Industrial hemp part of plan for Swiss company to invest over $700 million in Kazakhstan’s agricultural sector

According to Uvashev, Harvest Agro, which has been operating in Kazakhstan since 2022, has already launched the first phase of its large-scale agricultural project in Kyzylorda Region, covering 20,000 hectares, for industrial hemp, corn, and soybean cultivation.

It is planned to develop up to 300,000 hectares of irrigated land across eight to nine regions of the country, said Uvashev.

During the second phase, set to begin in 2026, the company plans to build agricultural processing plants and develop an additional 50,000 hectares of farmland in Almaty, East Kazakhstan, Abai, and Zhetysu regions.

Uvashev noted that memorandums of understanding have been signed with local authorities and that business plans and financial models for the project have been prepared. The company intends to supply its agricultural products both to the domestic market and for export.

We will produce soy concentrate and amino acids, while the by-products such as meal and cake will be used as animal feed. From industrial hemp, we plan to manufacture panels, insulation materials, and blocks for the construction industry. Our goal is to develop deep processing capabilities to serve Kazakhstan’s internal market and export high-value products abroad, said Uvashev.

At the 8th Kazakhstan Global Investment Roundtable (KGIR 2025) in Astana, 49 agreements totaling 7.5 billion US dollars were signed.