Facilitating Smallholder Farmers’ Market Access
In the OIC Member Countries
98
Despite favorable climatic conditions in the southern region, greenhouse production of
vegetables has not developed. Domestic demand for vegetables is met in winter through
imports from Uzbekistan, Turkey, and China. Some of the imported winter/spring
vegetables are re-exported to Kazakhstan and Russia.167 Once the Customs Union rules
come into effect, prices of imported vegetables from China will rise, creating an
opportunity for Kyrgyz farmers to enter this niche market.168 Greenhouse production will
require large investments in technology and skills, however, which smallholder farmers
cannot make without access to credit.
Fruit production has nearly doubled since 2007. Apples, apricots, cherries, and
watermelons are major cash and export crops produced almost entirely by smallholders.
Household farms (gardens) produce around 32 percent of fruit; more than 70 percent of
production comes from the southern region. In 2012, the country produced around
410,000 tons of fruit, of which about 72 percent was marketed. About 68 percent of the
marketed volume was sold in domestic markets to traders (80 percent) and agribusiness
(15 percent); the remainder was sold directly to consumers. Exports (to Kazakhstan,
Russia, Turkey, and China) accounted for about 32 percent of marketed volumes and were
valued at US$ 43 million in 2013.
The food processing sector consumes around 2 percent of apple and pear production.169
Apricots grown in the southern region are processed (dried) by farmers. Fresh fruit is sold
immediately after harvesting to traders, agribusinesses, and consumers. Post-harvest
losses are about 30 percent.
The major concerns in fruit marketing resemble those for vegetables: high marketing
costs, trade barriers, the lack of reliable market information, and substandard food safety
and quality practices.
COTTON
Cotton, grown in the southern region, is the third most important cash crop; 94 percent of
production comes from smallholders. Around 68 percent of cotton is sold in domestic
markets, with the remaining 32 percent going mostly to Russia (84 percent) but also to
Turkey (15 percent). Cotton is sold to ginneries or traders. Kyrgyz Republic has the
highest cotton prices in Central Asia. Most farmers grow cotton under contract farming
arrangements, so they face fewer constraints on obtaining good seed and fertilizer. Even
so, cotton yields remain low at 2.3 tons per hectare, and production has declined gradually
since 2007. Annual export earnings fell from US$ 43 million in 2007 to US$ 19 million in
2013.
167 Mogilesvkii (2012).
168 The Eurasian Economic Community Customs Union was established in 2006 by the Republic of
Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, and the Russian Federation. The Customs Union is a first step
toward creating a potentially vast common market (a single economic space) similar to the European
Union among former Soviet states. The Kyrgyz Republic announced its intention of joining the Customs
Union in 2011.
169 USAID (2011).