On November 18, the Food Corporation announced the prices for direct purchase of wheat and barley from farmers. Initially, it is planned to purchase 150 thousand tons of grain, 10 billion tenge has been allocated for this purpose. For subsequent purchases, the Ministry of Agriculture is asking for another 75 billion tenge.
“For a larger purchase (1 million tons), additional funding in the amount of 75 billion tenge is required,” Vice Minister of Agriculture Azat Sultanov said at a government meeting today.
In addition, the Food Corporation will purchase 1.2 million tons of grain under forward contracts for the current year and extended contracts for last year. To date, 550 thousand tons of grain, or 46%, have been received.
Azat Sultanov also reported on the measures taken to ensure the safety of the harvest. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, licensed elevators are currently 43% full. The elevators are operating around the clock.
"In total, about 7.2 million tons of grain from the new harvest were delivered to grain receiving enterprises, including 5.2 million tons of wheat. The remaining volume of harvested grain is stored by farmers," the vice minister specified.
Recall that this year, Kazakhstan's farmers have harvested 26.7 million tons of grain, including 17 million tons of wheat.