U.S. beef, pork and lamb exports all opened the New Year on a positive note, although market conditions suggest 2014 could be a challenging year for U.S. red meat exports, according to statistics released by the USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).
Beef exports continued the strong performance set in 2013, rising 13 percent in volume and 16 percent in value for the month, bolstered by double-digit growth to Mexico, Japan and Hong Kong. Pork exports rose 3 percent in volume and 2 percent in value for the month, driven by growth to Mexico, while lamb exports increased 7 percent in volume and 9 percent in value.