Socially significant food products in Kazakhstan rose in price by an average of 2.2% over the year, but for some items the growth was significantly higher. Lamb added almost a quarter of its cost, while potatoes, carrots, and onions increased by more than 20%, reports infohub.kz.
Since the beginning of this year, socially significant products have risen in price by an average of 1.6%. At the same time, since the beginning of August, the price index has decreased by 0.1%, and over the last week it has remained unchanged overall.
Among individual products, potatoes saw the highest increase over the past 12 months, rising by 26.9%. Carrots went up by 26.1%, lamb by 24.6%, and onions by 22.6%.
Prices for other products also rose noticeably. Kefir increased by 13.7%, salt by 12.9%, minced meat and certain chicken parts by 12.2%, and beef with bones by 11.6%. Horsemeat and butter each added 11.5%, and sour cream rose by 10.9%.
At the same time, some products became cheaper over the year. The biggest drop was in cucumbers, which fell by 40.1%. Tomatoes decreased by 15.6%, apples by 7.1%, and polished rice by 3.9%.
Compared to the beginning of 2026, onions are the leader in price growth, with their cost increasing by 53.8%. Carrots have risen by 51% since the start of the year, potatoes by 35.3%, and lamb by 18.5%. Sugar added 11.4%, salt 11.7%, butter 8.4%, cottage cheese 7.9%, kefir 7.2%, and pasta 6.7%.
At the same time, the seasonal price decrease for vegetables significantly affected the overall dynamics. Cucumbers have become cheaper by 69.5% since the beginning of the year, and tomatoes by 46.6%.
Over the week from August 5 to 12, the overall price index for socially significant products remained unchanged. The most notable decrease was recorded for potatoes, which fell by 4.2%. Cabbage dropped by 1.2%, apples by 1.1%, and onions and carrots by 1% each. In the opposite direction, prices for some other vegetables moved. Cucumbers rose by 0.8% over the week, lamb and tomatoes by 0.7%, and fish by 0.5%.
The dynamics also vary noticeably between cities. The highest annual growth in the overall index of socially significant products was recorded in Taldykorgan at 9.2%. In Kokshetau, products rose by 5.2%, in Aktau by 5.1%, and in Atyrau by 4.4%. Meanwhile, in Konaev the growth was only 0.3%, and in Petropavlovsk 0.4%. In Astana, socially significant products rose by 1.3% over the year, in Almaty by 1.9%, and in Shymkent by 2.4%.
The data from the Bureau of National Statistics also allows comparison of average prices in cities across the country. For example, a kilogram of beef with bones averaged 3,779 tenge, boneless beef 4,953 tenge, horsemeat 4,261 tenge, and lamb 4,524 tenge. A kilogram of potatoes averaged 259 tenge, carrots 260 tenge, onions 198 tenge, and cabbage 189 tenge. A dozen first-category eggs averaged 571 tenge, a liter of sunflower oil 901 tenge, a liter of milk 664 tenge, and a kilogram of sugar 459 tenge.