Horse meat imports to Kazakhstan surge sharply, main supplier named

Tengrinews.kz — Horse meat imports to Kazakhstan have doubled: over the first 11 months of 2024, the country imported 3,800 tonnes of meat worth $10.7 million. This is the highest figure recorded in the past decade, citing the First Credit Bureau.

According to analysts, the statistics include fresh, chilled, and frozen meat. While the classification technically allows for the inclusion of donkey and mule meat, experts believe that the vast majority of imports consist of horse meat.

Both the physical volume and value of imports reached their highest levels in at least ten years. Compared with January–November 2022, volumes were up by 12 percent, while the value increased by 17 percent.

Supplier countries

In 2024, Mongolia emerged as the main supplier, accounting for 60 percent of total imports. Shipments from Mongolia increased 3.6 times year-on-year. A similar share of Mongolian imports was previously recorded in 2022.

Horse meat production and consumption in Kazakhstan

According to preliminary data, livestock slaughter (in carcass weight) in Kazakhstan totaled 177,900 tonnes in January–December 2025, a 4 percent increase compared to 2024. The simultaneous rise in imports and domestic production may indicate growing domestic consumption.

Kazakhstan’s horse meat exports remain limited. In January–November 2025, 124 tonnes were exported, all of it to Uzbekistan. While this figure is far lower than import volumes, it represents the highest export level observed during the monitoring period.

For comparison, total exports over the previous decade amounted to just 47.5 tonnes, with most of that volume recorded in 2020. In other years, exports were close to zero.