US pork exports up 4.5 percent to 5.2 billion pounds

USDA’s February “Livestock, Dairy and Poulty Outlook” reported annual totals for US pork export.

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photo by Fredex | BigStockPhoto
photo by Fredex | BigStockPhoto

For 2016, total US pork exports were 5.2 billion pounds, topping 2015 by 4.5 percent. The US Department of Agriculture’s February “Livestock, Dairy and Poulty Outlook” reported that statistic, and that fourth-quarter exports reached 1.5 billion pounds, or 14 percent higher than last year’s fourth quarter. US exported 493 million pounds of pork in December 2016, which is more that 15 percent higher than 2015 volumes.

US pork exports in 2017 are expected to be about 5.4 billion pounds.

Exports accounted for 25.8 percent of total US 2016 pork production and 21.5 percent for muscle cuts. That’s up from 24.2 percent and 20.8 percent, respectively, in 2015, according to the US Meat Export Federation (USMEF), which helped compile the USDA Outlook report data. Export value per head slaughtered averaged US$50.20 in 2016, up 4 percent from the previous year.

Mexico imports the most US pork

Mexico took in the largest share of US pork exports, for the second year in a row. The favorable price of US hams likely helped drive late-year exports to Mexico.

The Mexican peso has lost ground to the dollar in currency exchange rates, and USDA analysts warned in January that US pork exports to Mexico may decline along with peso.

However, lower US pork prices during the fourth quarter may have partially offset the currency imbalance, increasing late-year US pork exports to Mexico.

“At this time of record-large pork production, it would be hard to overstate the importance of Mexican demand to the US industry,” said Philip Seng, USMEF president and CEO, in a press release. “This is especially true for hams, as we are locked out of Russia – once a large destination for US hams – and China’s demand for imported hams has moderated in recent months. So now more than ever, we need strong demand from our key customers in Mexico, and they have responded with extraordinary results. December exports to Mexico accounted for nearly $16 per head, and that’s absolutely critical to the entire US pork supply chain.”

US pork exports to China

Exports to China increasing more than 70 percent year-over-year, ranking China’s pork market as the third largest for US pork exports in 2016.

However, European pork accounted for a disproportionate share of Chinese imports of pork. The exchange rate may have made US pork less competitive than Europe, despite the continent’s generally higher production costs.
 

Other 2016 highlights for US pork exports

  • Japan remained the leading value destination for US pork, reported the USMEF
  • Exports to the Central/South America region increased, led by a record performance in Central America and a fourth-quarter surge in Colombia and Chile.
  • Pork shipments increased to both Australia and New Zealand.
  • Exports to the Dominican Republic set a record in 2016.
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