Brazil’s beef exports hit record in July despite steep U.S. tariffs

Total exports from Brazil’s beef sector (including fresh and processed meat, edible offal, beef tallow, and others) hit a record in July 2025, despite the additional tariffs imposed by the United States government. Beef was not included in the list of exempted products and became subject to an additional 40% duty starting August 1, 2025, bringing the total tariff on out-of-quota sales to 76.4% for entry into the U.S. market. Following the announcement of the new tariff on July 9, some processing plants suspended production destined for the U.S. due to the expected impact on business.

Despite the heavy U.S. tariffs, the sector’s total exports in July reached US$1.726 billion — 48.4% higher than in the same month last year — with a volume of 366,920 tonnes, up 27.4%. This marked a new historical record for a single month in both revenue and volume. In July 2024, the sector had earned US$1.163 billion with 288,014 tonnes shipped.

The figures are from the Brazilian Association of Meat Packers (ABRAFRIGO), which compiled data from the Foreign Trade Secretariat (SECEX) of the Ministry of Development, Industry, and Trade (MDIC).

From January to July 2025, the sector generated US$9.170 billion (+31.3%) from the export of 2,055,273 tonnes (+19%). In the same period last year, revenues were US$6.983 billion, with 1,728,454 tonnes shipped.

See below a historical overview of Brazilian beef exports since January 2022. The chart was created using DataLiner data:

Brazilian Beef Exports – Jan 2022 to June 2025 – TEU

Source: DataLiner (Click here to request a demo)

According to ABRAFRIGO, China accounted for 44.5% of revenue and 38.5% of total beef exports in the first seven months of the year. The country imported 790,337 tonnes (+14.6%), generating US$4.082 billion (+33.7%) in revenue. In the same period last year, China had imported 689,840 tonnes worth US$3.052 billion.

The United States remained the second-largest importer, with purchases totaling US$1.468 billion and 484,000 tonnes shipped — representing 23.6% of volume and 16% of revenue between January and July 2025. However, U.S. purchases have been declining since April 2025, when exports reached a peak of US$306 million. In July, the total fell to US$183 million.

Chile ranked third, with its imports increasing from 57,241 tonnes in 2024 to 68,804 tonnes (+20.2%) as of July 2025. Revenue rose from US$271 million to US$372.9 million (+37.6%).

Mexico climbed to fourth place, with imports jumping from 22,892 tonnes in 2024 to 67,766 tonnes in 2025 (+196%), generating US$364.79 million in revenue (+249.2%) compared to US$104.5 million through July of last year.

In total, 124 countries increased their imports, while 48 reduced their purchases.

Source: Notícias Agrícolas

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