Study Quantifies How Red Meat Exports Boost Domestic Feed Demand for Corn and Soybeans

Jun 08, 2026

Red meat exports delivered significant returns to corn and soybean producers in 2025, according to an independent study conducted by the Juday Group and released by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).

Nationally, U.S. beef and pork exports accounted for $2.18 billion in market value to corn producers in 2025, $375 million to distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS), and $1 billion to soybean producers, according to the study. U.S. beef and pork exports contributed an estimated total economic impact of 13.5% per bushel to the value of corn and 10.3% per bushel to soybeans in 2025.

Beef and pork exports in 2025 utilized the equivalent of 70.31 million bushels of Illinois corn, adding more than $301 million in value to the state's corn industry.

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Video: Validating Net Energy in Commercial Swine Systems - Gustavo Lima

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Gustavo Lima, PhD candidate at Iowa State University, explains how soybean meal net energy is evaluated using growth assays and calorimetry. He discusses caloric efficiency, validation under commercial conditions, and differences between controlled and real-world environments. Gustavo also highlights practical implications for diet formulation and ingredient valuation. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Indirect calorimetry provides a precise estimation of ingredient energy, yet validation under production conditions remains essential for accurate application in real systems.”

Meet the guest: Gustavo Lima / gustavo-lima-a9867127 is a PhD candidate in Animal Science at Iowa State University, specializing in swine nutrition, ingredient evaluation, and energy metabolism. With over 15 years of experience across Latin America, his work focuses on soybean meal utilization, caloric efficiency, and applied research for commercial production systems.