US pork and beef muscle cut exports had solid numbers in the month of October.
According to US Meat Export Federation President and CEO Dan Halstrom, US pork exports posted broad-based gains in October. Beef muscle cut exports were also higher than a year ago, though lower variety meat volumes pushed beef exports slightly below last year.
?Pork is still on a record pace,? Halstrom said. ?The month of October was up 8 percent year on year. A couple of key markets were really leading that charge besides just China. Japan was up 18 percent year on year. We?re really starting to see Japan come to the forefront. Retail and ground seasoned pork into further processing are both seeing increases in share.?
?Mexico has been very strong as well,? Halstrom continued, ?and we?re starting to see the rebound really come around in Mexico. This is the third straight month where it?s been our leading market for pork muscle meats. That?s encouraging. And then Central and South America are beginning to show some signs of a rebound as well.?
Halstrom says October beef exports came in just under 108,000 metric tons valued at $646 million.
?Japan continues to show growth of about 10 percent,? Halstrom said. ?Once again it?s a testament to the US-Japan Ag Agreement where we are all on a level playing field. China had the largest month since the reintroduction of beef in China at 6,800 metric tons. This is a testament to the supply chain starting to develop.?
Halstrom added that while October beef exports to Mexico were still below last year, the market is showing signs of a rebound. For January through October, beef exports trailed last year’s pace by 7 percent in volume (1.02 million mt) and 8 percent in value ($6.2 billion).
