New Records for US Beef Export Value, Pork Export Volume in 2017

2017 was a record-breaking year for U.S. red meat exports, with beef export value exceeding $7 billion for only the second time.  Pork exports, meanwhile, easily surpassed the previous year’s volume record.  The U.S. Meat Export Federation reports beef exports totaled 1.26 million metric tons, up 6% from 2016.  This was the fourth-largest volume on record and the second-largest of the post-BSE era.

Beef export value reached $7.27 billion, up 15% year-over-year and 2% above the previous high achieved in 2014 of $7.13 billion. Pork exports totaled 2.45 million metric tons in 2017, breaking the 2016 record by 6%. Export value was $6.49 billion, up 9% year-over-year, and the second-highest on record, trailing only 2014’s $6.65 billion.

Pork exports accounted for 26.6% of total production in 2017 and 22.3% for muscle cuts only, each up nearly a full percentage point from a year ago.

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