Shining a spotlight on baking in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan, with its favourable climates and vast arable land reserves, is something a crop production powerhouse. As such, it churns out enough flour to make regional rivals blush. But what does it do with all its raw ingredients? In terms of baking, it pumps them back into an expanding industry.

Kazakhstan’s baking industry

Baking is an essential part of Kazakhstan’s food production makeup. It is the third largest individual sector, behind only dairy and grain/starch mill production, holding a 15.7% share of all food manufacturing activity.

Kazakhstan’s output of baked goods has also been steadily rising across the past decade too. Just look at 2015’s stats. Across the first 9 months of the year, the value of baked products rose by 5%, compared with the same period in 2014, hitting approximately $383.2 million.

It is no surprise to see bakery stepping up its production levels. Kazakhstanis are hungry for baked items – especially bread. Your average Kazakhstani consumes 250 grams of bread per day, with the figure peaking at 300 grams in some regions. That’s more than three times the consumption levels of the UK (90 grams per capita/day).

In terms of label recognition, most Kazakhstanis prefer generic, big name brands. For example, supermarket chain Astykzhan holds a 7% value share of the entire baked sector. Artisanal products account for 17% of the market, although some products are made almost exclusively by small scale operators. Flat breads, a staple part of traditional Kazakhstani cuisines, are prepared and sold local bakers, leaving pan breads in the hands of much larger producers.

Research from Euromonitor suggests the hottest product categories hitting the baked sector are healthier or more luxurious. An increased demand for high end biscuits is forecast until 2019, for example. Bread is expected to enjoy greater popularity of pro-health varieties, such as those baked with wholegrains or featuring increased protein content.

How can foreign companies enter the Kazakhstani baking sector?

A country with as high a flour output as Kazakhstan, and healthy consumption levels, you may expect Kazakhstan to be self-sufficient in baked goods. This is not the case, and the stats prove it. Let’s take a look at 2014’s consumption versus production levels.

In 2014, Kazakhstani bakers manufactured 826.1 thousand tons of products. While impressive, this left a deficit of nearly 100,000 tons. How did the nation makeup its shortfall? That’s right: imports. In order to cope with its increased demand, Kazakhstan is turning overseas to help satiate its population’s appetite.

Additionally, Kazakhstan is in the midst of a modernisation and renovation of its entire food production sector – baking included. Some major producers are still reliant on Soviet-era machinery, limiting output levels and product quality. 

Foreign firms are exactly who Kazakhstan’s baking industry need to be speaking to in order to score a steady supply of modern machineries, efficient equipment and world class technical knowledge. Can your company provide this?

 

Discover Kazakhstan’s baking potential at WorldFood Kazakhstan 2017

If the answer you think your business can take Kazakhstani baking to a higher place, then WorldFood Kazakhstan 2017 is your destination.  Held between 1-3 November at the ATAKENT IEC in Almaty, the event is Kazakhstan’s leading food and drink trade show. 

Retailers, producers, importers and other vital food and beverage products from across Kazakhstan and Central Asia attend each year. Join over 400 companies from 36 countries in exhibiting at 2017’s show to connect with the people who really matter and grow your business in one of the region’s best performing economies.

Want to book your stand or learn more about WorldFood Kazakhstan? Get in contact with us today.

 

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