Nebraska Ag Exports Shattered Records in 2021

Nebraska agricultural exports shattered records in 2021, according to a report released earlier this month by the Nebraska Farm Bureau.

The state exported $9.2 billion worth of agricultural commodities that year, more than $2 billion more than in 2020, the report said.

It was the first time Nebraska ag exports have topped $9 billion and only the fourth time they've ever topped $7 million, Austin Harthoorn, a Nebraska Farm Bureau economist, said in a news release.

The state likely benefited from an overall strong export market in 2021. The U.S. as a whole exported a record $177 billion worth of ag products that year. The U.S. broke that record again last year, with $196 billion in exports.

Corn was the top Nebraska export, accounting for $2.34 billion of the total, a 98% increase over 2020 and by far the highest export amount ever reported.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said U.S. corn was competitive in global markets in 2021 and was supported by tight supplies in competing export countries.

Kelly Brunkhorst, executive director of the Nebraska Corn Board, said there were two factors that worked in Nebraska's favor to boost the export value of corn in 2021.

"First, the price of corn moved higher and secondly, there was great demand from both China and Mexico," Brunkhorst said. "Together those factor into the higher value of Nebraska corn exports.”

Soybeans, which had been the top export from the state the past two years, came in second at $1.91 billion, virtually the same amount as in 2020.

Beef exports also climbed to their highest amount ever reported, $1.64 billion, to rank third overall. Harthoorn said much of the growth was driven by increased purchases by South Korea and Japan, up 39% and 22% respectively.

Pork exports, too, hit their highest level ever, at $307.6 million.



Source: kpvi.com