Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 2/6/15

Export value for both U.S. beef and pork reached new heights in 2014, posting double-digit gains over the previous year’s totals, according to statistics released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).

Beef export value was $7.13 billion – an increase of 16 percent (and nearly $1 billion) over the previous record set in 2013. Export volume was just under 1.2 million metric tons, which was short of the 2011 record, but up 2 percent year-over-year.

Pork export value totaled $6.67 billion, an increase of 10 percent year-over-year, breaking the 2012 record by 6 percent. Pork export volume increased 2 percent to 2.18 million mt. The volume record is 2.62 million metric tons, set in 2012.

Exports overcame significant challenges to reach these milestones, including market access restrictions in Russia and China, an appreciating U.S. dollar and, most recently, shipping difficulties related to a labor dispute in the West Coast ports.

In December, beef export volume slipped 2 percent year-over-year to 100,270 metric tons, though value still increased 17 percent to $643.2 million. December pork export volume was down 5 percent to 183,498 metric tons, but value still achieved a slight increase to $541.3 million.

“2014 was an outstanding year for red meat exports, but headwinds continued to mount late in the year,” said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. “The West Coast port congestion is extremely troubling, because the delays faced by exporters in December have become even more severe in 2015. If this dispute is not resolved soon, the meat industry will have to win back long-term customers who still want our product, but have no choice but to seek alternative suppliers.”

The situation is especially critical because Asian markets take a large volume of chilled U.S. beef and pork, valued at more than $2 billion in 2014.

The strength in international demand for U.S. red meat was showcased in 2014, as customers paid record prices for U.S. beef and pork while still purchasing larger volumes. This is especially noteworthy because U.S. pork prices were higher than EU prices for most of the year, and U.S. cattle prices were significantly higher than prices in Australia and all other major beef-exporting countries, USMEF noted.

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