During a press tour organised by the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan, media representatives were given an opportunity to see modern production facilities, advanced technologies for the deep processing of agricultural raw materials, the development of commercial orchards and greenhouse farming, as well as the potential of the livestock sector, particularly meat production.
Beeld: © LVVN Astana / illustrative
illustrative
The Netherlands’ involvement in the development of Almaty Region’s agro-industrial sector is becoming increasingly tangible. This cooperation goes beyond the adoption of foreign technologies and involves building long-term partnerships in crop production, plant breeding, greenhouse farming and agricultural processing.
Cooperation with Fruit Art
One of the most notable examples of this cooperation is Fruit Art LLP, a fruit and berry processing complex. The company combines advanced fruit and berry processing, large-scale agricultural storage facilities and year-round strawberry production. Its 5.5-hectare greenhouse complex uses Dutch strawberry-growing technologies. Fruit Art’s technology partner is the Dutch company Dalsem, which specialises in the development and implementation of complete high-tech greenhouse projects.
The project was commissioned in 2023, with total investments amounting to KZT 44 billion. In addition to greenhouse production, the complex includes a freeze-drying facility with an annual processing capacity of at least 5,000 tonnes of raw materials and a fruit storage facility equipped with a controlled-atmosphere system, with a capacity of up to 15,000 tonnes.
Beeld: © LVVN Astana
Greenhouse of Fruit Art company
In April 2025, a Dutch delegation headed by Jan-Kees Goet, Secretary-General of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature, visited Fruit Art’s greenhouse facilities together with his Kazakh counterpart, Azat Sultanov, Vice Minister of Agriculture of Kazakhstan. The visit took place as part of Jan-Kees Goet’s official visit to Kazakhstan and the third meeting of the Netherlands–Kazakhstan Working Group on Agriculture.
From greenhouse technologies to advanced plant breeding
Another important area of Dutch involvement is the development of commercial fruit growing. In Almaty Region, Apple Bee LLP specialises in apple production, the cultivation of high-quality planting material and the production of natural, not-from-concentrate apple juice.
The company's commercial orchard covers 120 hectares, with an annual production target of up to 3,000 tonnes of apples. Its nursery has the capacity to produce up to 300,000 plants annually.
Beeld: © LVVN Astana / Apple orchards in Almaty region
Apple orchard in Almaty region
Of particular importance is the company's cooperation with French and Dutch apple breeders and variety developers. Apple Bee uses virus-free planting material, providing a foundation for establishing modern intensive orchards and improving the quality of future harvests.
For Kazakhstan, this cooperation is important not only because it provides access to new apple varieties. It also creates opportunities to introduce modern plant-breeding approaches, improve orchard resilience, diversify the range of cultivated varieties and develop domestic production of high-quality planting material.
Bilateral cooperation enters a new phase
A new stage in bilateral agricultural cooperation was discussed at the fourth meeting of the Kazakhstan–Netherlands Working Group on Agriculture, held in The Hague in 2026. The two sides identified several priority areas, including plant breeding and seed production, agricultural science, veterinary medicine, livestock farming, aquaculture and plant protection.
One tangible indicator of the Netherlands’ contribution is the presence of Dutch-bred varieties in Kazakhstan. A total of 411 varieties and hybrids of Dutch origin are registered in Kazakhstan’s State Register, while another 53 are currently undergoing trials.
Beeld: © LVVN Astana / Netherlands-Kazakhstan Agricultural Working group meeting in the Hague
Netherlands-Kazakhstan Agricultural Working group meeting in the Hague
Further opportunities to strengthen Kazakhstan’s national plant-breeding system are also linked to the country's potential participation in the Naktuinbouw PVP Toolbox programme in 2027. The initiative aims to improve the protection of plant variety rights and strengthen the professional expertise of national specialists.