Kazakhstan to expand milk production through new dairy farms

The measures were discussed at a meeting chaired by Minister of Agriculture Aidarbek Saparov to identify priority steps and practical mechanisms for implementing the tasks outlined by the Head of State in his annual State-of-the-Nation Address, “Kazakhstan’s Current Priorities in a New Historical Cycle.”

The meeting was attended by members of the Public Council for the Agro-Industrial Complex, heads of the ministry’s structural divisions and subordinate organizations, representatives of financial institutions, and deputy governors of regions.

Saparov stressed that the tasks set by the President require moving from strategic goals to certain economic solutions. For the agricultural sector, this means not only increasing production but also transforming its structure, developing deep processing, establishing new production facilities, boosting productivity and upgrading technology.

Vice Minister of Agriculture Azat Sultanov outlined the mechanisms planned to implement the strategic document.

One of the priorities will be to improve farmers’ access to affordable financing. For this purpose, investments will be attracted by combining public budget resources with commercial funding. The funds will be directed towards livestock farming and the construction of agricultural storage and processing facilities.

The sector’s technical modernization will also be accelerated. Preferential leasing of tractors and combine harvesters will continue through KazAgroFinance. A mechanism for preferential loans to purchase livestock through an authorized agent is also being considered. It is expected to be launched based on the experience of the North Kazakhstan region, with additional funding planned for 2027.

In livestock farming, the focus will be on expanding production capacity. Currently, 71 dairy farm projects with a combined annual capacity of 462,000 tons of milk are being implemented across the regions. By the end of this year, the newly commissioned facilities are expected to reach 70% of their designed capacity, with full capacity planned for next year.

Another 21 dairy farm projects with a combined annual capacity of 228,000 tons of milk have been included in the project pool for 2027.

Work is also underway to establish six integrated meat production clusters covering the entire production cycle. Turkistan region is planning to build the country’s first large-scale specialized livestock exchange.

Particular attention was given to developing agricultural processing and shifting from raw material exports to products with higher added value. The share of processing of major agricultural raw materials has increased over the past three years. In 2025, exports of processed products rose by 35% to reach $3.6 billion.

Six major deep grain processing projects with a combined annual raw material processing capacity of 5.8 million tonnes are scheduled for completion by 2029. The facilities will produce starch, gluten, bioethanol, amino acids and other deeply processed products. Two plants in Turkistan and Zhambyl regions have already been commissioned.

As part of the digital transformation of the agro-industrial complex, the introduction of artificial intelligence, precision farming and smart farm technologies is planned by the end of 2027.

By the end of 2028, Kazakhstan plans to establish a Digital Agro unified platfom, and a Smart Data Agro data lake. These systems are expected to integrate the sector’s information systems, expand access to analytics, improve crop yield forecasting and enhance the quality of management decisions.

Following the meeting, Saparov instructed regional administrations to submit concrete proposals to the Ministry of Agriculture within a short timeframe on developing deep processing, livestock farming, storage infrastructure and digitalization in the agro-industrial complex.

The proposals must include promising investment projects and investors, investment volumes, funding sources, implementation timeframe and expected economic benefits.

Saparov emphasized that each initiative must be backed by concrete investment proposals and economic calculations and deliver practical results.

Earlier, it was reported that the North Kazakhstan region received its first shipment of pedigree cattle from Australia, with 305 Aberdeen Angus animals arriving via a special cargo flight