BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 26. The number of cattle are 9.9 million heads in Kazakhstan, as of July 1 of this year, Kazakh Agriculture Minister Yerbol Karashukeyev said, Trend reports with reference to Kazakh media.
Minister made the remark at a briefing in the Central Communications Service under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
“Agriculture Ministry has proposed the introduction of quotas for the export of cattle and small cattle. According to statistics, 4.5 million heads of the total volume of cattle in the country are cows, and the number of offspring this year is 3.1 million heads,” the minister said.
“The rest of the livestock in the amount of 2.3 million heads are sires, heifers, and bulls,” Karashukeyev noted.
According to the official farm animal identification portal, the number of bulls aged from 12 months to 2 years is 675,000 heads, rams - 1.1 million heads, the minister also noted.
“It was proposed to establish a quota of 30,000 heads for the export of bulls in order to support and increase the income of farmers, which is only 4.4 percent of the number of bulls and 60,000 heads of rams, which is 5 percent of the number of rams,” Karashukeyev said.
“The remaining 95 percent of bulls and rams are sufficient to meet the domestic needs and to provide meat processing facilities,” Karashukeyev added.
Minister noted that the International Commission for Foreign Trade Policy and Participation in International Economic Organizations did not support the proposal of the Kazakh Agriculture Ministry on quotas for farm animals and a decision was made to prolong the ban on the export of cattle and small cattle.
“I would like to once again note the absence of a shortage of food products in the domestic market and the availability of food supplies necessary to cover the needs of the population. The issue of food safety is under the constant control of the ministry,” Karashukeyev concluded.
