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Mexican cattle exports to the United States resumed in February 2025 after a 70-day pause due to a New World screwworm detection.

Favorable pricing and weather conditions for New Zealand cattle farmers have resulted in a retention of finishing cattle on farms and less slaughter in 2024. Farm operations face challenges with continuing financial pressure such as high debt, increasing on-farm inflation, and declining farmgate margins.

Brazil is the second largest beef producing country and the largest beef exporting country in the world. Post expects decreased slaughter in 2025, due to the forecast start of the reversion of the cattle cycle.

In 2023, Peru was the 28th-largest market for U.S. agricultural exports, valued at $851 million, making it the 3rd-largest market in South America. The U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (PTPA) entered into force in February 2009, and U.S. agricultural exports reached $1 billion for the first time in 2014, peaking at $1.36 billion in 2018. The United States accounts for 14 percent of Peru's agricultural import market share, positioning it as the second-largest supplier to the country.

In 2023, Hong Kong was the 17th-largest market for U.S. agricultural products globally. That same year, the United States exported $1.5 billion of agricultural products and was the third-largest supplier of consumer-oriented food products to Hong Kong after China and Australia.

U.S. agricultural exporters of consumer-oriented products are well-positioned to increase sales to Guatemala. In 2023, U.S. consumer-oriented export values reached a third-consecutive record on 15 percent growth from the previous year (Figure 3).

African Swine Fever (ASF) remains a significant challenge in the Dominican Republic. Despite initial emergency response efforts, the disease is now endemic, with outbreaks showing an upward trend in 2024 and continuing to consistently appear throughout the country.

On October 27, 2022, FAS Jakarta published a report summarizing the Directorate General of Livestock and Animal Health Service’s (DGLAHS)’s new requirements for importers to register fresh food of animal origin and obtain the resulting distribution license.

This semi-annual report includes data on U.S. and global trade, production, consumption and stocks, as well as analysis of developments affecting world trade in livestock and poultry.

Post expects livestock numbers and beef production to continue their decrease through 2025. Beef production efficiency remains low, with the majority of beef derived from dairy and dual-purpose animals.

Since 2014, Venezuela’s total meat consumption has declined 57 percent due to prolonged economic downfall. Nevertheless, since 2019, an improved economic environment has led to stabilized beef production and significant growth in the poultry sector. In 2024, total per capita meat consumption is forecast to be 32.4 kilograms, growing 83 percent from its 2018 record low.

Since USDA first established a stand-alone mission area focusing on trade and international affairs in 2017, USDA’s Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs and the Foreign Agricultural Service have made significant trade policy advances to support U.S. agriculture. This series of commodity fact sheets highlights the many recent trade policy advances achieved by USDA.