Tajikistan raises wheat and flour imports as domestic wheat output falls
Tajikistan imported 660,800 tonnes of wheat and 35,400 tonnes of flour in January–June 2026. Demand increased as domestic wheat production declined and the country’s growing population required more flour.
Wheat purchases rise as domestic harvest contracts
Tajikistan imported 660,800 tonnes of wheat worth about $171 million in January–June 2026, Asia-Plus reported, citing the country’s Antimonopoly Service. The volume was 47,500 tonnes, or 7.7%, higher than in the same period of 2025.
The average import value reached $259 per tonne, an increase of $25 from a year earlier. All imported wheat came from Kazakhstan, and about 60 companies participated in the trade. The figures underline Tajikistan’s dependence on a single external supplier for a staple raw material used by its milling sector.
Imports increased while domestic wheat production weakened. Tajikistan produced 510,000 tonnes in the first six months of 2026, down by 78,000 tonnes, or 13.3%, from the first half of 2025. The fall in local output widened the volume that millers and traders needed to cover through foreign purchases.
Flour imports and domestic milling both expand
Tajikistan also imported 35,400 tonnes of flour valued at $11.3 million during the first half. The average value was $320 per tonne. Compared with January–June 2025, import volume increased by 11,000 tonnes, or 45.2%, substantially faster than wheat imports.
Nineteen companies imported flour. Kazakhstan supplied about 95% of the total, while Russia accounted for 4% and Uzbekistan for 1%. Kazakhstan therefore retained a dominant position in both segments of Tajikistan’s grain supply chain, although the flour trade included limited volumes from two additional neighboring producers.
Higher flour imports did not prevent domestic processing from expanding. Tajik enterprises produced 399,400 tonnes of flour in six months, an increase of 95,800 tonnes, or 31.6%, year on year. Taken together, rising wheat imports and higher flour output indicate stronger utilization of domestic milling capacity, while the simultaneous increase in finished-flour purchases suggests that overall demand rose faster than local processors alone could supply it.
Population growth sustains demand
Wholesale prices for a sack of first-grade flour at processing plants ranged from 200 to 240 somoni. Including delivery to Dushanbe, the price reached 215–275 somoni. At consumer markets, state bodies sold sacks of first-grade flour for 200–230 somoni. In the first half, locally produced first-grade flour became 2% more expensive, while second-grade flour rose by 2.9%.
The expansion in wheat and flour purchases coincides with rapid population growth. According to Tajikistan’s Statistics Agency, the country’s population increased from approximately 6.3 million in 2000 to 10.3 million in 2024, a rise of nearly 64%. Average annual growth over that period was about 2.1%, and the population increased by approximately 2% in 2024 alone.
By July 1, 2025, Tajikistan had 10.6038 million residents. This demographic trend is steadily lifting consumption requirements for flour and other staple foods. For millers, importers and distributors, the main commercial exposure is the combination of expanding demand, lower domestic wheat output and concentrated sourcing from Kazakhstan. Changes in Kazakh supply conditions or prices can therefore pass quickly through to Tajik processing costs and flour markets.
