Kazakhstan's Ministry of Agriculture and China's General Administration of Customs (GACC) signed a protocol on veterinary and sanitary requirements for Kazakh pork exports in Shanghai on 15 October 2025. A year on, Kazakh pork has yet to appear in China's import data. It is a small story, but a revealing one: raw materials flow to China through well-worn channels, while each farm product has to be cleared on its own, and even then exporters must wait for plant registration. Here is the full picture, starting with pork.
Pork: protocol signed, shipments still pending
The protocol covers frozen and chilled pork, offal and heat-treated pork products. When it was signed, the ministry said Kazakh pork had never been sold in China and no Kazakh plant was cleared to ship it.
As of 14 October 2026 we could find neither a GACC list of registered Kazakh pork exporters nor any record of a first shipment. The accurate description is "protocol signed, plant registration and first shipments still to come", not "exports have started".
One common mix-up: GACC Announcement No. 116 of 12 August 2026 does concern Kazakhstan, but it covers industrial products made from cattle and sheep bones (degreased bone chips, bone fat, peptone). Pork is not included.
What normally follows a protocol:
- Kazakhstan's veterinary authority vets a plant and recommends it to China;
- Chinese customs reviews the application and may inspect on site;
- approved plants are added to GACC's published register;
- each consignment travels with an official veterinary certificate and is inspected at the border.
For Chinese buyers, the register is the thing to watch. Volume talks can wait.
The big picture: two sets of statistics
| Source | Period | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| Kazakhstan Bureau of National Statistics (exports) | Jan–Jun 2026 | exports to China about USD 7.51bn, up ~10% by value and ~17% by volume (about 9.9m t) |
| Kazakhstan Bureau of National Statistics | Jan–Jun 2026 | China took 18.6% of exports, ranking first |
| China Customs (imports) | 2025 | imports from Kazakhstan about USD 19bn, up 19.3% |
| China Customs (two-way trade) | Jan–Jun 2026 | about USD 27.2bn, up roughly 25% |
| KazTransOil | Jan–Sep 2026 | 8.525m t pumped into Atasu–Alashankou, of which Kazakh crude 984k t (+26%) |
| Kazakh official data | 2025 | gas exports to China 5bn cubic metres |
All values in US dollars. The gap between Kazakh and Chinese numbers comes from rules of origin, re-exports, valuation and timing, so always say whose statistics you are quoting.
Crude oil: a busy pipeline, mostly transit
KazTransOil moved 8.525 million tonnes into the Atasu–Alashankou pipeline in the first nine months of 2026, up 3% year on year. That total includes transit crude. Kazakhstan's own exports on the route were 984,000 tonnes, though they grew 26%. Treating the 8.5 million tonnes as Kazakh oil exports to China would overstate them.
Gas: one customer, limited by home demand
China is Kazakhstan's only gas export market, taking 5 billion cubic metres in 2025. With domestic consumption rising, Kazakhstan also buys gas from Russia, so volumes for China depend largely on the home balance and the season.
Rules related to this news
- Kazakhstan agricultural exports to ChinaIn 2025 Kazakhstan's agricultural exports were USD 7 bn (+37%); exports to China USD 1.43 bn (+35.3%); H1 2026 USD 1.1…Text and legal basis →
- China FDI in Kazakhstan 2025Cumulative Chinese investment in Kazakhstan exceeds USD 29 bn (President's speech of 25 September 2026).Text and legal basis →
Metals and ores: the backbone
Kazakh data show copper (refined metal and concentrate), ferroalloys and uranium products as the largest export lines to China, with silver shipments rising lately. A handful of large miners on long-term contracts dominate, and revenue tracks world prices, so value swings more than tonnage. For Chinese firms, the openings lie in processing, beneficiation technology, equipment and logistics rather than spot trading.
Grain: wheat heads to Central Asia, feed meal to China
According to the Grain Union of Kazakhstan, using State Revenue Committee data, the country set a wheat export record in the 2025/26 marketing year (September 2025 to August 2026). Wheat sales to China, however, fell 4.14-fold to 43,200 tonnes, while feed meal exports to China rose by about 1.43 million tonnes, or 65%. Barley shipments to China dropped 16.6% to 371,800 tonnes; Uzbekistan and Tajikistan together now buy more. Analysts point to Chinese processors switching to feed meal and to periodic bottlenecks at border crossings.
Vegetable oils: the fastest riser
Sunflower oil is one of the fastest-growing farm exports to China. Ministry and oilseed-processor association figures show shipments to China up about 3.7-fold over the past three seasons. The industry aims for around USD 1.5bn a year in oil and fat export revenue by 2028 — a target, not an achieved result.
Beef and mutton: access exists, volumes are small
Beef and mutton follow the same route: protocol, plant registration, veterinary certificate. We found no verifiable 2026 figures for beef or mutton exports to China and so give none here; a sensible first step is to check GACC's register of approved Kazakh plants.
What it means for Chinese companies
- Importers: for raw materials, long-term contracts and pipeline and rail capacity are what count; for farm goods, check market access and the plant register before negotiating.
- Investors: Kazakhstan wants more processing at home — oil refining, compound feed, meat processing and downstream metallurgy.
