August Beef Exports above Year-Ago, but Pork Trended Lower
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Fueled by a near-record performance in Taiwan and a rebound in South Korea, August exports of U.S. beef increased year-over-year, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). August pork exports were lower than a year ago, primarily due to a sharp decline in shipments to Mexico compared to the large totals posted in August 2025.
Beef exports reached 86,362 metric tons (mt) in August, up 4% from a year ago, while export value climbed 13% to $785.9 million. USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom notes that in addition to year-over-year growth in Taiwan and Korea, August exports also trended higher to the Middle East, where shipments to the United Arab Emirates were the largest since 2022 and exports to Kuwait were the largest since early 2024. Beef exports to China were above last year’s minimal total, but still reflected ongoing technical trade barriers.
For January through August, beef exports were down 7% year-over-year in volume (721,150 mt) and were just 1% lower in value ($6.32 billion). This decline is largely attributable to lower exports to China compared to the early months of 2025, before market access obstacles began to heavily impact U.S. exports. When excluding China from the January-August results, beef exports were 1% below last year in volume but 6% higher in value.
U.S. pork exports totaled 222,243 mt in August, down 6% from a year ago, while value fell 12% to $606.3 million. Most of this decline was due to lower shipments to Mexico, where domestic pork production has rebounded and demand for hams has softened in recent months. August pork exports trended higher than a year ago to Central America, Colombia and the Caribbean – growth markets where exports are on a record pace in 2026.
For January through August, pork exports remained 1% higher than a year ago at 1.95 million mt, while value was steady at $5.47 billion. Compared to the record pace of 2024, exports were down 2% in volume and were 4% lower in value.