Cheaper Production than Wheat: Farmers in Kostanay Region Attempt to Sell Safflower

 

Producers in the Amangeldy district of the Kostanay region have completed the safflower harvest. According to local agricultural producers, the yield amounted to 5–6 centners per hectare. In the daily AgroSearch monitoring, respondents rate this figure as average, noting that for a risky farming zone, it is considered typical.

Analyzing the agricultural season, farmers recall: the sowing campaign started early, but during the vegetation period, the crop faced a deficit of precipitation. "There were no rains on time in the summer. We sowed early, but there was not enough moisture, which is why we received an average harvest. For our conditions, this is a common situation," notes one of the respondents.

Despite the harvested crop, the prospects for further cultivation of this crop in this farm remain vague. Currently, about 200 tons of cleaned safflower are lying unsold in warehouses. The producer emphasizes: there are no buyers, no price, and no offers.

Logistic limitations create additional difficulties. Most elevators in the region accept only traditional crops: wheat and barley. Only isolated points take safflower for storage, the nearest of which is located 270 kilometers from the respondent's farm.

Comparing costs, farmers note that safflower production is cheaper than wheat. The grain crop needs to be treated several times, for example, against weeds, whereas safflower usually requires minimum care. However, this year the situation has changed somewhat.

After the rains, "greenery" appeared on the crops. Because of this, the harvest had to be dried several times, and in some cases, repeated cleaning had to be carried out. An attempt to conduct desiccation failed due to the lack of necessary preparations. As a result, part of the harvest began to spoil, which led to an increase in the cost price.

"If a good price appears, we will continue to deal with safflower. If not, we will likely refuse," says the producer.

At the same time, he emphasizes that the quality of the seeds themselves this year is high, with moisture content being only 4%. However, impurities of green mass complicate sales. In general, the average price for safflower (market-wide) is 175,000 tenge per ton, including VAT.

It should be noted that this year the sown area of safflower in the Kostanay region, according to the Bureau of National Statistics, amounted to 154.4 thousand hectares.