The Ministry of Agriculture commented on the situation regarding the acceptance of sugar beets on December 21, 2024.

Azat Sirazhidinovich, why do problems with the acceptance of sugar beets in the regions arise year after year? What is the current situation?

— You are aware that this year, for the first time, the volume of concessional lending for spring field works has been increased to 580 billion tenge at a "clean" five percent annual interest rate. In previous years, this volume did not exceed 180 billion tenge.

Thanks to adherence to agricultural technologies and favorable weather conditions, farmers have harvested approximately 1.3 million tons of beets. This will allow for the production of 120 thousand tons of sugar and meet the internal market's needs by 20 percent, which is 1.6 times more compared to last year (68 thousand tons).

Despite the established schedule at the beet reception points, there are occasional traffic jams, delaying the process of receiving and processing the new harvest of beets. This situation occurs annually during the mass harvest period.
The main reason for this is the high wear and tear of sugar factories, which does not allow for the proper acceptance of beets and full processing capacity (old stacking machines, lack of ventilation systems during storage, and worn-out lines in the reception department for beet processing).

What measures are being taken to address this problem?

— Representatives of the ministry have repeatedly visited the regions where beets are grown. The minister has discussed with the management of the factories the readiness of the plants to accept the new harvest.

Operational headquarters, consisting of representatives from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture, sugar factories, and farmers, work around the clock to solve problems related to increasing the processing capacity of factories and providing additional areas for beet storage.
This issue is under special control of our department.

In collaboration with local executive bodies, a coordinated plan has been developed for organizational work on repair operations at the factories, timely harvesting, and delivering raw materials to the factories by farmers, as well as ensuring timely financing.

How much sugar beet has been accepted to date?

— A total of 988.7 thousand tons of beets have been accepted for processing, including Koksu – 252.6 thousand tons, Aksu – 351.7 thousand tons, and Merke – 384.4 thousand tons.
420 thousand tons have been processed (Aksu – 67 thousand tons, Koksu – 162 thousand tons, Merke – 191 thousand tons).
Due to insufficient processing capacity in the Zhambyl region, part of the raw materials (100 thousand tons) has been redirected to the Aksu sugar factory in the Zhetysu region.

What has the Ministry of Agriculture done to support beet growers and develop the sugar industry?

— A Comprehensive Plan for the development of the sugar industry has been adopted for a five-year period. In 2023, the subsidy norms for agricultural producers have been increased: for the purchase of agricultural machinery for sugar beet cultivation from 25% to 50%, for delivering sugar beets for processing from 15 thousand to 25 thousand tenge, and for seed purchases. Support is provided to sugar and beet producers through working capital for spring field and harvesting operations, as well as for raw material procurement.

To compensate for the transportation costs of farmers in the Zhambyl region, who are forced to transport 100 thousand tons of beets to the Aksu sugar factory in the Zhetysu region, the subsidy norm has been increased from 25 thousand to 45 thousand tenge per ton.

From the Government's reserve, 10 billion tenge has been allocated for subsidizing sugar beets in the Zhambyl region and the Zhetysu region.
To ensure the factories have working capital, a credit line of 25.8 billion tenge has been opened through regional SPKs, with 7.4 billion tenge already disbursed to "Aksu Qant." The Merke factory is working on obtaining a bank guarantee.

To prevent a situation of overproduction of beets in 2025, agreements are being made with the akimats of beet-growing regions on the areas to be sown with beets for the existing factories.

Additionally, as part of modernization plans, work is underway to develop feasibility studies to determine financing needs. Plans include expanding the capacity of the Merke factory from 3 thousand to 4 thousand tons per day, installing technological equipment for processing sugar beets at the Taraz sugar factory, and expanding the capacity of the Koksu factory from 2.2 thousand to 5 thousand tons per day.