In Kazakhstan, granulated sugar has fallen in price by 5% in a year and its production has been declining for the second year in a row

Kazakhstan's sugar production has seen a significant decline, hitting its lowest level since 2020 and the second lowest since 2012, with a 17.6% decrease in 2024 compared to the previous year. The country's total sugar production from January to October 2024 was 168.1 thousand tons. The Zhambyl region was the leading contributor to sugar production, accounting for 45.7% of the total. The country's sugar factories are in need of substantial investment due to high degrees of depreciation, with the modernization and construction of new plants still in the planning stages. Imported sugar has played a major role in meeting demand, covering 72.4% of the market in the first eight months of 2024. Domestic sugar sales have also decreased by 17.7% in the same period, leading to a slight decrease in retail prices.

The production volume of raw cane or beet sugar or refined sugar, as well as molasses in Kazakhstan for January-October 2024 amounted to 168.1 thousand tons, which is the lowest figure since 2020, and if we exclude this “coronacrisis” year, then since 2012. This was reported by the industry analytical portal Energyprom.kz. According to analysts, sugar production has been declining for the second year in a row: by 17.6% this year and by 31.1% in 2023. In regional terms, for January-September 2024, the largest volume of sugar production was in the Zhambyl region: 71.6 thousand tons, or 45.7% of the total volume. Next come Zhetysu (62.7 thousand tons, or 40%) and Almaty (20.7 thousand tons, or 13.2%) regions. The remaining regions together accounted for only 1.7 thousand tons, or 1.1% of the total output. For uninterrupted operation and increase in sugar production, sugar factories in Kazakhstan require billions of investments. The degree of depreciation of sugar factories, according ...