Around 1,000 tons of potatoes shipped from Pavlodar, Kazakhstan, to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, were rotted after a ten-day delay at the border. According to KTK TV, the cargo was held for inspection, causing it to freeze and later spoil. The financial losses for businesses are estimated in the tens of millions of tenge.
Entrepreneurs stated that the potatoes were sold to Uzbekistan in mid-January, with all necessary export documents processed before the export ban was introduced. However, despite having the required permits, the shipment was held at the border for over ten days. During this time, the potatoes froze inside the train cars, and once thawed, they began to rot.
Business owners argue that the delay was unjustified, and attempts to return the spoiled goods were unsuccessful. The local administration had previously offered to buy the potatoes at a price significantly below market value. One entrepreneur, Nursultan Ormanov, reported a loss of 60 million tenge from just three train cars. He noted that while the government offered 100-150 tenge per kilogram (€0.19 - €0.28) the market price was 300 tenge (€0.55).
Kazakhstan's Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Yerbol Taszhurekov, stated that the inspection was completed and there were no further obstacles to export. However, for the affected businesses, the announcement came too late, as the potatoes were already unsellable. The companies facing substantial losses plan to take legal action to recover their damages.
Source: nuz.uz