Trump Letters Reveal August 1 Tariff Rates for Key US Trading Partners
The Trump administration was busy after the Fourth of July holiday, as the President sent out a litany of letters to US trading partners revealing what their tariff rate would be starting on August 1.
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump and members of the administration announced that letters would begin rolling out showcasing new tariff rates for countries. The letters came at a rapid pace on Monday afternoon, with messages dispatched to the leaders of Japan, South Korea and South Africa, to name a few...
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US to Impose 25% Tariff on Japanese and Korean Imports Starting August 1
President Donald Trump's tariff letters are being rolled out, with Korea and Japan at the forefront. In identical letters released on July 7, the administration announced that both countries will face a 25% tariff on all goods imported into the United States, effective August 1.
In identical letters sent to the leaders of both countries, Trump declared that the US would impose the tariffs “on any and all Korean (Japanese) products sent into the US,” including goods transshipped through third countries in an attempt to bypass the...
ANALYSIS: Cage-Free Market Moves Higher Amid West Coast Strength
Cage-free values rose 6cts this week, marking a notable contrast to the mostly steady conventional market. While demand for eggs is slightly above typical seasonal levels—buoyed in part by Fourth of July holiday preparations—the real driver of the cage-free market's momentum has been robust West Coast buying interest.
Traditionally, egg demand softens during midsummer as consumers shift toward lighter, seasonally favorite breakfast meals. However, eggs remain a compelling outlier in today’s retail landscape. Unlike most proteins, which continue to rise in ...
ANALYSIS: Chicken Hatchery Figures Continue Steady Expansion
In a market shaped by choppy global demand, disease-related caution, and mounting trade tension, hatchery performance remains one of the few reliable signals in an otherwise murky landscape. Despite these external pressures, the chicken industry continues to expand, driven by steady domestic demand and a growing cost advantage over higher-priced beef and turkey.
According to the latest USDA data, egg sets for the week ending June 28 reached 252 million, a 2% year-over-year increase. This marks the 74th consecutive week of YoY gains and aligns with...
ANALYSIS: Post-Suspension Outlook for Mexican Cattle Imports
The USDA’s announcement of a phased reopening of southern ports for livestock trade, effective as early as July 7, 2025, marks a significant moment for the Mexican export market for feeder cattle to the US, following a second suspension initiated in May 2025. This follows an initial suspension in November 2024, triggered by the detection of New World Screwworm (NWS) in southern Mexico, with trade resuming in February 2025 after a rigorous pre-clearance inspection protocol was established. The latest closure, driven by...
US Pushes Tariff Deadline to August, Trump Administration Expects Surge in Deals
President Donald Trump said on July 6 that the US is nearing several new trade deals and that letters will be sent to trading partners by July 9, warning of increased tariffs set to take effect on August 1.
The move effectively extends the administration’s trade deadline from July 9 to August 1, giving Trump more time to finalize agreements. So far, the U.S. has signed just two deals—one with the United Kingdom and another with Vietnam, as Expana reported last week...
Statement on Recent Lumpy Skin Disease Outbreaks in Europe
The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) acknowledges the rapid official notifications of two outbreaks of Lumpy skin disease (LSD) in Italy and France, as well as the details provided through their follow up reports. This marks the first-ever occurrence of the disease in these countries, highlighting the urgent need for heightened surveillance and coordinated response. Both countries have reported that they are already implementing measures to contain the disease in line with international standards...
From 2016 to 2024, WOAH with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the European Union, supported the coordination of a standing group of expert for LSD...
367,812 Pounds of Oscar Mayer Turkey Bacon Recalled Nationwide Over Listeria Concerns
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the Kraft Heinz Food Company is recalling approximately 367,812 pounds of fully cooked turkey bacon products due to potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, identified through laboratory testing.
The affected products were produced between April 24, 2025, and June 11, 2025. They were distributed to retail locations nationwide and exported to the British Virgin Islands and Hong Kong.
The recalled products include:
12-oz. vacuum-packed packages of Oscar Mayer Turkey...
ANALYSIS: Summer Squeeze, Limited Turkey Supplies and Consumer Choices
May’s cold storage report tells a story of limited turkey supplies and the search of the American people for value. All turkey categories were down year-over-year (YoY), anywhere from 3.1% for whole toms to 49.7% for MST. This May’s cold storage holdings were below the 5-year average for most categories as well, with the exception of breasts. Along with this theme, the month-over-month (MoM) change in inventories was below average for whole birds and legs.
All of this points to very limited production...
Expana Publication Schedule for The Fourth of July Holiday
Expana will be observing the Fourth of July holiday on Friday, July 4, which will impact the publication of some Expana Benchmark Prices.
The following weekly reports will be impacted:
The regular publishing schedule will resume on...
Trump Announces US Trade Deal With Vietnam, Including 20% Import Tariff
President Trump announced that the United States has agreed to a new trade deal with Vietnam on July 2.
Trump stated that Vietnam will pay the US a 20% tariff on all goods exported to the U.S. and a 40% tariff on transshipped goods. The higher 40% tariff targets products that are not originally made in Vietnam but are routed through the country to bypass higher tariffs. This move is significant, as many countries have used Vietnam as a transit point to avoid stricter trade penalties aimed at Chinese...
Joey Chestnut Returns to Gobbling Beef Dogs Post Plant-Based Debacle as Prices Rise
Some people have heroes like Michael Jordan and Bo Jackson, for participants in the global food industry and for competitive eating fans, the master is none other than Joey “Jaws” Chestnut. Yet last year, the king of hot dog eating did not compete in the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, NY on Independence Day due to a sponsorship conflict with Impossible Foods.
Impossible Foods does have their hot dog made from soy protein isolate, wheat gluten, sunflower oil, coconut oil, among other ingredients...
