Fuelled by a record performance in leading market Mexico, pork exports totaled 277,910 metric tons (mt) in April, up 14% from a year ago and the fifth largest on record. Export value climbed 18% to $778.8 million, the third highest on record. For January through April, exports increased 8% to 1.04 million mt, valued at $2.89 billion – up 10% from last year’s record pace.
“While Mexico was definitely the pacesetter in a tremendous month for pork exports, it was only part of the story,” said USMEF president and CEO Dan Halstrom. “Demand continued to build in South Korea, Central America, Colombia, Australia and the ASEAN, and we saw very encouraging growth in Japan. It was also great to see export value per head above the $70 mark for the second consecutive month.”