Askar Mamin holds meeting on prices for socially significant food products

Prime Minister Askar Mamin held a meeting with heads of central state bodies and regional akims on the regulation of prices for socially significant food products in the Digital Office of the Government.

Minister of Trade and Integration Bakhyt Sultanov, Minister of Agriculture Yerbol Karashukeyev, Chair of the Board of JS NC Food Contract Corporation Saparkhan Omarov, Deputy Chair of the National Bank Aliya Moldabekova, Chair of the Agency for the Protection and Development of Competition Serik Zhumangarin, Akims Nur-Sultan Altay Kulginov, Karaganda region — Zhenis Kassymbek, Almaty region — Amandyk Batalov reported on the current situation and the work done in this direction.

“The issue of restraining the rise in prices for socially significant food products is under the special control of the Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Food prices are a socially sensitive issue. The government is implementing a set of anti-inflationary response measures, first of all, to stabilize prices throughout the entire value chain in the agro-industrial complex,” Mamin said.

Unfavorable climatic conditions in the main agrarian countries, including the Republic of Kazakhstan, have led to a decrease in the yield of the main agricultural crops. In this regard, there is an increase in prices, as well as an increased demand for agricultural products from neighboring countries.

For 8 months of this year the rise in prices for socially significant food products amounted to 9.7%. Over the past month, prices have declined by 0.7 percentage points.

As part of anti-inflationary response measures, in 2021, JS NC Food Contract Corporation plans to purchase agricultural products for 87 billion tenge (in 2020 — 40 billion tenge). At the same time, the list of purchased crops has been expanded from 4 to 9: soft wheat, durum wheat, barley, oats, sunflower, rapeseed, flax, soybeans, buckwheat. These products will be used to supply the domestic market, incl. for sale to flour mills, poultry and livestock farms.

The Agency for the Protection and Development of Competition issued 68 notifications of price reductions for socially significant food products, 8 investigations were appointed. 46 facts of excess of the trade mark-up and collection of remuneration for the socially significant food products in the cities of Nur-Sultan and Almaty, Kostanay, Karaganda, Atyrau, Mangystau, West Kazakhstan and East Kazakhstan regions were revealed. The heads of these regions pointed out the need to urgently take measures to hold accountable traders who have exceeded the maximum trade markup.

In general, the Prime Minister instructed akimats and ministries to ensure the timely and full implementation of the Anti-inflationary Response Package.

In connection with the end of the harvest season, the akimats were instructed to accelerate the allocation of additional financing according to the turnaround scheme and to purchase the previously brought volumes of food to the regional stabilization funds. At the same time, the task was set to ensure the fulfillment of the obligations of agricultural producers to JS NC Food Contract Corporation for the supply of grain within the framework of the forward purchase.

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