Kazakhstan harvests 1.2 mln tonnes of corn in 2023

ASTANA. Jan 18 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan increased its corn harvest 14% to 1.208 million tonnes in 2023, the Kazakh government press service said.

The 2022 harvest was 1.058 million tonnes, the Agriculture Ministry said.

The area under corn increased 7% or 12,800 hectares to 193,800 hectares in 2023 from 180,900 hectares in 2022.

There was also an increase in the production of processed corn products - molasses and starch.

"The total capacity of two Kazakh plants for the deep processing of corn is 210,000 tonnes per year. Taking into account the growing volumes and processing potential, it was decided to discuss with domestic enterprises the possibility of increasing the share of Kazakh molasses in the production of confectionery and drinks," the message says.

The possibility of exporting Kazakh corn to China and Iran is being explored.

The Agriculture Ministry said Kazakhstan exported corn starch to Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan, and molasses to these countries, as well as Russia and Mongolia.