U.S. Pork Exports to Japan Surge 20% in 2026 Despite Economic Hurdles

• The Surge: U.S. pork exports to Japan grew nearly 20% year-to-date through May 2026.
• Volume & Value: The U.S. exported over 160,000 metric tons of pork to Japan, valued at $614 million.
• Key Drivers: Rising demand in convenience stores, bento boxes and ramen chains, coupled with import restrictions on Spanish pork due to African Swine Fever (ASF).
• Economic Challenges: This growth occurred despite a 40-year low for the Japanese yen and persistent energy inflation.

With exports of U.S. pork to Japan up nearly 20% in 2026, U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) President and CEO Dan Halstrom says this is really good news for the pork industry.

“U.S. pork exports are really performing well into Japan year-to-date through May,” Halstrom says. “This is despite a very challenging market. Japan is getting pinched with energy cost inflation that’s pretty stubborn, and probably the biggest thing is the persistently weak yen - a 40-year low of the yen against the U.S. dollar, which, as we all know, makes our products more expensive in yen terms.”

Despite all that, he says Japanese consumers understand the value of U.S. pork.

“There’s no better example than the pork loin primal that we do need to export,” Halstrom says. “The largest export market for pork loin is Japan. A lot of people, when they think about pork loin and any of the pork products going into Japan, always focus on retail, but there are other sectors that are growing.”

These sectors include ramen noodle restaurant chains and convenience stores. In addition, bento box companies are penetrating more and more into the convenience store sector, and it’s not only the pork loin that you see bellies featured, you’ll see pork butts featured in these bento boxes, which are single-portion, compartmentalized lunch containers.

Halstrom explains that demand for U.S. pork products has increased as Spanish pork exports have been kept out of Japan since late last year due to African swine fever (ASF).

“Japan has not recognized African swine fever regionalization in Spain,” he notes. “This has definitely created additional opportunities for U.S. pork, but I think it’s also a warning shot for us, and the U.S. is working on this. We’ve been working with Japan now for quite a while in trying to get our own regionalization agreement in place, just on a proactive basis. If we ever were to have some sort of issue in the U.S. So while we’re seeing a bit of a tailwind on demand, it really underscores the importance of us moving forward in this area as well.”

Through May of 2026, the U.S. has exported more than 160,000 metric tons of pork to Japan valued at $614 million.

U.S. Pork Exports to Japan: Key Statistics (Jan–May 2026)