Beef Sets Annual Record in November
US - U.S. beef meat exports jumped dramatically in November 2013, setting a new annual record for value with one month remaining in the year, according to U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF)data.
13 January 2014
2 minute read
Driven by sustained export growth to Japan and Hong Kong and the continued rebound of the Mexican market, U.S. beef exports surged 11 percent in volume and 16 percent in value compared to November 2012, putting 11-month totals at nearly 2.42 billion pounds, up 3 percent compared to the same 11 months in 2012.
Export value reached $5.61 billion by the end of November, an 11 percent increase over last year’s pace and already ahead of the 2012 year-end total of $5.51 billion!
"There are many factors that play a role in the export marketplace,” said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. “We continue to see benefits from expanded market access for beef in Japan and Hong Kong. At the same time, the lack of access for U.S. beef to Mainland China and the closure of the Russian market for both pork and beef – which is approaching a year in duration – are significant barriers.”
Drought has had widespread ramifications, leading to smaller cattle numbers in the U.S. and a contrasting surge in Australia’s 2013 production, also leading to record exports of Australian beef.
November beef exports
U.S. beef exports for just the month of November reached 223 million pounds, an 11 percent year-on-year hike, while the value rose 16 percent to $524.5 million. Exports accounted for 14.3 percent of total U.S. beef production (muscle cuts plus variety meat) and 11 percent of muscle cuts alone compared to 12 and 9 percent, respectively, in November of 2012.
The export value per head of fed slaughter in November jumped to $267.36, an increase of $51.41 from November 2012.
The top-performing beef export markets in November 2013 were:
Japan: 37.7 million pounds (up 74 percent) valued at $101.2 million (up 41 percent)
Japan is the top volume and value market for U.S. beef exports, totaling 483 million pounds (up 52 percent) valued at $1.3 billion (up 34 percent) for the year
Mexico: 44.3 million pounds (up more than 62 percent) valued at $82.9 million (up more than 50 percent)
Mexico is the No. 2 volume market for U.S. beef for the year, totaling 423 million pounds (up 8 percent) valued at $819.9 million (up 8 percent)
Hong Kong: 33.4 million pounds (up 112 percent) valued at $98.1 million (up 163 percent)
ASEAN: 6.8 million pounds (up 22 percent) valued at $14.1 million (up 20 percent), led by a recovery of exports to Indonesia
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