Sky-High Food Costs: Kazakhstan's Struggle Between Wealth and Poverty Lists

Here's a fresh take on the topic:

Chowin' Down in Kazakhstan: Food Spending Outpaces the Rest

It might surprise you, but Kazakhstanis are dropping a significant chunk of their hard-earned cash on food, shelling out around $3,400 a year, that's more than 50% of their annual expenses. That's a mouthful, right?

Let's put things in perspective. In countries like Denmark, Italy, and Norway – known for their love for all things culinary – the share of food expenses doesn't exceed 15% of their total spending. On the contrary, Kazakhstan is holding its own with these developed nations, but the food bill forms a bigger piece of the pie.**

What's even more peculiar is that when you compare Kazakhstan's food spending with other countries such as Brazil, Russia, and Malaysia, it's a closer match. But for these countries, only a fraction of their expenses – between 16% and 26% – hits the grocery bill.

Now, it seems like food expenses are as essential as air for Kazakhstanis. After all, it's a basic human need.

According to Our World in Data, folks in wealthy nations shell out more dough for food, but less so as a percentage of their total expenses. Kazakhstan's statistics on this front are eye-catching, as it shares a spot with both rich and poor countries, but the overall picture leaves much to be desired.

So, how much are Kazakhstanis parting ways with each year? Research data shows the average total annual spending of an average Kazakhstan resident clocked in at $6,744 in 2023, which is about 3 million tenge if you take the average exchange rate into account.**

It's a similar story for Brazil ($6,322), Russia ($6,779), and Malaysia ($7,345). But it's when you look at the amount spent on food that things become interesting. Kazakhstan ($3,402 per year) turns out to be quite the foodie, finding itself in the same league as developed countries like Denmark ($3,727), Italy ($3,388), Norway ($3,457), and Australia ($3,374).**

However, the big unpleasant surprise comes when we consider the total annual spending of the population and the share of food expenses. Things are grim for Kazakhstan, as it ranks alongside some developing countries with lower total expenses – places like Laos, Bangladesh, Venezuela, Myanmar, and Nigeria.

For example, Brazilians spend just $1,206 on food, which represents only 16.2% of their annual expenses. The Russians are a wee bit higher, with $1,718 or 25.3% going to food. Even Malaysia, whose citizens shell out $1,940 on food, only dedicates 26.4% of their annual expenses to it.

The only countries with a worse situation are those with lower overall expenses.

Among developed nations, where citizens spend similar amounts on food as Kazakhs, total annual expenses are significantly higher.

In short, while Kazakhstan might be neck and neck with developed countries in terms of food spending, the share of food expenses in their total annual expenses is a cause for concern, being closer to that of poor countries.

Previously, it was noted that the increase in wages in Kazakhstan did not lead to an improvement in the quality of life of the population. It was also reported that the expenses of Kazakhstanis are growing faster than their incomes. Experts have attributed the high food expenses to various factors, which the National Bank of Kazakhstan later explained.

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Enrichment Data:

Kazakhstan's retail share of food (sales composition, not direct household expenditure) was 28.8% in 2023 or later[5]. This suggests food likely comprises a larger portion of household budgets than in high-income European nations but comparable to or slightly below upper-middle-income countries like Brazil/Russia.
High-income countries typically allocate 10-15% of their household budgets to food, while emerging economies usually range between 15-25%, depending on income levels and food inflation.

Despite Kazakhstanis having one of the highest food spending rates, which amounts to approximately 50% of their annual expenses, this figure is still lower than the 15% spent by individuals in high-income countries like Denmark, Italy, and Norway.
Compared to other countries such as Brazil, Russia, and Malaysia, Kazakhstan's food spending is relatively higher, with around 374 billion tenge ($6,744 in 2023) spent annually on food, which is comparable to developed nations like Denmark, Italy, Norway, and Australia.
However, when considering the total annual spending of an average Kazakhstan resident and the share of food expenses, the data displays a surprising result, placing Kazakhstan alongside developing countries with lower total expenses such as Laos, Bangladesh, Venezuela, Myanmar, and Nigeria.
The National Bank of Kazakhstan has attributed the high food expenses to various factors, and although Kazakhstanis' incomes are reportedly growing faster than their expenses, their budgeting for personal finance still leaves much to be desired.