“Dead Souls,” Ruined Slaughterhouses and a Lower Locust Threshold: What the Agro-Industry Audit Found

A Supreme Audit Chamber inspection triggered a large-scale cleanup in Kazakhstan’s agro-industrial sector. Only after auditors intervened did the authorities decide to remove thousands of erroneous records from the livestock database, liquidate nearly 600 unusable slaughterhouses, and revise locust control standards, Orda.kz reports.

More than 20,000 records of livestock older than 15 years were found in the animal registration system. After the system was updated, only 229 confirmed records remained. The number of errors fell by 98.9%. The system now automatically detects incorrect data.

The auditors also found that in 2021 officials had unjustifiably lowered the “locust damage threshold” from five to three individuals per square meter. As a result, the area treated with insecticides increased, and the budget incurred additional costs. In 2026, the standards were revised and unified scientifically based indicators were introduced.

Another problem concerned slaughterhouses. The chamber ordered an inspection of 667 non-operational slaughterhouses across the country. Of those, 592 were found to be in disrepair or completely destroyed and were liquidated. At the same time, 62 facilities were restored and put back into operation. The largest numbers were in the Karaganda region with 18, the Abay region with 9, and the Pavlodar region with 7. Another 13 facilities in the Akmola and Kyzylorda regions are expected to resume work.

In addition, the Agriculture Ministry has reduced the list of mandatory equipment for veterinary inspection at slaughterhouses from 20 to 16 items. This simplifies entry into the sector and reduces costs for entrepreneurs.the auditors said.

Original author: Ruslan Loginov

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