At the recent international forum Dala Camp 2026, held in Borovoe on February 14-15, Zhanibek Kenzhebaev, manager of the livestock farm "Bereke" in the Turgai region of Kostanay province, shared his observations on common mistakes made by novice farmers. The event was attended by over 250 people from various regions of Kazakhstan and other countries.
The first mistake noted by Kenzhebaev is farm management based on intuition rather than precise calculations. This approach leads to the depletion of working capital and ultimately increases the risk of bankruptcy. Effective management requires a clear understanding of cash flows, allowing for better control of income and expenses.
The next issue is the attitude towards workers, viewing them as low-paid labor. Zhanibek Kenzhebaev advises:
- If your livestock worker earns 150,000 tenge and lives in poor conditions, reconsider your attitude. Increase their salary and create comfortable conditions, and the results of your business will improve within the first production cycle.
The third mistake is the lack of digital tracking of livestock. This is critically important for the successful export of beef from Kazakhstan. Chip identification of animals helps monitor their movements, prevent theft, and ensure compliance with veterinary measures, including data analysis on weight gains.
Kenzhebaev also pointed out veterinary nihilism and fear of vaccination as serious problems in the country's livestock sector. Ignoring preventive measures can lead to mass livestock deaths, while vaccination and other precautions can ensure the health of the herd and, consequently, contribute to the development of meat exports.
Other common mistakes include: the desire to be a jack-of-all-trades without cooperation, which increases costs; selling breeding stock for quick profits, leading to losses; selling young stock too early, which reduces profitability; dependence on subsidies, creating vulnerability; ignoring selection, leading to breed degradation; and underestimating climate risks, which can leave farmers without feed in unfavorable seasons.
Soon, the Dala Camp team plans to launch an online course on "Meat Livestock Farming." It will be free for participants of the Dala Camp Forum 2026, which includes hundreds of managers and specialists from various parts of Kazakhstan.
Source: eldala.kz
