Monthly U.S. Pork & Variety Meat Export Volume in October 2021

Pork Highlights:

October 2021:

Pork: 184,784 mt, -8%, $521 million, -5.5%
PVM: 41,422 mt, +1.5%, $98 million, +9%
Pork + PVM: 226,206 mt, -7%, $619 million, -3.5%

January – October 2021: :

Pork: 2.021 million mt, -2%, $5.798 billion, +6%
PVM: 447,166 mt, +16%, $1.05 billion, +24%
Pork and PVM: 2.469 million mt, +0%, $6.845 billion, +8%

October pork muscle cut exports were up 6% from September and were the highest since June at 184,784 mt, down 8% from last year (or -17,000 mt) but up 2% from 2019. Compared to last October, pork muscle cut exports were higher to Mexico (+23,400 mt), Central America (+3,900 mt), South America (+3,000 mt), and the Caribbean + DR (+2,100 mt), while exports were lower than last year to China/HK (-30,700 mt), Japan (-6,600 mt), ASEAN (-4,500 mt), Australia/NZ (-2,600 mt), Taiwan (-2,400 mt), Canada (-1,700 mt), Korea (-450 mt), and EU27 + UK (-150 mt). Pork muscle cut exports to Mexico (73,673 mt, +46%) set a new monthly record and were up 7% from the previous record of 68,949 mt in August. Exports to Japan (27,884 mt, -19%) slowed to the lowest level since last June. Exports to Canada (17,334 mt, -9%) were lower than last year but were up 6% from 2019. Exports to Korea (9,278 mt, -5%) were up 10% from the previous month but remained below year-ago levels for the second consecutive month. Combined exports to China/HK totaled 17,063 mt, down 64% from last year and the lowest since March 2019. Exports to China (16,301 mt, -65%) were also the lowest since March 2019, and exports to Hong Kong (762 mt, -44%) remained muted in October. Exports to Colombia (11,319 mt, +95%) were up 49% from September and reached a new record high, up 5% from the previous record of 10,816 mt in December 2019. Exports were lower to Chile (2,086 mt, -54%), but exports to Peru (400 mt, -2%) were the highest since May. Exports to the Dominican Republic (4,971 mt, +71%) were the highest since March and were the fifth highest on record. Exports to Central America maintained the record pace with continued strong exports in October: Honduras (2,707 mt, +33%), Guatemala (2,858 mt, +82%), Panama (1,691 mt, -9%), Costa Rica (1,422 mt, +161%), Nicaragua (1,251 mt, +136%), and El Salvador (1,044 mt, +41%). Exports to Australia (3,728 mt, -35%) rebounded from the recent low of 3,119 mt in September, but exports were below year-ago levels for the third consecutive month, and October exports to New Zealand (230 mt, -74%) dropped to the lowest level since 2017. Exports to the Philippines (2,106 mt, -50%) rebounded somewhat from the slowdown in September but were lower year-over-year.

October pork variety meat exports totaled 41,442 mt, up 1.5% or +610 mt from last year but the lowest since February and down 6% from 2019. October pork variety meat exports were higher year-over-year to China/HK (+1,750 mt), Korea (+510 mt), Japan (+470 mt), and Canada (+220 mt), while exports were lower year-over-year to South America (-1,200 mt), Central America (-340 mt), Taiwan (-330 mt), and Mexico (-240 mt). Combined exports to China/HK totaled 24,865 mt, the lowest since February but up 8% from last year and up 13% from 2019 with exports to China at 24,789 mt, +13% as exports to Hong Kong (76 mt, -93%) have been at minimal volumes since April.