US pork exports remain at a record pace in 2020, according to the US Meat Export Federation.
The latest USDA data shows September exports of US pork increased 10 percent year-over-year. September volume reached 222,475 metric tons, with value increasing 6 percent to $563.2 million. USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom says we saw broad-based growth in a lot of different markets.
?Japan ? one of our larger value markets ? had tremendous growth at about 11 percent,? Halstrom said. ?We also had Canada with a record month. And then you look at Southeast Asia ? The Philippines and Vietnam ? where we had tremendous growth. I think that really is the moral to the story. China was up as well, but in terms of the total gain for global exports in the month of September, it was broad-based.?
While China’s demand for US pork is expected to be strong again in 2021, Halstrom says exports will likely trend lower compared to the unprecedented levels seen this year.
?We?re going to have a record year in 2020 with China,? Halstrom said. ?A lot of that is from the China situation on ASF (African Swine Fever), but we?re still forecasting the second largest year ever in 2021 with about 10 or 15 percent decrease there. The key is expanding the reach of pork globally and remain diversified.?
Halstrom notes that one of the keys to maintaining strong overall growth going forward is for US pork to regain momentum in Mexico, as well as Central and South America.
?Keep in mind that Mexico and Latin America in general went into the COVID-19 lockdowns after the US,? he said. ?It was really late May when that all happened. So, they were late to go in and they are probably a little late coming out, but they will come out. We?re starting to see those signs already.?
For January through September, US pork exports were 16 percent ahead of last year?s record pace in both volume (2.22 MMT) and value ($5.69 billion).
