American Beef Export Trade Stats: March 2026
March 2026:
Beef: 68,669 mt, -20%; $709 million, -15%
BVM: 29,062 mt, +24% and the highest since 2017; $136 million, +50% and record high
Beef + BVM: 97,731 mt, -11%; $845 million, -8%
January – March 2026:
Beef: 194,701 mt, -19% and the lowest since 2016; $1.980 billion, -13% and the lowest since 2021
BVM: 80,654 mt, +14% and the highest since 2020; $368 million, +45% and an all-time high
Beef + BVM: 275,355 mt, -11% and the lowest since 2016; $2.347 billion, -7% and the lowest since 2021
March beef muscle cut exports totaled 68,669 mt, down 20% or -17,301 mt year-over-year and the lowest for the month of March since 2016. However, export value was just the lowest for the month of March since 2020 at $709 million, down 15%.
• Compared to the previous year, March beef muscle cut exports were higher to ASEAN (+1,161 mt), South America (+598 mt), Central America (+168 mt), Caribbean + DR (+188 mt), and EU27 + UK (+80 mt), while exports were lower to China/HK (-11,275 mt), Japan (-3,826 mt), Mexico (-1,410 mt), South Korea (-1,001 mt), the Middle East (-980 mt), Canada (-516 mt), Taiwan (-451 mt), Africa (-38 mt), and CIS (-6 mt).
• U.S. beef muscle cut exports to South Korea rebounded from 14,898 mt in February to 19,122 mt in March, which was the highest since December but down 5% year-over-year.
• Exports to Japan also rebounded in March and were the highest since October at 14,316 mt, but that was 21% below last year. Exports to Japan have been below year-ago levels for the last five months of data.
• March exports to Mexico were below year-ago levels for the twelfth consecutive month at 7,036 mt, down 17% year-over-year.
• March exports to Canada were below year-ago levels for the fifth consecutive month at 6,518 mt, down 7% from last year.
• December exports to Taiwan reached 5,650 mt, down 8% year-over-year but the second highest monthly volume in 2025. Exports were 4,663 mt in January, which was up 49% year-over-year, but in February, exports slowed to 3,667 mt, down 8% from last year. Exports rebounded in March to 4,635 mt, but that was down 9% from last year.
• September combined exports to China/HK dropped to 3,846 mt, down 75% from 2024 or down 11,360 mt. This was the lowest combined volume since 2012. In October and November, volumes remained below 5,000 mt per month. December exports totaled 5,747 mt, down 65% year-over-year but the highest since April. In January 2026, exports adjusted down again to 4,725 mt, which was down 71% from last year. February exports totaled 5,510 mt, down 59% or -8,087 mt from last year. March exports totaled 5,144 mt, down 69% from last year or -11,275 mt. March exports to China dropped to just 458 mt, down 97% year-over-year and the lowest since 2019.
• In the ASEAN region, exports to the Philippines had been over 1,400 mt each month from April through September 2025 and were nearly 1,100 mt in October before volumes slowed at the end of the year. Volumes dropped to just 436 mt in January, but exports rebounded to 942 mt in February and held at 943 mt in March, which was down 9% year-over-year. Exports increased to the other markets in the region, including to Indonesia where exports reached 888 mt, up from just 45 mt last year and the highest in three months. Exports were also higher to Singapore (376 mt, +81%), Vietnam (504 mt, +53% and the highest in five months), Cambodia (105 mt, +52%), and Thailand (55 mt, +162%).
• For the Caribbean, beef muscle cut exports to the DR reached a monthly record for the second consecutive month in March at 1,188 mt, up 7% year-over-year (previous record was 1,137 mt in Feb). March exports to the Bahamas were the highest since 2006 at 496 mt, up 50% from last year and the third highest monthly total on record. After rebounding to 247 mt in November 2025, exports to Cuba were just 4 mt in December and 11 mt in January. Exports were again just 4 mt in February, before increasing to 27 mt in March, but that was down from 268 mt in March 2025.
• In February, exports to Guatemala were 989 mt, up 29% year-over-year and the highest since May 2024, and the third highest monthly total. March exports eased just slightly to 971 mt, up 19% year-over-year and the sixth highest monthly total on record. Exports were also higher to Costa Rica (423 mt, +9% and the highest since January 2025).
• In March, exports to Colombia reached the highest volume since before the market partially closed in 2024 at 546 mt, up 155% from last year. Exports to Chile were the highest since November at 338 mt in March, up 32% from last year. Muscle cut exports to Peru set a new record in March at 347 mt, up 128% from last year.
• Exports to the UAE had rebounded in Jan and Feb (at 629 mt and 529 mt, respectively), but exports slowed to just 127 mt in March, down 83% from 764 mt last March.
March beef variety meat exports were 29,062 mt, up 24% or +5,702 mt from last year. This was the largest monthly volume since 2017. Export value was record high at $136 million, up 50% year-over-year.
• In March, BVM exports were higher than last year to Mexico (+3,190 mt), Japan (+2,452 mt), South Korea (+892 mt), Taiwan (+443 mt), and ASEAN (+96 mt). Exports were lower to China/HK (-355 mt), Africa (-347 mt), the Middle East (-295 mt), Caribbean + DR (-175 mt), South America (-119 mt), and Central America (-64 mt), while exports were down just slightly to Canada (-15 mt).