- Logistics firms: capacity at Dostyk–Alashankou and Khorgos–Altynkol remains the key constraint on farm shipments.
Each figure has its own period and method; check the original source before making decisions.
Sources
- https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/moa/press/news/details/1087052?lang=ru
- https://kz.kursiv.media/2025-10-15/svan-kazahstan-smozhet-prodavat-svoyu-svininu-v-kitaj/
- https://orda.kz/kazahstan-vpervye-dogovorilsja-ob-otpravkah-svininy-v-kitaj-407998/
- https://cn.inform.kz/news/jiangzhongguochu-afa7b9/
- https://policy.mofcom.gov.cn/claw/clawContent.shtml?id=106606
- https://qaztrade.org.kz/rus/voprosy-otvety/
- https://agfreights.com/ru/export/meat-livestock-products-kazakhstan-to-china/
- https://stat.gov.kz/ru/industries/economy/foreign-market/publications/335727/
- https://lsm.kz/tovarooborot-kazahstana-i-kitaya-v-yanvare-iyune-2026
- https://liter.kz/eksport-operezhaet-import-vneshniaia-torgovlia-kazakhstana-za-polgoda-prinesla-pochti-9-mlrd-profitsita-1787048196/
- https://kz24.news/news/ekonomika/kazahstan-stanovitsya-svyazuyuschim-zvenom-mezhdu-rossiey-i-kitaem.html
- https://www.mfa.gov.cn/web/gjhdq_676201/gj_676203/yz_676205/1206_676500/sbgx_676504/
- https://www.seetao.com/details/274429.html
- ChinaData（基于中国海关数据）：https://chinadata.live/china-trade/kazakhstan/
- https://kase.kz/files/emitters/KZTO/kzto_relizs__121026_eng.pdf
- Kazakhstan Today：https://www.kt.kz/rus/ekonomika/eksport_kazahstanskoy_nefti_v_kitay_po_marshrutu_atasu_-_1378001948.html
- https://7kun.kz/ru/news/kazahstan-uvelicil-transportirovku-nefti-na-3
- https://tengrinews.kz/article/defitsit-gaza-u-kogo-kazahstan-ego-pokupaet-i-komu-prodat-4156/
- Azattyq Ruhy：https://rus.azattyq-ruhy.kz/economics/111472-kazakhstan-postavil-v-kitai-5-mlrd-kubometrov-gaza-za-god
- https://www.inbusiness.kz/ru/last/kazahstan-ustanovil-absolyutnyj-rekord-po-eksportu-pshenicy
- https://apk-news.kz/news/item-7311
- https://apk-news.kz/news/item-7323
- Agro Business Kazakhstan：https://agbz.kz/eksport-kazahstanskogo-yachmenya-postepenno-pereorientiruetsya-na-strany-centralnoj-azii/
- https://www.inform.kz/ru/kazahstan-planiruet-zarabativat-naeksporte-maslozhirovoy-produktsii-do15mlrd-vgo-32727652
- https://apk-news.kz/news/item-7336
This article was prepared with AI assistance and checked by an editor against public sources; the cover is an AI-generated illustration, not a photograph.
Key facts
- In 2026年上半年, Kazakhstan exported approximately 75.1亿美元 to China, up approximately 10% year on year, and China accounted for 18.6% of its total exports.
- On 2025年10月15日, 哈萨克斯坦农业部 and 海关总署 signed a protocol on the quarantine and sanitary requirements for pork exports to China.
- As of 2026年10月14日, registration of enterprises exporting pork from Kazakhstan to China and clearance of shipments had not yet been put into effect.
- During 2026年前9个月, the Atasu–Alashankou pipeline transported 852.5万吨 of crude oil, of which 98.4万吨 was crude oil produced in Kazakhstan.
- In 2025年, Kazakhstan exported 50亿立方米 of natural gas to China; at present, its exports go only to China.
- For 2025/26年度, Kazakhstan exported approximately 4.32万吨 of wheat to China, while feed meal exports increased by approximately 143万吨, with growth of approximately 65%.
FAQ
Has Kazakhstan begun exporting pork to China?
No actual exports have yet been recorded. On 2025年10月15日, 哈萨克斯坦农业部 and 海关总署 signed a protocol, but as of 2026年10月14日, no list of registered enterprises, export batches, or data had been identified in the source text.
Does all of the 852.5万吨 of crude oil transported through the Atasu–Alashankou pipeline originate in Kazakhstan?
No. The figure includes crude oil in transit, of which 98.4万吨 represented Kazakhstan's own crude oil exports, up 26% year on year.
What changes have occurred in Kazakhstan's grain exports to China?
For 2025/26年度, wheat exports to China were approximately 4.32万吨, falling to about one quarter of their previous level; feed meal exports increased by approximately 143万吨, with growth of approximately 65%.
Does 海关总署2026年第116号公告 concern pork from Kazakhstan?
It does not. The announcement applies to industrial-use products made from cattle and sheep bones, including defatted bone granules, bone oil, and peptone, but does not include pork.
What key verification points did the source text identify for importers and investors?
For bulk commodities, long-term contracts and pipeline and rail capacity require attention; for agricultural products, market-access lists and registered enterprises should be verified first. The Kazakh side encourages greater local processing of oils and fats, feed, meat, and smelted products.