Nobody promotes U.S. pork better than U.S. pork producers. Last month, Joe Dykhuis, co-owner of Dykhuis Farms in Michigan, and Courtney Knupp, National Pork Board's vice president of international market development, traveled to the United Kingdom to participate in a cross-commodity USDA Agribusiness Trade Mission.

The duo promoted the high quality of U.S. pork to importers, explored pork at retail locations, including Costco (U.S. pork supplies all pork loins to 30 U.K. Costco locations), and gathered feedback to refine U.S. pork's sustainability messaging, a key demand among consumers in the U.K. and other markets.

The goal of this type of in-market presence is to educate importers on U.S. pork's sustainability commitment. It's also a chance to collect feedback that helps NPB's strategic partners, like U.S. Meat Export Federation, differentiate U.S. pork in a diverse global protein market. 

International market development is a key investment for the pork industry. In 2021, more than $62 for every hog sold came from exports. 

"We've been able to get value out of parts of pigs we don't eat in the U.S.," says Knupp. "Our job is to sell each part of the pig every day at the highest value, whether that customer is domestic or international."

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