Kazakhstan Starts Harvest Campaign Earlier Than Last Year

Kazakhstan continues to harvest the new crop, with current grain yields exceeding last year's levels. Regional preparations for the large-scale autumn fieldwork were discussed at a meeting of the operational headquarters chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin.

According to Vice Minister of Agriculture Nazgul Khatepova, harvesting has already begun in most regions of the country. Farmers will start the mass harvesting campaign in the third ten-day period of August.

This year, the total area to be harvested amounts to 24.2 million hectares. Of this, 15.6 million hectares are occupied by grain and leguminous crops. To date, crops have been harvested from 1.9 million hectares, equivalent to 12.5% of the planned area. By comparison, 1 million hectares, or 6.1%, had been harvested by the same date last year.

The earlier start of harvesting is linked to accelerated crop maturation due to the abnormally hot summer.

At the beginning of the campaign, the average grain yield stands at 16.4 centners per hectare, compared with 14.8 centners per hectare on the same date last year. Total grain output harvested so far has reached 3.2 million tonnes.

Oilseed crops have been harvested from 3,400 hectares. Their average yield stands at 10.5 centners per hectare, compared with 7.4 centners per hectare a year earlier. To date, 3,500 tonnes of oilseeds have been harvested.

Organized farms have harvested 214,000 tonnes of potatoes. The average yield reached 249.2 centners per hectare, compared with 235.6 centners per hectare a year earlier. In addition, farmers have harvested 628,600 tonnes of vegetables and 506,900 tonnes of melons and gourds.

Regions are completing preparations of agricultural machinery ahead of the mass harvesting campaign. Its current readiness level is estimated at around 97%, while the figure is expected to reach 100% by the start of the main harvesting operations.

A total of 130,800 tractors, 29,000 grain harvesters, 17,000 reapers and another 130,000 units of other machinery are expected to be involved in the harvest. This includes more than 12,700 tractors and 2,340 combines purchased by agricultural producers since the launch of the preferential leasing program.

Efforts to supply farms with fertilizers and fuels and lubricants are continuing. Farmers have already received 1.9 million tonnes of fertilizers, representing 83% of the planned volume.

A total of 401,000 tonnes of diesel fuel has been allocated to the regions for the harvesting campaign. Together with the Ministry of Energy, a schedule has been drawn up assigning regions to oil refineries for the period from July through November.

For agricultural producers in the main grain-growing regions, diesel fuel is being sold at 305–310 tenge per litre. This is approximately 10% below the market price. To date, 65,800 tonnes of diesel fuel have been delivered to the regions.

To ensure transparency in fuel supplies to agricultural producers, the diesel is marked with separate PIN codes and digital labels and is also colored blue, yellow and red. A virtual warehouse has been created within the electronic invoice system. In addition, the introduction of molecular marking at the Shymkent oil refinery is being considered jointly with the State Revenue Committee.

A preliminary allocation of 60,000 tonnes of liquefied gas has been made for drying grain and oilseed crops.

Another issue discussed at the meeting was the readiness of grain storage facilities to receive the new harvest. Kazakhstan's total storage capacity stands at 30.7 million tonnes. Currently, 2.4 million tonnes of products are stored in these facilities, representing 17% of their total capacity.

At the same time, individual elevators in the Akmola, Kostanay and North Kazakhstan regions are more than 40% full, despite relatively low average storage utilization across these regions.

With the mass harvest approaching, Serik Zhumangarin instructed local administrations, together with the Food Corporation, to accelerate efforts to free up grain storage capacity for the new crop.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that compliance with agricultural technologies is reflected in the results of the harvesting campaign. According to him, despite the dry summer, the average yield at the initial stage stands at 16.4 centners per hectare, whereas the average figure previously stood at 11–12 centners per hectare.

He also stressed the need to ensure in advance that farmers have sufficient volumes of diesel fuel and gas for drying grain and oilseeds, prepare the necessary rolling stock and free up storage capacity for the new harvest in a timely manner.

The meeting also reviewed the situation in the main grain-producing regions. Due to the earlier start of harvesting, the Akmola region requested that part of the diesel fuel volumes scheduled for September be brought forward to August. The Ministry of Energy was instructed to promptly work through the issue together with the region.

A separate section of the meeting was devoted to preparations for the sugar beet harvest in the Zhambyl and Zhetisu regions, where Kazakhstan's four sugar plants are located.

The Koksu sugar plant is undergoing modernization aimed at increasing its processing capacity from 2,000 to 3,000 tonnes per day. At the Taraz sugar plant, commissioning work is underway on a new sugar beet processing line with a capacity of 3,000 tonnes per day. The work is scheduled for completion in October.

The Merke sugar plant, with a processing capacity of 3,000 tonnes per day, and the Aksu sugar plant, with a capacity of 3,500 tonnes per day, are operating normally.

By 2027, the capacity of the Aksu sugar plant is planned to increase to 4,500 tonnes per day, while the capacity of the Koksu plant is expected to reach 5,000 tonnes per day.

In 2025, Kazakhstan produced 171,900 tonnes of sugar, 5.6% more than in the previous year. In January–June 2026, sugar production amounted to 76,900 tonnes.