No more subsidies to wheat production starting from 2012

Starting from 2012 Kazakhstan will stop subsidizing crops growing, Tengrinews.kz reports, citing KazAgro National Company Vice Chairman of the Board Kairat Aituganov. “We believe subsidies to wheat growing are not effective. The state has decided to stop subsidies to crops growing”, he said on his working visit to Kostanai oblast. At the same time the Agriculture Ministry is considering a program of “cheap loans” secured against land. “$123.2 million is to be earmarked out of the state budget to finance the project”, according to Mr. Aituganov. Anna Buts, Head of the Crop Farming Development Department of the country’s Agriculture Ministry, had told journalists July 25 that grain harvest in Kazakhstan was expected to reach 16-17 million tons. The figure was raised to 17-17.5 million early August. She also told journalists July 14 that Kazakhstan had exported 5.9 million tons of grain in the 2010-2011 marketing year. According to her, this figure included grain equivalent of exported flour (2.5 million tons). Ms. Buts elaborated that grain was traditionally exported to Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan. According to the Government’s web-site, grain harvest in 2010 totaled 12.2 million tons (net weight). Grain harvest of 2009 made up 22.7 million tons (bunker weight).