United States pork exports in July were 6% below a year earlier at 224,305 metric tons, with value also down 6% at $641.8 million, according to USDA data compiled by the US Meat Export Federation and reported by Farm Progress. Through the first seven months of the year, however, exports remain 2% above 2025 at 1.73 million tonnes, worth $4.86 billion, up 1%.

Shipments to Japan, Central America, Colombia and Canada rose in July, offset by lower exports to Mexico, China, South Korea, Oceania and Southeast Asia. Export value per head slaughtered was $62.53, down from a year ago but $3 higher than in June; for the year to date it is just over $66 a head, slightly ahead of last year.

The month's setback traces to pseudorabies virus. In late April routine testing found PRV antibodies at a small commercial swine facility in Iowa, and USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service traced the five affected boars to an outdoor facility in Texas. Mexico, Colombia, Chile and South Korea restricted US pork, chiefly variety meats; by the end of July every ban had been lifted.

"Putting the PRV-related restrictions on pork variety meats behind us was absolutely critical for the U.S. industry," USMEF president and chief executive Dan Halstrom said. Exports to Mexico rebounded in July but stayed below a year earlier because production and shipping took time to resume after the mid-month lifting, and China's heightened inspections of US variety meats caused clearance delays that have since been resolved.

Canada, where demand has recovered in 2026, took 14,411 tonnes in July, 10% more than a year earlier, worth $57.5 million; over seven months exports north were 8% higher in volume at 105,711 tonnes and 5% higher in value at $422.5 million. Trade tensions still weigh on the business, the federation said, but the year-to-date numbers show the July dip in context.

Source: Farm Progress