Relationships helped secure record meat exports

In a news release yesterday, the Nebraska Corn Board noted that the United States sold more than $5.4 billion in U.S. beef and $6.1 billion in U.S. pork – both records – to international customers last year.

It's an achievement that comes, in part, due to the building of relationships with global customers over the years, Mark Jagels, a farmer from Davenport and member of the Nebraska Corn Board, said in the release.

“International buyers and consumers want to know where their beef and pork are coming from. They want to know it is safe and nutritious, and they want U.S. farmers and ranchers to help tell that story,” Jagels said. “Farmers here in Nebraska and across the country help do that by using checkoff dollars to support international marketing efforts organized by the U.S. Meat Export Federation.”

U.S. beef promotion at Daiei Grocery Store in Tokyo last year.

Jagels is a fourth generation farmer – he's also vice-chairman of the U.S. Meat Export Federation. During a presentation at this year's Commodity Classice, he noted that pork exports jumped 18 percent to 2.25 million tons and beef exports 21 percent to 1.29 million tons in 2011.

That equals a lot of soybeans, corn and distillers grains going overseas via value-added red meat products – more than 94 million bushels of soybeans and more than 568 million bushels of corn.

Kelsey Pope, the Nebraska Corn Board’s director of advocacy and outreach, said 27.5 percent of the pork produced in the United States was exported last year, adding $55.55 to the value of each hog. Nearly 13 percent of the total came from meat products not typically consumed in the United States.

As for beef, she said, 14 percent of all U.S. beef was exported in 2011, adding a record $206.37 to the value of each steer and heifer processed. “Like with pork, about 13 percent of the total came from meat products we don’t generally consume in the U.S. but are highly valued by international customers,” she said.

Support from the Nebraska Corn Board for the U.S. Meat Export Federation totaled $430,000 in 2011, but other Nebraska ag groups, including the soybean and beef checkoffs, brought the total support from Nebraska farmers and ranchers to more than $1.2 million. When you compare this with the $1.3 billion export value of Nebraska beef and pork in 2011, the return on investment is tremendous.

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