Big push ahead for Kazakhstan’s cattle numbers

In line with the Head of State’s directive to double gross agricultural output, the plan targets by 2030 an increase in sheep numbers to 28 million head, meat production to 1.8 million tonnes, milk output to 4.2 million tonnes, and a doubling of meat exports to 165,000 tonnes.

According to the ministry, Kazakhstan’s livestock sector has posted steady growth in recent years, now accounting for about 40% of total agricultural output, with state support driving higher production, expanding livestock numbers, and the adoption of modern technologies.

Last year, gross livestock output rose by 3.3% to 3.8 trillion tenge, up from 3.3 trillion tenge a year earlier, alongside growth in livestock numbers: cattle reached 8.2 million head (+2.4%), sheep and goats 20.6 million (+1.6%), horses 4.6 million (+5.6%), camels 294,000 (+4.8%), and poultry 48.6 million (+6.9%).

Total meat production rose by 2.7% to 1.2 million tonnes, up from 1,168.6 thousand tonnes in 2024. Cow’s milk output increased by 5%, from 3.6 million to 3.8 million tonnes, while egg production grew by 2.4% to 4.6 billion units, compared with 4.46 billion a year earlier.

The ministry said Kazakhstan fully meets domestic demand for beef, lamb, horse meat and table eggs, while continuing efforts to expand its export potential. Over the first 11 months of 2025, meat exports rose by 24.8% to 91.3 thousand tonnes, up from 73.1 thousand tonnes a year earlier, with beef exports increasing by 59.1% to 31.3 thousand tonnes and lamb exports surging by 92.8% to 29.4 thousand tonnes.

Since 2023, a preferential lending program offering loans at 2.5% per annum has supported the construction of dairy farms. The number of modern dairy farms has grown from 19 in 2019 to more than 100, with total capacity exceeding 500,000 tonnes of milk per year. Over the next three years, 118 projects are planned, expected to add 615,000 tonnes of milk production and effectively double overall output.

Import substitution in poultry meat is being driven by the construction of new facilities and the expansion of existing poultry farms. Over the past five years, poultry meat production has surged by 157%, rising from 236.5 thousand tonnes in 2020 to 371.7 thousand tonnes in 2025. In the next three years, three major projects with a combined capacity of 241.3 thousand tonnes are planned for launch.

By 2029, domestic demand for dairy products and poultry meat is expected to be fully met through local production, alongside an expansion of exports.

The Comprehensive Livestock Development Plan provides for the introduction of new state support instruments, including preferential loans at 5–6% per annum, guarantee mechanisms through the Damu Entrepreneurship Development Fund, as well as the development of breeding programs, feed supply, veterinary safety, and the expansion of export markets.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Kazakhstan is set to expand grain and meat exports to the UAE.