New Russian duty on linseed exports opens opportunities for Kazakhstan in EU and China

where linseed planting areas increased by 55% to 1.35 million hectares in 2025, the expected harvest of around 1 million tons significantly strengthens the country’s competitiveness on the global market. According to Yevgeny Karabanov, head of the Analytical Committee of the Grain Union of Kazakhstan, linseed was one of the few grain and oilseed crops in Russia not previously subject to duties or export bans. However, despite the expansion of planting areas in Russia (1.7 million hectares in 2025 with a projected yield of 1.2 million tons), domestic processing remains minimal. Linseed oil production in both Russia and Kazakhstan is negligible, with exports plummeting over the past three years: in 2024/25, Russia produced 11.5 thousand tons of linseed oil, exporting only 3.7 thousand tons, while Kazakhstan produced 4.1 thousand tons and exported just 0.6 thousand tons. Karabanov emphasized that neither Russian nor Kazakhstani linseed oil is in demand domestically, and both China ...