going up. According to processors, scarce sunseed, which is rising in price, puts pressure on the cost of sunflower oil. Since the beginning of the season, the price of seeds in Kazakhstan has increased by up to 30%. The costs of utilities, energy, and logistics have also increased significantly. All these factors affect the cost of production of finished products. Today, the profitability of domestic oilseed crushers does not exceed 5%.

The processors noted that this season’s market conditions are not favorable for lower prices for sunflower oil, as sunseed production is declining in the main producing countries – Ukraine, Russia, Europe, and Argentina. The global decline in seed production is expected to be in the range of 8-9 mln tons. Therefore, the price of sunflower seeds will continue to rise.

However, this situation will increase the revenue of sunseed producers, and next season farmers will be able to increase the cultivation area.

Tags: Kazakhstan, sunseed, harvesting