The U.S. pork industry is positioning itself to be the dominant player in the pork export market during the next decade, taking advantage of growing world population and economic growth. Expanding exports through checkoff-funded foreign market development efforts is one of the highest priorities of U.S. pork producers.
Exports open up new markets and increase the demand and price for live hogs.
As the world s population grows, the total world economy is expected to grow as well. Based on the historical correlation between income growth and growth in per capita consumption of meat products, the United States faces a great opportunity to become the dominant exporter of the world s meat of choice pork, which represents 41 percent of world meat consumption, according to Mohesky. Between 1994 and 1998, the U.S. almost doubled its share of total world exports, and experts are projecting this trend to continue. The Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute predicts the U.S. share of pork trade will increase to 32.6 percent in 2008. This projection anticipates significant world pork trade increases over the next decade, and expects the U.S. to be a powerful force in that trade.