U.S. meat exports are going through a period of solid growth, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Meat Export Federation. In November 2013 pork exports reached the highest level seen in the year, and beef exports broke the record set in the previous month.
Although pork exports were fueled by increased demand from Mexico and countries in the Central and South American region, the overall levels still remained below those of 2012. In terms of volume, exports were four percent down, standing at 192,657 metric tons, while the total value of pork exports was three percent lower than in 2012, at $550.7 million.
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The biggest increase in pork exports was registered in Mexico, where export volume rose 16 percent in November to 58,678 metric tons. Export value went up almost 26 percent, reaching $124.3 million. Overall, pork exports to countries in Central and South America increased by 58 percent in terms of volume, while the rise in value reached 77 percent compared to the same period in the previous year, with the bulk of the increase coming from strong demand in Colombia, Honduras and Chile.
Meanwhile, U.S. beef exports continued to rise, going up 11 percent and 16 percent in terms of volume and value respectively. Over the period between January and November 2013, total beef export value came in at $5.61 billion.
