There's no sugarcoating this is a challenging time in the history of the U.S. pork industry.
"Hog producers are losing an average of $40 per head on each hog marketed. While hog prices have moderated significantly since 2022, current losses are largely due to record-high production costs that have increased up to 50% in the past year. These losses are putting a pinch on the pork industry, and this economic reality may force producers to exit the industry and drive consolidation at the farm level. This only adds to the uncertainty that already exists with the credit market and the presence of African swine fever (ASF) in the Western Hemisphere," Lori Stevermer, a Minnesota pork producer and president-elect for the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), testified on Thursday before the House Committee on Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition, Foreign Agriculture, and Horticulture as part of its hearing on “Stakeholder Perspectives on Agriculture Trade.”
“Trade is vital to America’s pork producers, and exports continue to be a bright spot for our industry even during tough times,” Stevermer said. “Our success largely comes from our ability to produce the world’s safest, most nutritious, and affordable pork products, as well as from fair and unfettered access to foreign markets negotiated through comprehensive trade agreements.”
Since 1989 when the U.S. implemented its first substantial trade agreement, U.S. pork exports increased more than 1,850% in value and more than 1,560% in volume. By 1995, the U.S. had moved from a net importer to a net exporter of pork.
“It is very clear that comprehensive trade deals are why we have been, on average, the top pork exporter in the world over the past decade,” Stevermer explained. “For the United States and America’s pig farmers to stay on top, we need more trade deals that eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers to U.S. products to allow for the free flow of goods and expand export markets.”
Last year, pork farmers exported nearly $7.7 billion worth of pork to more than 100 countries. These exports supported 155,000 mostly rural U.S. jobs and added $14.5 billion to the country’s GDP. These exports equated to approximately $61, in value for each hog marketed in 2022.
She outlined the U.S. pork industry’s top trade policy priorities in her testimony:
1. Negotiate comprehensive trade agreements that eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers.
2. Expand market access in the Asia-Pacific region, including having China remove its 25 percent retaliatory tariff on pork.
3. Leverage and renew U.S. preferential trade programs.
4. Address the country’s labor shortage.
5. Support efforts to keep the United States free from African swine fever by adequately funding federal agencies that deal with foreign animal diseases.
"The importance of trade to the U.S. pork industry and to the entire U.S. economy cannot be overstated. Exports account for nearly a quarter of U.S. pork production and contribute significantly to the bottom line of U.S. pork producers and to U.S. agriculture’s balance of trade," Stevermer said. "Free, fair and unfettered trade has helped the United States become an economic powerhouse. To maintain that position, the country must expand trade in existing markets and open new markets, and it must resolve issues that could negatively affect the ability to trade."