The United States exports roughly 20 percent of everything it grows and raises, shipping about 160 million metric tons of food to other countries each year. That output is valued at an estimated $173 billion for fiscal year 2026, making the U.S. one of the largest agricultural exporters on the planet. The remaining 80 percent feeds Americans, fuels domestic livestock, and supplies food manufacturers at home.
How Much Gets Exported vs. Consumed at Home
Since 2013, the share of U.S. agricultural production sold internationally has held steady at around 20 percent by value. Raw commodities like grain and oilseeds are exported at a slightly higher rate (about 23 percent of output), while processed foods like cheese, snack products, and prepared meats are exported at about 21 percent. That consistency matters: it means roughly one in every five acres of American farmland is effectively growing food for people outside the country.
The volume tells the story even more clearly. The USDA projects total agricultural export volume at 160.5 million metric tons for fiscal year 2026. That includes everything from bulk grains loaded onto cargo ships to refrigerated containers of beef heading to South Korea.
Where U.S. Food Goes
Five trading partners absorb nearly two-thirds of all U.S. agricultural exports. China is the single largest buyer, taking 17 percent of the total in 2023. Canada and Mexico each received $28.4 billion worth of American food that year, together accounting for another 33 percent. Japan and the European Union round out the top five, though their shares have gradually declined since 2000.
This concentration means shifts in trade policy with even one of these partners can ripple through American farm income quickly. When China reduced purchases during tariff disputes in recent years, the effects reached soybean farmers in Iowa and pork producers in North Carolina almost immediately.
Grains and Oilseeds: The Bulk of It
Wheat is one of the clearest examples of U.S. global influence. In the 2024/25 marketing year, total U.S. wheat exports rebounded nearly 16 percent to 22.3 million metric tons, driven by larger harvests and more competitive prices. The U.S. remains one of the top wheat exporters worldwide, competing with Russia, Canada, and Australia for the lead in any given year.
Soybeans and corn make up an even larger share of export volume. Together with wheat, these three crops form the backbone of what the U.S. sends abroad, feeding not just people directly but also livestock operations in China, Mexico, and Southeast Asia that depend on imported animal feed.
Meat and Poultry Exports
The U.S. is a major supplier of animal protein globally. In 2022, beef exports hit a record 3.5 billion pounds, though they pulled back to about 3.1 billion pounds in 2023. Pork tells a similar story: 6.4 billion pounds were forecast for export in 2023, representing 23 percent of all commercial pork produced in the country. That means nearly one out of every four pounds of American pork ends up on a plate overseas.
Poultry follows the same pattern. The U.S. ships large volumes of chicken, particularly leg quarters and dark meat cuts that are less popular domestically but highly valued in markets across Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, and East Asia. This trade works in both directions economically: export demand supports higher prices for American producers, while importing countries get affordable protein they might not be able to raise as efficiently on their own.
Tree Nuts: A Quiet Powerhouse
One of the most striking examples of U.S. dominance in global food supply is tree nuts. In the 2022/23 marketing year, the U.S. accounted for 85 percent of all almonds exported worldwide, 71 percent of pistachios, and 42 percent of walnuts. Total tree nut exports reached $8.2 billion, making them the sixth largest U.S. agricultural export category at 5 percent of the total.
Nearly all of this production comes from California, where almonds are the state’s top agricultural export commodity. If you eat an almond almost anywhere in the world, the odds are overwhelming it was grown in California’s Central Valley.
What This Means in Global Context
The U.S. is not the world’s only agricultural powerhouse. Brazil dominates soybean and sugar exports. The European Union leads in processed foods and dairy. India and Thailand are top rice exporters. But few countries match the breadth of the American agricultural export portfolio, which spans grains, oilseeds, meat, dairy, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and processed foods all at significant scale.
That breadth gives the U.S. an outsized role in global food security. When American harvests are strong and exports flow freely, it stabilizes prices for staple foods in dozens of importing nations. When drought, trade barriers, or policy shifts reduce U.S. output, the effects show up in grocery prices from Cairo to Manila. At 160 million metric tons a year, the food America sends abroad isn’t a side business. It’s a pillar of the global food system.