Kazakhstan to achieve full self-sufficiency in milk by 2027 - agriculture minister

ASTANA. July 8 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan plans to eliminate milk and dairy product imports and achieve complete self-sufficiency by 2027, Agriculture Minister Aidarbek Saparov said.

"One hundred percent, yes," Saparov said during a government briefing when asked by a journalist whether the country would achieve self-sufficiency in milk and dairy products by 2027.

"In 2019, there were only 19 modern dairy farms, with plans to build an additional 116 milk production farms. Sixty-nine of them have already been commissioned, with another 47 currently under implementation. The launch of all 116 farms will increase milk production by 600,000 tonnes per year and resolve the issue of import dependence," Saparov said.

Livestock production in Kazakhstan grew 4.2% in 5M, Saparov said earlier on Tuesday. "This growth was driven by a 3% increase in meat production in slaughter weight and a 7.5% increase in cow's milk production," he said.

The highest levels of milk production were recorded by agricultural enterprises in the North Kazakhstan and Pavlodar regions.

The country's cattle population increased 23.4% to 9.6 million head in January-May.

In June last year, Saparov said that statistics on milk production volumes in Kazakhstan had been overstated by half due to falsified reporting. As part of data verification, plans were made to write off 2 million head of cattle and 3 million tonnes of milk, he said. As an example, he cited the fact that, according to statistical data, the country produces around 6.5 million tonnes of milk annually, but only 2.1 million tonnes are sent for processing.