Record-setting U.S. beef exports were a hot topic of discussion at the Cattle Industry Convention in Houston.
U.S. beef exports topped $10 billion over the past year, which completely shattered previous records. Mark Swanson, the current chair of the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), said expanding U.S. beef exports is important to the entire supply chain, and the surging global demand for U.S. beef helped set a positive and optimistic tone for the convention.
?One of the benefits of coming off year where we’ve had the top three markets, Japan, South Korea and China, all reach that $2 billion plus threshold, which is the first time in our history, that’s created a sense of optimism throughout the entire convention,? Swanson said. ?Everybody along the supply chain has benefited from those increased exports and those increased dollars flowing back through the supply chain. Exports are definitely a unifying interest. When you have 15% of your total beef production being exported, the sense of optimism and the value that it’s bringing back to the entire supply chain has really, really grown the overall visibility of exports and the need to have more exports. But the enthusiasm from the entire convention is clearly evident.?
USMEF secretary-treasurer Steve Hanson added that U.S. beef export value equated to about $400 per head of fed slaughter in 2021, which is excellent news for cattle producers.
?It’s fun to be able to visit out in the hallways and talk about what exports do because it really does make a difference to the bottom line,? Hanson said. ?The per head value of $400, it’s an amazing number, and it really adds to the bottom line of either the cow-calf guy or the feedlot guy, but it’s in there in the value of the animal and we are very proud of that. We are expanding across not only in Asia where China, South Korea, and Japan are huge customers over $2 billion a year now, but also in the rest of the world. We’re starting to get into Central and South America, Africa. We’re gaining insights there. We’ve got new markets in there. It’s a very positive story that we’ve got to tell and it’s a pleasure to tell it.?
For more information, visit usmef.org.
