November 5, 2013

Uzbekistan plans to strengthen its market position in the region and become a major exporter in the coming years and would initially focus on the development of poultry and beef exports.

"In recent years, Uzbekistan has been actively attracting foreign investment in the domestic poultry industry - in particular with the co-operation of companies such as Moeller and Hellmann from Germany, Techno from Ukraine, and a number of companies from Russia, China, Turkey and Iran," said Talgat Alralov, a spokesperson for the Union of Poultry Producers of Uzbekistan.

Alralov added that the country is now close to achieving self-sufficiency in poultry meat, now estimated at 82%, so in the near future it will be necessary to develop export markets.

According to official statics, Uzbekistan currently produces 62,000 tonnes of poultry meat and 665,000 tonnes of beef annually. It is projected that within the next 10 years, the production of poultry meat will rise to 300,000 tonnes, while beef production could reach two million tonnes.