Kazakhstan requested 100,000 tons of sugar from other countries, Kazinform reports with reference to Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Trade and Integration Bakhyt Sultanov.
According to Sultanov, sugar reserves in the country as of June 2022 amount to 350,000 tons. “Brazil, India and Vietnam are one of the major suppliers in the world. But India has also limited, so we are negotiating,” the minister said.
Sultanov noted that on July 15 a meeting of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission will be held in Belarus, at which the participating countries will consider the issue of sugar exports.
In early March, Russia banned the export of grain and sugar to Kazakhstan and other EAEU countries until August 31. The Ministry of Trade of Kazakhstan reported that sugar reserves would last for three months. In 2021, Kazakhstan imported 506.9 million tons of sugar, of which more than half – 275.8 million tons – were imported from Russia.
Some Kazakh cities have introduced restrictions on the sale of sugar. For example, in Atyrau, only one kilogram is released into the hands. Residents of Uralsk complained about the increase in sugar prices and its shortage. On May 27, the press service of the Ministry of Commerce issued a message that there is no shortage of sugar in the country. But on May 31, the head of the department, Bakhyt Sultanov, admitted that the shortage of sugar was caused by Russia’s ban on the export of the product and raw materials.
According to Energyprom analysts, against this background, the cost of sugar in Kazakhstan increased immediately by 34.3% compared to February. The rise in sugar prices continued in the following months: for example, in April, sugar rose in price by another 4.5%, in May – by 5.7%. As a result, the annual increase in the price of sugar (May 2022 to May 2021) amounted to 60.5%.
In June, due to a shortage of sugar, Rakhat, the largest confectionery factory in Kazakhstan, announced the suspension of the plant in Shymkent and stopped the production of hard candies and caramel. The chairman of the board of the factory, Konstantin Fedorets, said that they lacked 20,000 tons of sugar for work.
