Karaganda's rural entrepreneurs shine at 'One Village, One Product' fair

The 'One Village, One Product' exhibition in Karaganda has once again highlighted the region’s growing local businesses. This year, over 50 small and microbusinesses from rural areas and single-industry towns displayed their goods, ranging from food to handmade crafts. The event has taken place in Karaganda for three years, attracting more than a hundred producers so far. This year’s fair featured products like cheese, kurt, mushrooms, berries, soap, cosmetics, leather, and felt items. Ten rural entrepreneurs won the regional competition, with six securing state grants to expand their work.

Elena Kolesnichenko from Nura village started a mushroom farm in her garage. She now grows up to 300 kg of oyster mushrooms each month, selling them fresh, dried, or marinated to customers in her district and neighbouring cities like Astana and Karaganda. Janur Toleubayeva, a craftswoman from Aktogay District, showcased her handmade felt carpets and hopes to open a wool-processing workshop in the future.

Other exhibitors included Saiyran Dusembayev from Shchetsky District, who runs a cheese factory producing European and Georgian varieties using local milk. Konstantin Polkanov, a startup founder from Temirtau, supplies microgreens to nine restaurants in the city and plans to scale up production with government support. The exhibition has helped local producers reach wider markets and gain recognition. With state grants and growing demand, many of these businesses are now poised for further expansion.