Navigating the Trump Tariff Turbulence: A Comprehensive Timeline
US President Donald Trump and his administration have paused reciprocal tariffs on most countries.
“Based on the lack of respect that China has shown... I am hereby raising the [tariff] charged to China by the [USA] to 125%, effective immediately,” wrote Trump on Truth Social at 1:18 pm ET.
It’s not clear if this 125% is in addition to the 20% imposed on Chinese imports to the US. In early March, Trump noted that he would add another 10% tariff on Chinese goods...
US Secures Market Access for Poultry Exports to Namibia
The USDA has announced expanded access for US poultry exports to Namibia, a nation located on the southwestern coast of Africa. Effective July 1, Namibia will allow imports of fresh, frozen, and chilled poultry products from the United States, opening a market valued at approximately $15 million.
Additionally, the USDA successfully negotiated the removal of restrictive export and transit permit requirements for processed poultry products—reopening a previously closed trade channel.
This development underscores the Administration’s continued efforts to eliminate non-tariff trade...
USA: Fresh Del Monte Foods Files for Bankruptcy and Plans Asset Selloff
US canned fruit and vegetable company Del Monte Foods has announced it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the District of New Jersey. The company plans to sell all or most of its assets through a court-supervised restructuring process.
The filing casts uncertainty over supply chains for core processed produce items such as peaches, pears, pineapple, sweetcorn, green beans, and tomatoes. While Del Monte Foods says it will maintain operations, any disruption or sale could affect grower contracts, procurement strategies, or pricing in the US processed produce sector.
ANALYSIS: Latest UK Customs Figures Reveal Large Sheep Trade Growth In April
The latest customs report from HMRC shows that both imports and exports of Sheep meat in the UK saw significant y-o-y growth in April 2025. Sheep meat exports and imports were at 7,690 mt and 6,422 mt respectively, accounting for a 39.9% and 28.3% y-o-y growth. Market participants attributed this to the Easter Holiday that was celebrated later than the prior year, on April 20, 2025...
Expana Expands Poultry Coverage with New Thigh and Jumbo Tender Forecasts
Expana has announced the launch of two new forecast products on its platform: US Chicken Thigh Meat and Chicken Jumbo Breast Tenders. These additions respond directly to growing client demand and further broaden Expana’s extensive coverage of the chicken market, featuring over 50 forecast price series for poultry including wings, breasts, and trim meat.
“These two new commodities within the poultry segment are of significant importance,” said Kevin Bull, Senior Forecast Analyst at Expana.
“Their introduction offers greater coverage of the market..."
PODCAST: Agri-Food for Thought Ep. 30 - M&A in the Global Agri-Food Industry, June 2025 Overview
Expana presents Agri-Food for Thought, the podcast series for agriculture and food professionals.
Today, we bring you up to speed with merger & acquisition activity in the global agrifood landscape that occurred in June 2025 as part of the monthly M&A focus series.
June 2025 M&A activity picked up marginally compared to previous months. The ongoing tariffs situation, looming deadlines, other trade disputes, and market uncertainty, have a role to play here.
ANALYSIS: Irish Beef Market Under Supply Pressure
In June 2025, Ireland’s cumulative beef processing volumes are approximately 15,000 head above the same period last year. However, tightening supply across other European countries is placing significant upward pressure on beef prices. Processors are competing aggressively to secure sufficient cattle to meet both domestic and export demand.
As of mid-2025, Ireland’s live cattle exports are 20% higher than at this point in 2024, further contributing to the supply squeeze within the country. Meanwhile, key EU beef-producing nations such as Germany, France, and the Netherlands are experiencing herd reductions...
ANALYSIS: Japan’s May 2025 Beef Imports Recede from 12-Month High
Japan’s beef imports in May 2025 eased from April’s 12-month high, slipping to 48,428 metric tons (mt), according to the latest data from Japan’s Trade Statistics.
In line with traditional trends, volumes by the world’s second largest beef importer scaled back 8.8% month-on-month (MoM) or 4,696 mt amid the short working month during the Golden Week holiday period.
Japan imported beef from two main suppliers: Australia ranked first with 25,216 mt, followed by the United States (US) at 16,591 mt...
ANALYSIS: US Pork Cold Storage Tightens Year-Over-Year Despite Seasonal Shifts
According to the USDA’s May Cold Storage report, total pork in frozen inventory declined to 450.9 million pounds, down 5.2 million pounds (- 1.1%) from April, signaling the lowest volumes recorded in the last 10 years. While month-over-month supplies are slightly lower, year-over-year inventories remain significantly tighter—down more than 31 million pounds (-6.6%) compared to May 2024—pointing to persistent supply-side constraints...
ANALYSIS: Reviewing the Downward Trend in Mexican Shoulder Clod Prices
The Mexican domestic market for bone-in and boneless shoulder clod has experienced a downward price trend since mid-June 2025, primarily driven by a notable decline in demand. Bone-in shoulder clod has depreciated by approximately 4.6% from its levels at the beginning of June, while boneless shoulder clod has dropped by about 2.8%, following record-high prices in May fueled by reduced slaughter volumes. These elevated prices, which peaked earlier in the season, began to strain buyers, prompting consumers and intermediaries to shift toward alternative...
European Investment Bank, CaixaBank Set €180 Mln in Agricultural Loans in Spain
The European Investment Bank (EIB), the long-term lending institution of the European Union, and the Spanish bank CaixaBank have announced a new line of funding for small businesses and mid-caps in the agricultural sector of €180 million.
The funding will go to projects for the modernisation of the sector and rural development. The EIB believes the “operation will help to boost the competitiveness of small businesses and mid-caps" in the agricultural and bioeconomy sectors...
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