M. Kineev
Department of Livestock Research, National Academic Centre of Agricultural Research,
79 Abylaikhan St Almaty, 480091, Kazakstan
Kazakstan, with an area of 272 million hectares, has a population of 16.5 million, 24% of whom are involved in agriculture. The land and climate are very diverse. High mountains in the east and south-east occupy 10% of the total land area, lowlands in the west and plateaux in the north and south 80%, and the sandy deserts of Sary-Ishikotyrau and Moyunkum cover a large area in the south. The climate is continental, with long, cold winters and hot, dry summers, and average annual temperatures fluctuate between 1°C in the north to 10°C in the south. Average annual precipitation is 250–350 mm in the semi-arid steppe area, 150–200 mm in the dry steppe and below 100 mm in the deserts.
Agriculture contributes 12–14% to GDP, a decline in recent years from about 25%. Agricultural land occupies 222 million hectares, of which 182.5 million are in rangelands. Sheep use the rangelands throughout the year and are concentrated in the semi-desert and desert zones.
Before 1930, sheep of the Edilbaev breed, with a fat rump and coarse wool, were kept for meat. Sheep improvement was later directed to the production of fine merino wool and five merino breeds now account for 65% of the total sheep population. More recently, semi-fine wool, good meat characteristics and cross-bred wool have increased in importance. In 1992, there were 6.4 million black and karakul sheep in the south and west.
Cattle production, which accounts for 43% of total livestock production, is concentrated in the northern grain-growing area (50% of total beef and dairy cattle) and in the foothills of the mountains in the south and east. Highland pastures and the by-products of grain, vegetable and oilseed production are the main feed resources. There are three dairy cattle breeds, which weigh, on average, between 450 and 550 kg and produce between 2500 and 4500 kg of milk. Ninety-five per cent of beef cattle are of the Kazak White Head breed, weighing between 490 and 580 kg.
Horses and camels are important in Kazakstan as draft animals and as a source of meat and milk. One mare can produce between 240 and 280 kg of meat and between 300 and 1200 kg of milk per lactation. Horses are concentrated in the south, west and east, and camels, mostly Bactrian, in the southern and western deserts.
There is some pig production in the northern plains.
Privatisation, inflation, and inefficient marketing and supply of inputs have produced a crisis in agriculture, with considerable reduction in the cropping area and livestock populations, and in crop yields. For example, the area of cereal cultivation has decreased from 25 to 15 million hectares, and grain production from 22–25 million to 10–12 million tonnes. This situation has affected the livestock industry. Between 1991 and 1996, the livestock population decreased by 43%. The number of cows fell by 33% and milk production by 36%. There was also a fall of 73% in the number of pigs.
The situation in the meat industry is similar. Meat production during the same period decreased by 46% and average live weight at slaughter fell from 381 to 329 kg. Kazakstan, which was exporting livestock products a few years ago, now imports meat and milk. One of the reasons for the crisis has been lack of feed. Small private farms and household systems have increased their share of total production by 65%, largely as a result of the break up of large farms.
The livestock research programme includes:
Livestock research is coordinated by the National Academic Centre of Agricultural Research at 14 research institutes, 3 experiment stations and 5 universities.
