South Korea: Livestock and Products Semi-annual
Consumption of U.S. beef continues to gradually rise as consumer confidence in its safety goes up, however it’s less competitive due to higher prices and stiff competition from both domestic and Australian sources. The market share for U.S. beef stood at 36.4 percent for 2014, an increase from 34.4 percent in 2013. Meanwhile, pork consumption increased over 6 percent in 2014 despite low domestic production and high prices due to substitute demand in place of beef and poultry. Pork imports increased in 2014 and will continue through early 2015 until domestic production recovers. U.S. suppliers are expected to have a price advantage over their EU competitors during 2015 due to greater supply and low feed costs for swine.