January 29, 2015

 

Kazakhstan hopes to export meat to EU and WTO nations by mid-2015
 

 

Kazakhstan, a member of the recently inaugurated Eurasian Union, plans to export meat products to new markets by mid-2015.

 

This aspiration is expressed by the Kazakh Agricultural Ministry's press service who believes that once the country is eradicated of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), it will be able to export "various animal products to the EU", a highly promising region where Kazakhstan could supply with poultry and beef.

 

Oher World Trade Organization nations are also included and the expanding trade will bring forth potential markets for Kazakh farmers.

 

In addition, annual export volumes of Kazakhstan could be raised by a whopping 10,000 - 15,000 tonnes of meat delivered to Europe.

 

For now, Astana could hope that experts, at an upcoming meeting of the Office International des Epizooties (OIE) in May 2015, will declare that Kazakhstan is indeed FMD-free. That status had recently been affirmed by the local veterinary services.

 

Yet even then, tough challenges lie ahead for the country to fulfill its export ambition.

 

For a country that struggles to meet domestic demands, much less those of its larger Eurasian Union partner, Russia, Kazakhstan had currently imported meat at 16 times bigger than exports, according to Dariga Nazarbayeva, the deputy chairman of the Majilis, the Kazakh lower chamber of parliament.

 

"Kazakhstan should export domestic meat only when the (local) market is filled with such product," Nazarbayeva chided.

 

The present development also means that state intervention to control exports may occur if they rise too fast. It is a likely scenario given a cautious Kazakh leadership that feels that a justifiable degree of self-sufficiency in meat production must first be established before even expanding exportations.

 

Still, the delicate act of balancing imports and exports is of no issue to Kazakh Agriculture Minister, Asylzhan Mamytbekov.

 

"…we should follow the example of big meat exporters, such as the US and Canada, which are also major (meat) importers," Mamytbekov said.

 

Auezkhan Darinov, the president of the Kazakhstan's Union of Farmers, is also supportive of raising the bar for exportations, for the benefit of the local meat sector. The move could mitigate potential oversaturation in the Kazakh market.

 

However, Darinov added that the situation must first be studied carefully.

 

"We need to determine the demand for meat exports, and consider the scope of production growth," he said.

 

Based on official data, Kazakhstan's meat exports for 2014 is 12,000 tonnes.

 

FMD outbreaks had been blamed for keeping exports low in recent times.

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