• BVM exports to Mexico jumped to 11,755 mt in December, up 12% year-over-year and the highest since January (and otherwise the highest since 2016). Exports to Mexico remained strong at 10,968 mt in January, but that was down 8% from last year’s strong total. February exports maintained momentum at 10,100 mt, up 10% year-over-year. In March, exports surged to 12,336 mt, up 35% from last year and the highest since December 2015.
• Exports to Canada rebounded to 1,103 mt, the highest since last March (and were down 1% from last March).
• Volumes to Japan were over 5,000 mt each month in Q4 2025, and in January, exports increased to 6,137 mt, up 88% from last year and the highest since September 2021. Volume eased to 4,668 mt in February, the lowest since last September, but still up significantly from year-ago at +87%. In March, volumes totaled 5,993 mt, up 69% year-over-year.
• Exports to South Korea jumped to 1,436 mt in January, up 88% from last year, and the highest since October 2023. Exports remained strong at 1,134 mt in February, up 85%. In March, exports jumped to 1,607 mt, the highest since June 2023 and up 125% from last year.
• Combined BVM exports to China/HK rebounded to 2,631 mt in December, up 3% year-over-year and the highest since November 2024 before slowing again to 1,787 mt in January, which was down 28% from last year. In February, exports slowed further to 1,575 mt, down 13% from last year. March exports rebounded somewhat to 2,092 mt, which was down 15% from last year. March exports to HK were 1,938 mt, up 129%, while exports to China were 154 mt, down 90%.
• Exports to Taiwan were over 900 mt and the highest since 2000 for the second consecutive month in January at 968 mt, up from 0 mt last year. Exports slowed somewhat in February to 533 mt, but that was still up significantly from 0 mt last Feb. March exports slowed further to 443 mt, but that was also up from no exports last year. Consistent momentum for BVM exports to the market has picked up since last September.
• For the ASEAN region, reported exports to Indonesia slowed from an average of 227 mt per month in Q4 2025 to just 46 mt in January 2026, which was down 33% from last year. No exports to Indonesia were reported in February, down from 379 mt last year, but exports totaled 88 mt in March, up from 71 mt last March. March exports to the Philippines were 167 mt, up 97% from last year and the highest since September.
• In South America, exports to Peru rebounded to 756 mt in December, up 42% year-over-year and the highest since October 2024. In January, exports slowed again to 421 mt, but that was up 48% from last year. February exports were again higher year-over-year at 503 mt, up 227%. March exports were 329 mt, but that was up 191% from last year as exports were sluggish in early 2026. In March, exports to Chile rebounded to 312 mt, down 44% from last year but the highest since June.
• Exports to Jamaica slowed to 77 mt in March, down 61% from last year and the lowest since November.
• In 2025, BVM exports to Egypt were down just 1% year-over-year at nearly 38,000 mt. In December 2025, exports totaled 3,532 mt, up 46% year-over-year and the highest since January. But in January 2026, exports slowed to 3,210 mt, which was down 20% from last year’s relatively large total. February exports to Egypt slowed further to 2,962 mt, down 11% from last year, while March exports were 2,846 mt, down 9% and the lowest since July.
• Negligible volumes of BVM were shipped to South Africa from Q4 2024 through August 2025, and no exports were reported in June or July 2025. Exports of 132 mt were reported in August, and exports of 136 mt were reported in September. In Q4 2025, exports averaged 265 mt per month and reached 312 mt in December, which was the highest since September 2024. Exports increased further to 512 mt in January 2025, the highest since July 2024 and up from just 49 mt last January. Exports slowed to 290 mt in February, the lowest in three months, but that was up from no exports in February 2025. Exports slowed to 233 mt in March, but that was up from just 24 mt in March 2025.
• Exports to Morocco jumped to 460 mt in February with the new duty-free quota year, similar to exports last Feb of 476 mt, and in March, exports to Morocco were 351 mt, down 43% from last year. March exports to Cote d’Ivoire rebounded to 352 mt, the highest since July but down 34% from last year.
January – March beef muscle cut + variety meat exports totaled 275,355 mt, down 11% or -35,013 mt from 2025. Exports were higher year-over-year to Taiwan (+2,697 mt), ASEAN (+1,490 mt), Mexico (+937 mt), South America (+922 mt), Caribbean + DR (+427 mt), EU27 + UK (+408 mt), and Central America (+82 mt). Exports were lower to China/HK (-32,206 mt), Canada (-2,731 mt), Japan (-2,450 mt), the Middle East (-2,001 mt), South Korea (-1,937 mt), Africa (-636 mt), and CIS (-2 mt).
March 2026 beef exports accounted for 10.2% of production and 13.6% when adding variety meats, compared to 12.5% and 14.8% in March 2025. January – March 2026 beef exports accounted for 9.9% of production and 13.1% when adding variety meats, compared to 11.5% and 13.8% for January – March 2025.
March 2026 beef export value per head of fed slaughter averaged $456.56/head, down 2% or -$10.21/head from $466.77/head in March 2025. January – March 2026 beef export value per head of fed slaughter averaged $431.66/head, up 2% or +$10.10/head from $421.56/head for January – March 2025.
Source: USMEF
