In the structure of grain production in Kazakhstan, wheat dominates, despite efforts to diversify seeds of this crop in favour of other cereals, oilseeds and other crops. However, the reduction of acreage from year to year is compensated by the increase in its yield and almost does not affect the total yield of wheat. The share of wheat in the total grain supply remains consistently high.
As it was earlier reported by the IA “Kazakh-Zerno”, as of July 1, statisticians counted 5,190,837 tons of grainin the barns. Of this, wheat accounted for 4,584,433 tons, or 88.3 percent. Last year, for the same period, the share of wheat was 87.4 percent, in 2016 – 87.5 percent, in 2015 – 88.7 percent.
It is worth adding that the amount of wheat is decreasing and it is sold as a result of domestic consumption and exports at a much slower pace than other grains. This can be seen from the dynamics of its relative reduction and its increasing share in the grain balance of the country during the winter-spring period of the active grain sales. This season, after harvesting, as of December 1, the share of wheat in grain amounted to 80.1 percent.
The second largest grain crop in the grain balance of Kazakhstan is barley. But the dynamics of its sales and reduction during the last season is completely different than that of wheat. From December to July, its share in cereals was steadily declining. If on December 1, 2017 the share of this crop in grain amounted to 12.1 percent, then on July 1 – only 6 percent.
