North Kazakhstan Region Tops the Ranking of Regions by Field Efficiency

Kazakhstan’s grain sector is demonstrating a steady positive trend in the 2025/26 marketing season, as recorded by leading industry organizations. According to the January outlook of the International Grains Council (IGC), total production of all types of grains in the country reached 24.4 million tonnes, exceeding the previous agricultural year by 0.5 million tonnes. A similar increase was observed in the key segment: IGC experts estimated wheat production at 19.1 million tonnes.

At the same time, data from the National Bureau of Statistics of Kazakhstan indicate even higher results. The total output of grains and pulses, calculated on a post-processing basis, amounted to 25.4 million tonnes. The discrepancy of one million tonnes compared with international estimates is explained by the inclusion of pulse crops. Lentils lead this category with a volume of 775 thousand tonnes, followed by peas at 196 thousand tonnes and chickpeas at 23 thousand tonnes.

In 2025, the country’s wheat area, including both winter and spring crops, covered 12 million 194 thousand hectares, enabling the production of 19.3 million tonnes of grain in net weight. In regional terms, the largest share of production was delivered by farmers in Akmola Region, who harvested 5.919 million tonnes from an area of 3.834 million hectares. Kostanay Region ranked second with 5.4 million tonnes collected from 3.377 million hectares, while North Kazakhstan Region completed the top three, producing 4.409 million tonnes from 2.134 million hectares. A notable contribution was also made by Karaganda and Pavlodar regions, which threshed 968 thousand tonnes and 835 thousand tonnes of wheat, respectively.

An analysis of production efficiency by region revealed a different hierarchy of leaders focused on the intensity of farming practices. Despite leading in gross volumes, Akmola and Kostanay regions recorded average yields of 15.4 centners per hectare and 16 centners per hectare, respectively. The highest yield per hectare of soft spring wheat was achieved in North Kazakhstan Region, reaching 20.7 centners per hectare. Strong results were also reported in East Kazakhstan Region at 20.4 centners per hectare, as well as in the Zhetysu Region, where yields amounted to 17.7 centners per hectare. Nationwide, the average productivity of soft spring wheat for the season stood at 16 centners per hectare.