The most recent USDA Livestock and Poultry: World Markets and Trade report shows that beef production among major world producers for 2027 is projected at 60.031 million metric tons, down fractionally from 2026 and down 3.7 percent from the peak in 2025. Among major beef producing countries, production is down in Brazil, the U.S., China, the European Union, Australia, Russia and South Africa. Beef production is projected to increase in 2027 in India, Argentina, Mexico and Canada.
Total global beef exports have been mostly steady since 2025 with 2027 projected to be fractionally lower than 2026 at 13.885 million metric tons (Figure 1). This follows a relatively steady increase in the previous decade prior to 2025.
Figure 2 shows projected 2027 beef exports for major exporting countries. Brazil is the largest beef exporter, accounting for 29.5 percent of total with Australia at number two with 16.1 percent and India in third place with a 14.0 percent share of total beef exports. Exports from India includes meat from water buffalo, known as carabeef. The U.S. is fourth with 7.6 percent followed by Argentina at 5.8 percent of total beef exports. Of the top ten beef exporters, the remaining six countries all account for less than five percent of total beef exports and include New Zealand, Canada, the E.U., Uruguay, Mexico and Paraguay.
Projected 2027 beef imports are heavily concentrated into China/Hong Kong, with 30.4 percent of the global total and the U.S. with 22.5 percent of total beef imports (Figure 3). Next is Japan with a 5.7 percent share and South Korea accounting for 5.0 percent of total beef imports. Smaller beef importing countries include the E.U., the United Kingdom, Chile, Canada, Russia, and Egypt. The top ten beef importers account for 80.0 percent of total global beef imports.
Beef trade continues to grow and is increasingly important in global beef markets. In 2026, beef exports were 23.2 percent of total global beef production, up from 16.0 percent a decade ago in 2017.
